»Traces of REcreation« – Online gallery presents final theses from the product design programme at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar
The online gallery »Traces of REcreation« shows 16 bachelor's and master's theses from the product design programme that were created in the winter semester 2023/24 and summer semester 2024. The graduates have worked individually or in teams on current and relevant topics such as mobility, material design, industrial design and social and critical design. The works can also be visited on site in Weimar from 11 to 14 July 2024 for summaery2024, the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar's annual exhibition.
In her master's thesis »Feeling Gender«, Mira Müller examines patriarchal structures in product design. Based on Judith Butler's theory, which describes learned sitting behaviour as a performative act that can be "unlearned" through conscious action (see »Undoing Gender«), she modified Arne Jacobsen's iconic chair in order to make patriarchal structures tangible through sitting and the chair. »For around 30 years, research has been conducted in design from a feminist perspective. However, not much has changed in terms of the existing structures in practice,« explains Müller. With the help of design theory and practice, she has analysed male dominance in product design in a speculative and critical way. »With this work, I tried to transfer the scientific discourse into design practice. The end result is not only the seating furniture created, but also the communication of the chairs through their use and their visual impact.«
Maria Clara Valencia Carmona's bachelor's thesis focuses on homeless people and their needs. She investigates how design can have a positive impact on homeless people and the systems that support them. She researched state and social services in day centres for people without a fixed address in Weimar and Leipzig, including postal services for people without a home address. Under the title »Proactive design in the social sector«, she developed a flexible space in which users of a day centre can open and process their mail independently and in peace. »A fixed place to sleep can offer stability, comfort, privacy and well-being. That's why homeless people face major challenges every day,« explains Valencia Carmona. »My design is intended to help them deal with the often very important correspondence, whether private or with the authorities, in a confidential atmosphere and with as little stress as possible.« The developed module consists of two parts: one serves as a privacy screen, the other offers additional storage space at different heights. As all day facilities are different, they can be freely positioned together or individually.
The »Traces of REcreation« exhibition not only offers an insight into the current design landscape of the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, but also encourages reflection on the future development of product design. Anyone interested is cordially invited to click through the works online or to come to the campus for summaery2024 and explore the final projects live.
Online exhibition »Traces of REcreation«
www.uni-weimar.de/tracesofrecreation
»Traces of REcreation« as part of the »summaery2024«
Thursday, 11 July to Sunday, 14 July 2023
www.uni-weimar.de/summaery
Opening hours:
Thursday: 6 – 8 p.m.
Friday and Saturday: 12 – 8 p.m.
Sunday: 12 – 6 p.m.
Location:
Faculty of Art and Design
Van de Velde Building, Room 116
Geschwister-Scholl-Straße 7
99423 Weimar
The Master's thesis »Feeling Gender« was supervised by Prof Thomas Pearce and Almut Nowack. Prof Gerrit Babtist, Almut Nowack and Masihne Rasuli supervised the Bachelor's thesis »Proactive Design in the Social Sector«.
If you have any questions, please contact Romy Weinhold, Press and Public Relations Officer at the Faculty of Art and Design, by telephone on +49 / 36 43 / 58 11 86 or by e-mail at romy.weinhold@uni-weimar.de.