Place: Dubai
Venue:Canadian University Dubai
Format:Talk and Student Workshop
Topic:"Materials Semantics in Design Applications"
Moderates: UAE Modern
Panelists:
- Steven Velegrinis / Design Director, Gensler
- Jonathan Ashmore / Founding Principal, ANARCHITECT
- MAK / Founder, Design Director KDSV

Talk

Scarcity of resources, increased energy costs, inequalities generated by the exploitation of the earth, invite designers to think about materials for designing with a new mentality that sees today’s waste as a resource for tomorrow. However, materials not only forge us and the world we live in, but also become the vehicle of symbolic and emotional expressions. What impacts will the evolution of the material culture have on users’ perception and their ties with space?  The invited speakers will share their experiences and most iconic design projects, discussing the evolution of the material culture in the last century. 

Students Workshop

Parallel to the talk, architecture and design students from the Canadian University Dubai and De Montford University will participate in a workshop inspired by the works of Burle Marx, experimenting the relationship between colour, form and material. One of the Brazilian maestro’s drawings will be used as a backdrop for the composition of patterns made with local sand and soils, which will then be digitally processed as stock images supporting the contest “Local Cultures in Global Settings”.