“Ways of sitting”. Using Design as a tool, children explore the living experience in space perception
Published:
Jul 27, 2019
Keywords:
design thinking design practices and education space experience ergonomics anthropometry
Abstract
The space in which the child finds himself/herself, as well as the surrounding objects, provide important stimuli for the way a child perceives the world (Piaget, Inhelder, 1985). Is this taken into consideration in education? The structures of education and the city adopt interceding norms that hinder a child’s free and creative search of new
conditions (Kirst 2005).
The present paper presents an educational program of the innovative Design Lab for children aged 9-11, organized and coordinated by the Industrial Design Lab of the AUTh School of Visual and Applied Arts, under the primary educational programs of MMCA. Utilizing the educational tools that Design offers, children experiment with space, their bodies, and new materials. They understand the concepts of anthropometry, ergonomics (Liamadis 2013), scale and analogy (Tsoukala 2000).
The case study is triggered by the open question “ways of sitting”. The children seek different ways to sit, in order to experience space. The point of the open-ended question is not the designing of another chair according to the preconceived notions, as much as exploring the experience in space. The different sitting positions bring out different living experiences in space perception. Through this project, children seek and design ways of sitting following the object’s scale, according to their explorations, wants and needs.
conditions (Kirst 2005).
The present paper presents an educational program of the innovative Design Lab for children aged 9-11, organized and coordinated by the Industrial Design Lab of the AUTh School of Visual and Applied Arts, under the primary educational programs of MMCA. Utilizing the educational tools that Design offers, children experiment with space, their bodies, and new materials. They understand the concepts of anthropometry, ergonomics (Liamadis 2013), scale and analogy (Tsoukala 2000).
The case study is triggered by the open question “ways of sitting”. The children seek different ways to sit, in order to experience space. The point of the open-ended question is not the designing of another chair according to the preconceived notions, as much as exploring the experience in space. The different sitting positions bring out different living experiences in space perception. Through this project, children seek and design ways of sitting following the object’s scale, according to their explorations, wants and needs.
Article Details
- Section
- THEMATIC FIELD IV Introducing innovations for the upgrade of the educational environment
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