Abstract
This paper presents the co-design process implemented throughout a project called “My Architect and I” and the prototypes of tools that emerged from it. These prototypes aim to improve the interactional practices between architects and user-clients in the context of private housing projects in Belgium. The purpose of this study is to identify the roots and triggers shaping the artefacts designed throughout the process. This paper focuses on one of the prototypes brought up by the project. This tool was put together in a short amount of time, under the pressure of the codesign workshops schedule. It results in a paper booklet imagined as a form to be filled in by user-clients in order to inform the architects on their desires and needs. As we take a step back and reflect on the overall outputs from this research through design, we break down each aspect of the booklet to identify the origin of the design choices. This may inform broader design criteria to imagine other tools or strategies to facilitate the interactions between an architect and user-client. This method of deconstructing an artefact is an attempt at objectifying the codesign process’ added value. The evolving prototype isn’t considered as an end in itself, but rather as a mean to reflect on the facilitation process.
Keywords
Interactional tool; Codesign; Research through design; Architectural practices; Contact form
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/eksig2023.139
Citation
Mertens, A., Yönder, Ç., Hamarat, Y.,and Elsen, C.(2023) Origins of design choices: retrospective analysis of the resulting prototype of a Research through Design project, in Silvia Ferraris, Valentina Rognoli, Nithikul Nimkulrat (eds.), EKSIG 2023: From Abstractness to Concreteness – experiential knowledge and the role of prototypes in design research, 19–20 June 2023, Milan, Italy. https://doi.org/10.21606/eksig2023.139
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Origins of design choices: retrospective analysis of the resulting prototype of a Research through Design project
This paper presents the co-design process implemented throughout a project called “My Architect and I” and the prototypes of tools that emerged from it. These prototypes aim to improve the interactional practices between architects and user-clients in the context of private housing projects in Belgium. The purpose of this study is to identify the roots and triggers shaping the artefacts designed throughout the process. This paper focuses on one of the prototypes brought up by the project. This tool was put together in a short amount of time, under the pressure of the codesign workshops schedule. It results in a paper booklet imagined as a form to be filled in by user-clients in order to inform the architects on their desires and needs. As we take a step back and reflect on the overall outputs from this research through design, we break down each aspect of the booklet to identify the origin of the design choices. This may inform broader design criteria to imagine other tools or strategies to facilitate the interactions between an architect and user-client. This method of deconstructing an artefact is an attempt at objectifying the codesign process’ added value. The evolving prototype isn’t considered as an end in itself, but rather as a mean to reflect on the facilitation process.