Documentation

Manifesto


Design is powerful. Design is changing the world. 
Forever bettering. Forever iterating. Forever inspiring.
Look at the world surrounding you.
Embrace the Internet. 
CyberFlâneur.

Part A - Look/Observe
• Open your eyes and close your mind.
• Use lots of tabs.
• Click all the links.
• Save things that interest you.
• Get lost on the internet.
• Take notice.
• Read.
• Watch.
• Listen.
• Browse hashtags.
• Look at social media.

Part B - Make/Create
• Be inspired, or inspire yourself.
• Try something new everyday.
• Give context and meaning.
• Always save.
• Iterate.
• Work with colour, or the absence of colour.
• Look at the digital and the physical copies.

Part C - Remember/Memorize
• Everything will work out because it has to.
• Enjoy this moment in time.
• Not everything needs to have a purpose.
• Inspire others.
• Don’t kill anything.
• Design to remember.
• Design to share.
• Design to inspire.
• Design to change.

The CyberFlâneur is an individual who aimlessly wanders the internet, observing society. Without intent, she/he is able to browse the streets of the internet, observing what is around them. Wandering through websites, topics and social media platforms, the CyberFlâneur has the ability to take inspiration from what they see, applying this new found information to their work as designers and artists. 

Taking in the surrounding world, CyberFlâneurie provides methods of viewing otherwise inaccessible parts of the world, even if it does have a filter. Although looking at our backyard is interesting, we can see variety, and increase the scope of our view. We can get lost in the obscure Instagram hashtags from around the world and get to the weird places on the Internet.


We can take inspiration from other people’s work, lifestyle and experiences. We can make our own lives better as we develop and grow as designers. We can contribute. We can do better work. We can make changes. We can make a difference. We can share. We can be inspired and inspire others.

Manifesto Aesthetic 

The visual aesthetic of my manifesto follows the designed look of an Instagram newsfeed. This continues the idea of the journey a CyberFlâneur takes while browsing the Internet.

Because the Instagram screen spaces are so small, I had to split up my content into smaller sections. This was a good thing, because it made each “screen” more powerful as they were easier to read, with less information to understand in one go. 

The individual Instagram screens are monochromatic, with black text on a white background. This is to draw focus on the words and what they are saying, in order to reinforce the idea of the CyberFlâneur and the journey she/he takes. 

The CyberFlâneur applies to more than just Instagram. It is relevant to all social media platforms and all of the Internet. It is a endless journey, taking no particular direction. I have chosen to use Instagram as a focus for the depiction of the journey because Instagram has a wide range of visual content and the use of hashtags can lead to some interesting finds.

Creative Manifestation

For the creative manifestation of our manifesto, I have created a short video describing the journey of the CyberFlâneur. It is taken from the perspective of an Instagram user, because it is one of the most visual social media's and the use of hashtags makes it easy to lose yourself within the realms of the platform.

The journey the CyberFlâneur undertakes, is one of random internet surfing. By clicking random links and pages, she/he is exposed to content they may otherwise not see see. Through exposure to new material, the CyberFlâneur has the opportunity to #discover, #create and #inspire other people, by giving content back to the internet. 




 Promotional Material

For the promotional material, to go along side our manifestos and creative manifestations, I have created a selection of polaroids. These polaroids depict a range of images from my video with hashtags written on top, presenting the main points of my manifesto.

I wanted to use a polaroid style photo because they represent the capture of a moment in time. And that is exactly what I wanted to do, through the journey of the CyberFlâneur. 

I have signed the bottom of them with my name and the year, in order to further document this moment in time, in association with myself as a designer. Therefore, people who want to take a copy of my promotional material have the key ideas of my manifesto and a keepsake for this moment in time, from when they were looking at my work and interested in it.   






For the promotional material, to go along side our manifestos and creative manifestations, I have created a selection of polaroids. These polaroids depict a range of images from my video with hashtags written on top, presenting the main points of my manifesto.

 I wanted to use a polaroid style photo because they represent the capture of a moment in time. And that is exactly what I wanted to do, through the journey of the CyberFlâneur. 

 I have signed the bottom of them with my name and the year, in order to further document this moment in time, in association with myself as a designer. Therefore, people who want to take a copy of my promotional material have the key ideas of my manifesto and a keepsake for this moment in time, from when they were looking at my work and interested in it.






For the creative manifestation of our manifesto, I have created a short video describing the journey of the CyberFlâneur. It is taken from the perspective of an Instagram user, because it is one of the most visual social media's and the use of hashtags makes it easy to lose yourself within the realms of the platform.

 The journey the CyberFlâneur undertakes, is one of random internet surfing. By clicking random links and pages, she/he is exposed to content they may otherwise not see see. Through exposure to new material, the CyberFlâneur has the opportunity to #discover, #create and #inspire other people, by giving content back to the internet.

Manifesto


(if unreadable, text copy below)

Design is powerful. Design is changing the world. 
Forever bettering. Forever iterating. Forever inspiring.
Look at the world surrounding you.
Embrace the Internet. 
CyberFlaneur.

Part A - Look/Observe
  • Open your eyes and close your mind.
  • Use lots of tabs.
  • Click all the links.
  • Save things that interest you.
  • Get lost on the internet.
  • Take notice.
  • Read.
  • Watch.
  • Listen.
  • Browse hashtags.
  • Look at social media.

Part B - Make/Create
  • Be inspired, or inspire yourself.
  • Try something new everyday.
  • Give context and meaning.
  • Always save.
  • Iterate.
  • Work with colour, or the absence of colour.
  • Look at the digital and the physical copies.

Part C - Remember/Memorize
  • Everything will work out because it has to.
  • Enjoy this moment in time.
  • Not everything needs to have a purpose.
  • Inspire others.
  • Don’t kill anything.
  • Design to remember.
  • Design to share.
  • Design to inspire.
  • Design to change.

The CyberFlaneur is an individual who aimlessly wanders the internet, observing society. Without intent, she/he is able to browse the streets of the internet, observing what is around them. Wandering through websites, topics and social media platforms, the CyberFlaneur has the ability to take inspiration from what they see, applying this new found information to their work as designers and artists. 

Taking in the surrounding world, CyberFlaneurie provides methods of viewing otherwise inaccessible parts of the world, even if it does have a filter. Although looking at our backyard is interesting, we can see variety, and increase the scope of our view. We can get lost in the obscure Instagram hashtags from around the world and get to the weird places on the Internet.

We can take inspiration from other people’s work, lifestyle and experiences. We can make our own lives better as we develop and grow as designers. We can contribute. We can do better work. We can make changes. We can make a difference. We can share. We can be inspired and inspire others.

The Influences + References of CyberFlâneur

The Life of the CyberFlâneur - John Hendel

Hendel paints a good picture of the CyberFlâneur in relation to the original, Parisian Flâneur. Depicting the actions of the CyberFlâneur as one that “‘strolls’ through the information space, taking in the virtual architecture and remaining anonymous.” As well as mentioning the various social media platforms and popular websites, Hendel compares the browsing/surfing of the internet to the observation of society, undertaken by the Flâneur. In another article by Evgeny Morozov, which talks about the death of the CyberFlâneur, Hendel opposes the viewpoints mentioned, and describes the various ways in which the CyberFlâneur continues to live and peruse the internet and seek information. This article was a good comparison of the active CyberFlâneur, to the original depiction of the Flâneur, and how Flâneurie continues to occur in modern society, both in the digital and physical forms.
Hendel, J. (2012, February). The life of the cyberflâneur. The Atlantic. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/02/the-life-of-the-cyberfl-neur/252687/ 

Streets for Cyborgs: The Electronic Flâneur and the Posthuman City - Debra Benita Shaw

Shaw introduces the concept of the CyberFlâneur with a comparison to the 19th century Flâneur and the introduction of cyberspace and mobile devices as assets. A different approach is taken however, as Shaw not only looks at the changes of the habits of the CyberFlâneur, but also the CyberFlâneur with digital technology in the urban area. In depth research into the changes in human behaviour and characteristics has also changed the way we experience the city and “Flaneur” the surrounding world, as we are assisted by technologies. This was an interesting interpretation of the CyberFlâneur in relation to the urban city. Not only was there a focus on digital technology, but also a comparison of the Flâneur to the CyberFlâneur.

Shaw, D. B. (2015). Streets for cyborgs: the electronic flaneur and the posthuman city. Space and Culture, 18(3), 230-242. doi:10.1177/1206331214560105

Taking A Line For A Walk: Walking As An Aesthetic Practice - Raymond Lucas

Lucas goes into a brief history of the Flâneur and how the practice came to be. With references to Walter Benjamin and Charles Baudelaire, Lucas describes how the Flâneur strolled aimlessly through the streets of Paris and became the observer of society. This was a good interpretation of Walter Benjamin’s writings on the Flâneur, and the aims and goals of the individual Flâneur. Lucas goes on to talk about his own interpretation of the Flâneur and puts this into practice with an example of his own work, ‘Getting Lost in Tokyo’. Although this is a take on the physical work of the Flâneur, wandering through the streets of Tokyo, it is interesting to see another persons work, thoughts and interpretations of a practice that has been around for over one hundred years.
Lucas, R. (2008). ‘Taking a line for a walk’: walking as an aesthetic practice. In T. Ingold & J. L. Vergunst (Eds.), Ways of walking: ethnography and practice on foot (pp. 168-184). Hampshire: Ashgate.

The Death of the CyberFlâneur - Evgeny Morozov

Reading Morozov’s opinions on Flâneurie and the ‘Death of the CyberFlâneur’ made me realise that although there is evidence that the aims and goals have changed slightly over time, the Flâneur, and especially the CyberFlâneur, are not dead. Information and the way we get information has changed, and this has changed the way the Flâneur is able to access information that they don't even know they are looking for. Morozov goes on to talk about Facebook and other social media sites, and how they are changing the Internet game. But this does not mean that the Flâneur isn’t able to aimlessly stumble upon information, through the social media game. This article written by Morozov for The New York Times was helpful, as it put into perspective for me that the CyberFlâneur is still alive, and stronger than ever, with more outlets to pursue.

Morozov, E. (2012, February 4). The death of the cyberflaneur. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/05/opinion/sunday/the-death-of-the-cyberflaneur.html?_r=0 

Since the last demonstration of progress, my creative manifestation has changed considerably, in terms of the narrative of the video. Previously, I created an animatic that showed the process of being inspired by the range of information and knowledge available on the Internet, and found through the process of CyberFlaneurie.

 Since then, and having worked on slightly different ideas surrounding CyberFlaneurie and my manifesto, I have changed my idea. I want to focus on the social media platform of Instagram, because this is what I personally use the most when undertaking CyberFlaneurie. I end up getting lost. scrolling through hashtags and people's profiles, looking at different pictures and videos, reading quotes and stories, and looking at cool work. Many designers, artists and other creators become #instafamous from sharing their work on Instagram, and the potential of creating a viral post is large. The actual narrative shows some Instagram hashtags of #discover and #inspire, with different scenes around Wellington, looking at the urban area, design, photography, fashion, and architecture.

At this point, I feel like I need to make the images more clearly related to Instagram, since that's where I got them from. Although the square shape of the images, are recognisable, possibly including the user details and the like and comment symbols that are #instafamous, could support this idea.

The promotional material for project four requires us to create a keepsake of our manifesto and creative manifestation. My initial idea for that was to create a polaroid snapshot of a particular moment in time of an image I found on the internet.

The resulting promotional material would be a collection of different images and a quote related to a bullet point in my manifesto. I have created a couple of test polaroids to see what this would look like. I have not yet included a quote on them, as I have not quite finalised my manifesto.


I like this idea of using a polaroid camera image to capture a moment in time. However, I think my idea needs developing quite a lot because something doesn't feel right, although I'm not quite sure what.
I have created a working moodboard of ideas for the creative manifestation in relation to my project four manifesto.

https://www.pinterest.com/sharniak/creative-manifestation/ 

This moodpboard is associated with my idea of the CyberFlaneur, also known as the Digital-Flaneur or the Electronic-Flaneur. This revolves around the idea that the Flaneur aimlessly walks around the internet taking notice of what she/he comes across. Just like the original Flaneur, she/he observes society, both being a part of and from the outside. The Flaneur has transformed and manifested from the 19th century into the 21st century and modern society. While still being applicable to modern day life, the Flaneur has manifested itself in social media and similar crevices in the internet. Considering the wide range of information and data available on the internet, the Flaneur once again, has a source of inspiration that can be used to impact and one's own design work.

In order to depict this idea of the CyberFlaneur ad to support the Rules of the CyberFlaneur manifesto I am creating, I would like to create a short and inspirational video. I want to show different sources of information and create a depiction of inspired design and sharing through social media. This journey of inspiration through to creation and sharing of work on the internet is a common one for designers. It is a way to make ourselves known by creating an internet based depiction of ourselves and also contributing to the CyberFlaneur journey's that others take.



Through this storyboard, I have shown the journey we take as CyberFlaneurs to be inspired, create and share our work. I have chosen the social media platform of Instagram because it is image based and focuses on using hashtags to circulate images.

The images above are a couple of examples of image inspirations of how I could highlight particular images of inspiration. Therefore, the use will focus in on the coloured images, without being visually overwhelmed. The images not being focuses on will be partially blurred so again the viewer looks at the particular image of focus.




I created two animatics, each with an accompanying audio track, in order to suss out the timings of the video. The first animatic moves partially in time to the audio track, which happened completely by accident (a happy accident). However, I prefer the vibe of the first animatic, as the music is quite happy and feel good. The video will be less than a minute long, so as not to bore the user, but long enough to create a narrative in order to support my manifesto of the CyberFlaneur. Based on my draft manifesto and the development since the first interim, the scenes within the storyboard accurately convey the message of the internet being a source of information and inspiration that we are able to use to inform our own designs as well as sharing our own work and giving back to the digital community and the CyberFlaneurs.

I have also been thinking about including an inspirational photo essay into part of the clip, since the creation of the storyboard/animatics. I have created a couple with some images that I like that are inspirational to me. I included the audio clips that are used in the animatics, to see how it would fit with the sounds and the timing. Although these are not the images that I would use if I decide to go down this route, it was good practice in order to see how it could work.



Audio Credits -
Computer, State Shirt, CC BY-NC-SA 3.0, retrieved from http://freemusicarchive.org/music/State_Shirt/This_Is_Old/04_Computer

Lips, Plurabelle, CC BY-NC-SA 3.0, retrieved from http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Plurabelle/Money_Blood_and_Light/Lips
With an abundance of digital technology, it is important to embrace the accessibility of new media and knowledge. Digital technology creates a vast, open field for sharing, inspiration, observation and learning. By embracing and making use of the media available to use, we can push our designs to be better and satisfy our own rubric of success.

The CyberFlaneur is an important character in the development of digital technology and social media. She/He is one that can aimlessly wander the digital realm and look at the beauty surrounding them.

  • Inspire yourself
  • Embrace what you haven't done or seen
  • Enjoy this moment in time
  • Don’t kill anything
  • Design to remember
  • Give context and meaning
  • Always save
  • Look at the digital and physical
  • Use colour or the absence of colour
  • Try something new every day
  • Not everything needs to have a purpose
  • Make other people question
  • Iterate variations
  • Open your eyes
  • Close your mind
  • Get lost in the web
  • Question everything and nothing, but not at the same time
  • Click all the links
  • Instagram it

References

Hendel, J. (2012). The life of the cyberflâneur. Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/02/the-life-of-the-cyberfl-neur/252687/ 

Lucas, R. (2008). ‘Taking a line for a walk’: walking as an aesthetic practice. In T. Ingold & J. L. Vergunst (Eds.), Ways of walking: ethnography and practice on foot (pp. 168-184). Hampshire: Ashgate.
Design as Provocateur + Craftivism

Thesis Statement/Argument

Craftivism has an important role in society by reclaiming the purpose and meaning of craft and creating social change through examining and challenging contemporary issues.

Source 1: Craft As Activism by Elizabeth Garber

In this article, Elizabeth Garber talks about craftivism and the meaning behind the social activism movement. Through the introduction of what it means to “craft” and what making things can do, craftivism is more than the product that is made. Craft activism is drawn from an array of different human rights issues and focuses on challenging contemporary issues through the process of crafting objects. Using different examples, Garber shows how craftivism challenges social issues such as feminism, sustainability, cultural issues, economic troubles and politics. Also mentioned are the different types of craft outputs such as knitting, cross stitch, embroidery, crochet etc and how challenging messages and statements can be communicated through this medium. Garber goes into further detail to talk about the reasons why people want to create these social challenges an crafts are the medium chosen to do it.

 This resource provides a good basis of what craftivism is, why people do it and how they use craftivism to challenge society. I have been aware of craftivism for a couple of years, but I have never looked into what it is and how it became a way of activism. Through this article, I can understand the history behind the challenging method and look at how craftivism is continuing to develop.
Garber, E. (2013). Craft as activism. The Journal of Social Theory in Art Education (Online), 33. 53-66. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1466173639?accountid=14782 

Source 2: Fabricating Activism: Craft-Work, Popular Culture, Gender by Jack Z. Bratich and Heidi M. Brush

In this article, craftivism and fabriculture is examined, as well as looking at how digital culture is incorporated into this area of social and political activism. Previously, craft focused on hand made and ‘crafted’ products, but now with the development of digital technology and the resurgence of this artform, there are online blogs and groups that transfer craftivism into the digital realm. Not only are these social challenges passively questioning issues, the level at which they are seen is expanding through more effective methods of communication via digital technology. The comparison of new and old methods of craft creation is reviewed and looks at the differences in meaning behind the method of creation e.g. cross stitch for decoration versus cross stitch as a feminist challenge on gender equality.

This article is going to be useful to review the comparison of craft then and now and the incorporation of digital technology as an assistive medium to communicate the creative craft output and challenge it presents. Other forms of activism that are similar to craftivism are reviewed, providing deeper meaning and justification as to why contemporary challenges are presented through a physical craft manifestation.
Bratich, J. Z., & Brush, H. M. (2011). Fabricating activism: craft-work, popular culture, gender. Utopian Studies, 22(2), 233-260. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/utopianstudies.22.2.0233

Source 3: Homemade and Hell Raising Through Craft, Activism, and Do-It-Yourself Culture - Elena Solomon

This journal article focuses on how craftivism derives from a broader do-it-yourself culture and the different ways to project craftivism to the world and compares professional and amateur attempts. The difference in value of professional and amateur work is highlighted as it brings up issues regarding historical craft without intent of social activism. This also brings up the issue of gender stereotype in relation to tactile media, the creation of these manifestations and presentation. The author makes an interesting observation, looking at how virtual craftivists can create successful projects out of virtual connections, transforming the way historic forms of craft collaboration created learning environments with bonding elements.

This is a useful journal article for my critical writing because the author looks at craftivism in the broader sense of the do-it-youself lifestyle and the activists intent. Taking a step back from craftivism can help to see how other ways of activism are influenced by this popular method. There is also a comparison of virtual and in-person craft activism that looks at how craftivism can develop for successful future activism.

Solomon, E. (2013). Homemade and hell raising through craft, activism, and do-it-yourself culture. Psychology Journal, 11(1), 11-20. Retrieved from www.psychnology.org.  

Habitual Fixation



For this project, I want to create a spatial ambiance to accompany my photo essay. Using Garageband and Adobe Audition to create a 30 second clip, I want to associate the sound with the feeling of the images in my essay.

 The feelings I want to convey through this spatial ambiance is the sound of hope through a dark situation. The dark situation represents the flaws in society that I have found such as littering, broken glass, graffiti etc. The hope essence in this ambiance represents the attempts at partially fixing these flaws and broken things, in order to make them not as bad or not as dangerous to people. 

 I hope to convey a sense of hope through this accompanying piece which shows the good in human nature.

 Sun Glitters -


Sea of Glass -


Disposition - 


Below are some more images that look at small attempts at fixing flaws in the physical society. These were taken as I attempted to Flaneur my way to School of Design, deviating from the route I normally walk.
















Powered by Blogger.

About

I am a designer, currently studying Design Innovation at Victoria University of Wellington. My focus areas are website and mobile media development, interaction design, 3D modelling and animation and audio-visual space. My blog shows my journey through each project as well as my learning experience through university. What do I want to be when I grow up? I have no idea. But I love what I'm learning. Although there have been many bumps along the road in this journey and despite the fact that there are going to be many more, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Labels