Design Workbooks

Having now read Gavers "Making Spaces: How Design Workbooks Work", I have some thoughts to share. The article essentially describes the process of creating what most architecture students would already know as a sketchbook. What is of more interest, Gaver also discusses some of the short comings of such documents, one of which being that they actually require quite a lot of work to read as a well organised, coherent document.

I know from my own preliminary research that some students struggle in the initial design stage to come up with work to put down before a tutor. There is a perception that being able to talk is enough, when I'm not 100% sure that it is... There is however an unwillingness to be criticised for under developed ideas. Whilst this is problematic, I don't think that any kind of digital sketch book with bells on is ever going to over come this, its a fundamental problem that comes out of architecture being complicated.

Gaver asserts that design workbooks, even in their chaotic loosely formed guise, can generate discussion. I am though concerned that sometimes sketch books that represent a safe environment is which to explore ideas, become quite guarded. Private sanctums outside of which a greater emphasis placed on the presented "finished image" as representing an architectural idea or intention.

My mind turns back to some of my other early readings to do with self reflection, including the "Slow Technology" paper is discussed on these pages back in June. One of my own interviewee's termed the experience (in reality little more than a chat), "a great opportunity for introspection", which was a positive for me as I believe there is much to be gained from thinking about what you've done well or badly previously. We are or see ourselves as so busy, there is a risk perhaps that we miss the important lessons we should have learned.

I think that the project that I am formulating is really dual faceted. On the one hand it is about sharing, and on the other refection. The mechanism for this is spontaneous revision of past experiences, rather than attempting to capture the ongoing design process as a "design workbook" might. I could envisage more purely practical spin offs for such a system, opened up to potential employers for example, that could encourage participation and play off the competitive streak I have seen as a problem elsewhere within the school.

Reference;

Gaver, W., "Making Spaces: How Design Workbooks Work", (CHI 7 - 12 May), ACM