Motivated by my own experiences from living and working in a Camphill community, I explored the frictions between design and disability. I wanted to explore how design could intervene beyond the mere compensation of disadvantages. Why do we aim to adapt people to the environment if it is the designed environment that disables them in the first place?

project phases:

1. theoretical research

The paper discusses the social and moral responsibility of the design discipline, by taking a closer look at the Speechless Project from the Design Research Lab at the University of the Arts in Berlin. After discussing the normality concept different disability terminologies are examined.

Central ideas of Inclusive Design, Universal Design, and Design for all are discussed, by comparing them to each other and by placing them into the wider context of socially sustainable design. Subsequent to a short introduction to the Design Research Lab and its approaches in general, the theoretical motivations for the Speechless Project are presented. Two major outcomes of the project are then introduced: The Lorm Hand and The Lorm Glove. The general ideas and technical functionalities of these projects are introduced and their relevance within an inclusive design approach is discussed afterward.

Read the essay here.

2. expert interviews

Talking to people professionally and personally occupied with the topic, my interest was particularly drawn to the way disabilities are currently being assessed by the authorities. A point or percentage-based system depending on your condition hereby generates a numerical value that eventually decides if you are eligible of being disabled or not.

3. experience prototyping

The objective way of assessing humans both irritated and interested me, as it creates normality that sets itself not in contrast to the concept of disabilities but shapes its own norm within it. Sparked by the question of how people literally fit into that standard, I created a set of gloves that embody the Icelandic disability scale concerning the loss of fingers. Every glove hereby represents a certain degree of disability to which one can relate oneself by wearing it.

reflection:

Working on the project first and foremost made me question the scientific methodologies of my former field of study: psychology. Ambitiously acquiring research skills for more than three years, I realized that during that time I had not once stepped back and reflected.

The project enabled me to transform the constant hazy feeling of discontentment I encountered during my BA into an active discussion about the problems I see within that field and how I can react to them from a design perspective. Engaging with a concept as significant and delicate as disabilities on the other hand once again showed me the vast responsibility of the designer, a conclusion that is extremely motivating and frightening at the same time.

exploring frictions between design & disability