Aurgho Jyoti MDes ’13 along with Saurabh Tewari (Researcher at IIT Kanpur, India) presented their collaborative research at the Design History Society Annual Conference held at California College of Arts, San Francisco in September. The presentation was titled “Holistic Design Principles driven by Socio-Environmental Visions: Indian Sub-Continent.” The research delineated holistic local design principles that are culturally rooted and resonate globally. Through an investigation into the post-colonial Design History of India, the research explored Social and Environmental Visions in the Indian context. It highlighted the fact, that in Indian socio-politics, with post-independence modernization by Jawaharlal Nehru, economic liberalization of the nineties, and currently Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s aggressive call for 100 smart cities, it is critical to retrospect for a culturally rooted future. One can find cases within the socio-environmental discourse of 20th century, where Social, Environmental and Humanitarian domains overlap to form a utopia, which is self-governed. Design at multiples scales thread together with underlying responsive and cultural principles.

The presentation highlighted:

  • Food Design – Vegetarianism and Food Cycle
  • Textile Design – Khadi and Charkha
  • Product Design – Craft and Art Revival
  • Building Design / Architecture – Local Building Materials and Sustainability
  • Urban Design – Villages

The Design History Society, founded in 1977 in London, is a leading organization that promotes the study of global design histories, and brings together and supports all those engaged in the subject. The society plays an important role in shaping an inclusive design history. This year’s conference themed “How we live, and How we might live”: Design and the Spirit of Critical Utopianism was held at the California College of Arts, San Francisco, September 11-13, 2015.

December 2015