@misc{40ce172bb2aa4975a909e527e4b8400a,
title = "A Feminine Approach to Design",
author = "Kate McEntee and \{Gunther Anderson\}, Jon and Isabella Brandalise",
note = "audio recording with accompanying visuals Research background: This work was a collaboration with two international design research colleagues, Isabella Brandalise (Brazil) and Jon G{\"u}nther-Andersen (Denmark) and is based in design research and practice. It is a creative response to an ongoing research collaboration in which we are trying to recognize and understand the feminine in design through practices of listening, storytelling and letter writing. Feminine design is an invitation to explore qualities, or moments, that infiltrate uniform structures and discourses in the design field. These moments often fall into conflict with modern values such as purpose, determination, universalism, Fordism, concentration and permanence (Harvey, 1996). Designers working in spaces of social innovation, civic laboratories, political discourse and academia are passively and overtly forced to shape their work processes and outputs to fit into structured, and often detrimental, requirements for outputs and measurement (Abdulla et. al. 2016; Akama and Yee, 2016; Willis, 2017). Through this work we ask: How does a conception of feminine design expand and open up possibilities for contemporary design practice? In what ways do these feminine qualities capitalise on opportunities presented by dominant structure and discourse? Can we use alternative forms of knowing and doing (knowledge production and practice) relying on our senses outside of dominant discourses to advance research? Research contribution: For this piece, we curated stories of practitioners currently working in expanded design practices around the world. We weaved these practice examples with theoretical design perspectives. We wrote and recorded a series of letters amongst designers in response to a fictional call for projects demonstrating the feminine in design. Through listening to others{\textquoteright} stories participants were invited to consider themes of {\textquoteleft}feminine{\textquoteright} in design practice and share their reflections through correspondence to the design community. The work generated conversation revealing the challenges of allowing {\textquoteleft}feminine{\textquoteright} to exist beyond {\textquoteleft}woman{\textquoteright}, the political implications of using gender-based terminology and a reluctance to apply categorization that feels divisive. Ultimately the conversation led us to a place of needing to reclaim the word {\textquoteleft}feminine{\textquoteright} and associated qualities as they apply to design practice in order to demonstrate their strength and value. Research significance: This work was accepted through a double-blind peer review process to a prominent international design research conference hosted in Europe by the seminal international design research organization, the Design Research Society. It was part of a series of conversations which included exhibition display and two-hour conversation sessions. These conversations were curated to sit alongside papers presented at the conference and created space for deeper reflections and engagements with topics. Participation was capped at 30 people and the session immediately sold out with several requests to repeat the work in other locations. We are in the process of iterating on the work and re-creating it for other venues in response. Subsequent manifestations: Monash University, Melbourne, Australia, DRaW (Design Reading and Writing) hosted event, 5 participants GNova, Bras{\'i}lia, Brazil, 1 August 2018, 8 participants ; Design Research Society (UK) International Conference 2018 : Catalyst, DRS 2018 ; Conference date: 25-06-2018 Through 28-06-2018",
year = "2018",
language = "English",
publisher = "Design Research Society",
url = "http://www.drs2018limerick.org/conference/drs-2018",
}