Touching Down in London | Dark Matter Labs – Zoe Lee BFA ID 2024
Hello!!! I am officially across the pond. This is my first (very late) transmission – things have been a bit crazy and exciting!
My goals are to a) develop a method for strategic communications for systems change work b) make work that helps explain [strategic & systems] design’s impact and c) explore what [strategic & systems] design is in the UK and d) stabilize how I view, work in, & think through [strategic & systems] design and share with others!
Dark Matter works across themes of systems change, city transformation, regenerative economics, and governance, and more. Founded by architect Indy Johar, Dm is an mix of economists, policy experts, urban development experts, and more!
Dark Matter is self described as “working on what is needed to manifest transformations to our food, housing, land, material and nature systems towards a future of mutual thriving. In doing this, we analyse the shifts it requires in the underlying ‘dark matter’ – monetary, economic, governance, regulatory and policy systems – to make this possible, and we work with partners to demonstrate these alternatives in neighbourhoods, cities and bioregions. We share these insights openly for mutual learning“.
This can be really hard to explain. I’m not sure that I completely understand the full complexity of what Dm does yet (they do a lot), but I am having fun making work here.
While here, I’ve been developing a video on “Entangled Values” – a core concept that underpins much of their work. It has been quite the (fun!) challenge of visualizing something that is so abstract and also tangible. I’ve been working across live action and animation and have been really enjoying the process.
(a loose still from the video and part of the process)
The world of design in London feels different than in the States. I feel like there is much more of a clear academic backbone than in the states (or maybe from what I’m familiar with from Industrial Design?). I’ve never seen so many bodies of writing from designers and have been reading everything that I can. At RISD, the only space I ever encountered systems design was at the Center for Complexity (which I had the privilege of working at during my senior year!). Here, it seems like everyone is thinking and working in systems (change?).
(this is a book I am currently obsessing over)
(this is another book I am currently obsessing over)
I attended a lecture from Benjamin Bratton’s research group Antikythera.
(📍 Central Saint Martins, Kings Cross)
Being here in the first few weeks has been really eye opening. During my time at RISD [or general career up until now], I tried a lot of stuff. I’ve worked at multiple academic labs (MIT Media Lab & the Morphing Matter Lab), founded a blue-tech research group thing (SCUP Aquaculture), worked with multiple strategic design studios (Altimeter & the Center for Complexity), freelanced for climate science groups (NOAA & the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation) and more. I’ve spent my time in college in a continuous search to see where designers can be impactful outside of design (in the most traditional sense).
The funny thing about working all these odd jobs is that I never really knew what I was doing. I kept signing onto the next opportunity hoping to learn something new and hoping to find it (if you know what I mean?). Being at Dark Matter, and in London, this summer is offering some clarity. Seeing this world up close has been invaluable.
OK! More later but I g2g. Bye!