Simo Puintila & Kaisu Savola鈥檚 installation Hidden Statements was presented at the LUX Helsinki light festival in January 2025
Since the 19th century, every era has had its own influential 鈥榟ero designers鈥 and 鈥榮tar architects鈥 who, through their works and words, have defined the ideals of the built environment. Hidden Statements is a participatory work that allows visitors to explore the quotes of these famous architects and designers. However, when placed under the spotlight, difficult questions emerge between the lines: who gets to decide how and from what perspectives our living environments are designed? Whose voice remains unheard, and which viewpoints remain unexplored?
Kaisu Savola is one of the speakers at this year鈥檚 Alvar Aalto Design Seminar
Checkpoint! How is the design heritage renewing itself? How will authentic and human design, crafts and cohabitation flourish in the age of AI?
will be held on Tuesday 10.6.2025 in the Main Building of the University of Jyv盲skyl盲 (Alvar Aalto, 1954-55). The one-day seminar opens up the challenges of today鈥檚 design field amidst major global changes. Three topical themes are Authenticity, Cohabitation and Evolution. We look with optimism towards a diverse future of sustainable development in design. The seminar鈥檚 first speakers are now listed: Designer Ineke Hans (NL), Professor Design & Social Context at UdK-Berlin (DE); Design Professor Ann Light, University of Sussex (UK) and Malm枚 University (SE); Design lead and entrepreneur Zeynep Falay Von Flittner, Falay Transition Design (FI/TUR); Design historian and curator Kaisu Savola, Aalto University (FI); Industrial designer Harri Koskinen, head of Friends of Industry Ltd. (FI) and CEO Hanna Neuvo, FYRA Design Agency (FI).
A Work Of Translation: Researching Design Culture
Interview with Guy Julier and Annamari V盲nsk盲 in World Design Organisation Newsletter about Design Culture Research Group.
Feminist Border Crossings
Feminist Border Crossings seminar explored the significance of design in contemporary societies from feminist perspectives.
An article about the half-day seminar organized at Aalto University to celebrate the launch of the Design Culture Studies Research Group and the 20th anniversary of Hilma, a network of ten gender studies units in Finland.
Visiting Lecture "Women's Wisdom: Re-Framing the Study of Design and Fashion" by Professor Hazel Clark from Parsons School of Design, New School, New York 11.10.2024 at Aalto University's Seminar Feminist Border Crossings.
In media
Nokian salaiset suunnitelmat - Viime tingassa pelastetut Nokian dokumentit avaavat uudenlaisen n盲kym盲n matkapuhelinten historiaan. HS Visio tutustui julkaisemattomia tuotteita ja luottamuksellisia suunnitelmia sis盲lt盲v盲盲n muotoiluarkistoon.
The Crazy Nokia Designs That Never Saw the Light of Day - The Nokia Design Archive features some of the company鈥檚 wackier mobile ideas, including wearables, a touchscreen credit card, and a phone that lets you feel the texture of images.
Lord of the ringtones: Nokia celebrates pop-culture status by opening design archive. The mobile phones we loved then lost are honoured by an online archive which reveals history of bestselling brand.
鈥淒o you buy fashion from online stores? Customer data leaks to third parties, new study shows鈥.
A newspaper article on the publication by Annamari V盲nsk盲, Natalia S盲rm盲kari and colleagues, Sunnuntaisuomalainen, 2 October (in Finnish).
Your taste is not yours. In datafied world, gathering data has become so precise that it is no longer possible to talk about an individual's taste in the sense that was previously thought.
Annamari V盲nsk盲's interview about taste and algorithms in the daily newspaper Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish).
Understanding Fashion Scandals (2023) by Annamari V盲nsk盲 and Olga Gurova
Svenska YLE
鈥淰i 盲r moralpoliser som styr med v氓ra likes och pengar: S氓 uppst氓r en modeskandal鈥, an article about the book by Annamari V盲nsk盲 and Olga Gurova.
Kulturnytt
鈥淢odev盲rlden 盲r centrum f枚r skandaler som handlar om v氓r egen moral鈥. Kulturnytt on the book by Annamari V盲nsk盲 and Olga Gurova.
Podcast
鈥淧 Diddys 1000 flaskor babyolja och 784 dildon: Nu sitter rapparen h盲ktad鈥, a podcast on fashion scandals inspired by the book by Annamari V盲nsk盲 and Olga Gurova.
OPEN CALL: Nordic Fashion, Printed Culture and Heritage Making
This summer, International Library of Fashion Research institutes a pilot researcher-in-residence program, with an aim to expand the knowledge around contemporary Nordic fashion cultures. As a stimulating meeting point and resource for fashion research in the Nordics, the researcher-in-residence program will be an important initiative to collect, archive and preserve printed matter from this region, including (but not limited to) magazines, photo books, catalogs, illustrations and other physical ephemera and documents, based on a multitude of Nordic fashion practitioners, collectors and institutions, to ultimately integrate this material as a significant specialization of our permanent collection 鈥 and cherish it for the future.
The researcher-in-residence pilot program will begin on August 1st 2024 and end on December 1st 2024. A stipend of 50,000 Norwegian kroner is allocated to the selected researcher. It鈥檚 fully possible to combine the program with other professional endeavors or studies. Occasional visits to International Library of Fashion Research鈥檚 collection and study space in Oslo will be arranged, and it鈥檚 not mandatory to be physically present in Oslo during the entire course of the program. 鈥淣ordic Fashion, Printed Culture and Heritage Making鈥 is supported by the Nordic Culture Fund.
To apply and read more:
Namkyu Chun, a member of Design Culture research group, has been appointed to the advisory board of the pilot researcher-in-residence program for "Nordic Fashion, Printed Culture and Heritage Making" at the International Library of Fashion Research in Oslo, Norway.
Talks and discussions in September
Thursday 26th September Annamari V盲nsk盲 gives a talk on the lecture series Muodin huipulla at the Museum Milavida in Tampere. The title of her talk is 鈥淎alto Fashion: Suomalaisen muodin edell盲k盲vij盲鈥 (Aalto Fashion: The Forerunner of Finnish Fashion).
Friday 13th September Annamari V盲nsk盲 gives a talk at the Joensuu Literary Event 鈥淭aste in Literature and in Other Arts鈥. The title of her talk is 鈥淜uka p盲盲tt盲盲 mist盲 tykk盲盲t? Maku digitalisoituvassa kulttuurissa鈥 (Who decides what you like? Taste in digitalizing culture).
September 4th at . The book talk series Nide Live returns with a deep dive into the world of fashion and its many scandals 鈥 from marketing tools to existential crises. Authors and researchers Annamari V盲nsk盲 and Olga Gurova discuss their new book (Bloomsbury, 2024 ) that explores past fashion scandals, analyses recent controversies and brand responses, and shows a way forward towards a more just and inclusive fashion world. Nide (Fredrikinkatu 35) Free entry.
Design Culture Research Group
Exploring the significance of design in contemporary society.
Design Culture Research Projects
Research projects from the Design Culture research group.
Design Culture People
Design Culture brings together academics in the Department of Design who explore the significance of design in contemporary society.
Design Culture Events
Events organised by the Design Culture research group
Design Culture Publications
Publications by the Design Culture research group
