Twelve fourth year RSID students and one faculty member traveled to Guatemala’s Highlands for a 10-day self-funded field research trip. Students conducted ethnographic research with students, staff, teachers and parents from Life School – including conducting a design workshop with school children ages 3-14. Traveling by motorboat, participants visited smaller outlying communities utilizing micro-financing methods. The group joined in a range of Mayan ceremonies and rituals (relating to cuisine, costumes, blessings, and funerals) and visited Mayan ruins and UNESCO heritage sites in Antigua, Guatemala.
Design Activism: Developing Models, Modes and Methodologies of Practice journal is now available online. Download it here.
GUEST EDITOR: Dr. Lorella Di Cintio for the IDEA
PROVOCATION
The living conditions of First Nations communities, food-security concerns, access to clean safe water, domestic violence – seemingly disparate subjects can be, and are being, connected to interior design teaching and practice. Such issues are particularly linked to the ongoing discussions of designers working within the new global design paradigm. There is evidence that a range of worthwhile initiatives have been undertaken by design professionals who choose to pursue socially responsible practices, and by educators and practitioners who are intentionally shifting away from a focus on pure aesthetics and market-driven practices.
Dissatisfied with what they perceive as an over-emphasis by the design community on aesthetics, and its failure to meaningfully address the design needs of at-risk and low-income communities, several academics and practitioners have started to incorporate social-justice issues into their design research and teaching – while a number of independent design practitioners are involving themselves in activism.
Design activism is a combined entity of aesthetics and ethics. It is trans-disciplinary, it incorporates mixed media, and it is inspired by the ethics of socio-political activism and community building. Several design activists have partnered with the design profession and specific political agencies to create design solutions that meet the needs of politically, economically, and socially disadvantaged communities, but initiatives are sporadic. In order to make what are now essentially grassroots initiatives a part of the mainstream, models and methodologies for action need to be developed within the design academy. As guest editor, this call is shaped by my desire to make ethics a more central component of interior design practice and pedagogy.
This journal’s theme calls for a re-thinking of interior design pedagogy and a review of current practices found in design activism. For instance, the author(s), could consider and highlight noteworthy projects of scholars whose pedagogy and critical work is linked with activism, and/or respond to pedagogical shifts found in the field of design activism, particularly as they emerge in and relate to the discipline of interior design/interior architecture.
The goals of this call are two-fold: to promote debate, discussion and theorization among designers, design academics and various segments of the general public about the place of ethics and activism in design, and to contribute to the development of knowledge that focuses on embedding design activism into the design curriculum and design profession. The overall objective of the call is to encourage a shift towards activism in interior design theory and design education.
GUEST EDITOR:
Lorella Di Cintio, PhD, is a faculty member in the School of Interior Design at Ryerson University. She has been educated in Canada, United States, and Europe in the fields of Interior Design, Architecture, and Philosophy. Her research focuses primarily on design activism and social responsibility and she is the founder of The Design Change = Exchange Initiative. She is affiliated with the Centre for Studies in Food Security and EDGE lab at Ryerson University. Her area of research focuses on the social and political positions undertaken by designers. Current projects explore and employ various design strategies in the areas of design activism, cross-cultural collaborative design learning, civic engagement and participation, food security activism and human-centred design models. Di Cintio is a dedicated and respected advocate for equity, inclusion and social justice at Ryerson and beyond. She has forged working partnerships with First Nations communities in Canada and Mexico, and her students’ designs have supported Toronto food-bank users, Haitian earthquake survivors, and others. Di Cintio creates unique pedagogical links among design, service learning, and such complex issues as socioeconomic status and food security. She works to develop curriculum that transforms theory into practice.
She has received a silver medal for design education and service from the Universidad Iberoamericana, and represented Ryerson on a design mission to China. Several of Professor Di Cintio’s appointments and accolades, both academically and within the profession, have been “first precedents” for the School of Interior Design. She is an academic reviewer for the Journal of Interior Design with a focus on service-learning pedagogy, and she was recently awarded the position of Editor-in-Charge of Service Activities in Academia with the Interior Design Educators Council (a North American organization). Lorella Di Cintio is increasingly recognized as a leader in the teaching of design activism and the pursuit of design with a conscience.
List of Content:
EDITORIAL Design Activism: Developing models, modes and methodologies of
practice Lorella Di Cintio
VISUAL ESSAY Dear Rosa Julieanna Preston
VISUAL ESSAY Repurposing the Past Tüüne-Kristin Vaikla
PROJECT REVIEW Peace & Quiet Sandra Wheeler
Designing a Community Garden Davide Fassi, Alessandro Sachero and Giulia Simeone
REFEREED STUDIO Unsolicited Interiors Charity Edwards
Contributory Economies, Design Activism and the DIY Urbanism of Renew Newcastle Cathy D. Smith and Michael Chapman
Gate 81: Saving Preston Bus Station Sally Stone
Rethinking Our Values to Achieve Emancipatory Design Jennifer Webb and Brent T. Williams
Envisioning a Future Fleur Palmer (Te Rarawa/Te Aupouri)
BOOK REVIEW M2 Models and Methodologies for Community Engagement
Edited by Reena Tiwari, Marina Lommerse and Dianne Smith Elke Krasny
Transitions in Progress: Making Space for Place is part of an international artist collaboration titled Performigrations: People Are the Territory, which explores issues of mobility and migration, featuring seven artists and arts collectives in seven cities across Europe and Canada (Bologna, Lisbon, Klagenfurt, Athens, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver). Transitions in Progress will constitute the sixth instalment of this international project and is scheduled to take place between September and October 2015 in different locations along the Queen Street corridor (September 1-5) and in the Paul H. Cocker Architecture Gallery at Ryerson University (October 19-24).
TiP (Transitions in Progress) is conceived as a three-pronged project: a mobile media lab, a gallery installation, and an online archive. For more information on the project, visit Transitions in Progress: Making Space for Place.
The Stop Night Market once again played house to a sold-out crowd this time activating a vacant lot in the Junction neighbourhood. Ryerson University’s Interior Design School entered six carts and two installations to the Night Market’s roster that lent a perfect back drop to the mouth-watering and savoury cuisines. The proceeds of the fundraiser go towards supporting The Stop’s many community-building programs, including: a food bank, drop-in meals, community cooking & gardening, perinatal nutrition & support, education for children & youth, peer advocacy, and civic engagement.
RASA
Truffle gnudi
Cart by ninety3/4
BRANCA
Sweet corn and beef brisket empanadas
Cart by wE>
SMALL TOWN FOOD CO.
Fresh and chips
Cart by Salt and Light
I
HAWTHRONE
Chicken skin taco
Cart by ingrain
TORI’S BAKESHOP
Tasty toast
Cart by LOCKWOOD
Installation by TAKE OUT
MALIVOIRE
Small Lot Gamay and Ladybug Rose
Cart by Ay Bee See Stop
The Stop Night Market 2015 takes place Tuesday, June 16th & Wednesday, June 17th in the vacant lot at 181 Sterling Road in Toronto. This annual fundraising event is a captivating mash-up of the best of Toronto’s street food, art, music, and offers Torontonians a unique chance to experience an iconic space like they’ve never seen it before. Inspired by night markets from around the world, The Stop’s Night Market transforms a public space into a tantalizing feast for the senses over two summer nights in June, featuring over 60 chefs, 20 local beverage vendors, and 35 one-of-a-kind food carts created by local designers.
rMark is a platform that allows first year interior design students to join in on the conversation about design activism, pro bono design, food security and social innovation.
This semester, our students have been hand-crafting wooden kitchen objects. Selected works will be exhibited at the Ryerson School of Interior Design Year-end Show and are available for purchase. http://www.yesxrsid.ca/yesxrsid
For the past 8 years, we have raised funds for The Stop Community Food Centre. 100% of the proceeds go to support The Stop’s critical and innovative anti-poverty and anti-hunger programs. http://www.thestop.org/
Our goal is to raise $1,500.00. Minimum bid will start at $50.00 Canadian.
Come and support a worthy cause and show us how you will mark your mark on design here.
We are now accepting proposals from design teams that would like to create unique food carts for our 2015 Night Market event! Please download the complete Design Manual at the link. Submissions are due no later than Sunday, March 15th at midnight. Please send any questions to our Design Committee at nightmarketdesign@gmail.com.
As the City of Toronto ponders food truck restrictions, Ryerson Interior Design students and alumni are doing cartwheels!
RSID students have been exploring the socio-spatial dynamics of food carts since 2006 and they are great promoters of the Toronto Pro Bono design movement. Design Activism at its best. See what we’ve been up to here.
Congratulations to our students, alumni and friends! 5 Carts 20 RU alumni, students, friends, and staff have been selected for The Stop Night Market which will take place on June 17 and 18th 2014. See the selection below:
Bare Minimum
McKayla Durant
Emma Hannaford
Lindsay Hill
Katrina Clancy
The students are smoothing out the details of their CNC-ed MDF panels. Facts and quotes will cover the boards in varying sizes. Lighting will bring the words to life and provoke the audience to consider what it takes to make social change.
The panels will require extra sanding and meticulous effort in transporting it from one place to another due to the large amount of MDF, but the students managed to come up with a system that left the MDF panels flawless.
The students have a thorough discussion with the CNC lab technician, Steven. They managed to work out all the kinks in their CAD file for the CNC machine. He has volunteered 10 hrs of his Saturday to help them get all these MDF panels CNC-ed for the Interior Design Show.
Now that the text is done. The students look at how to light up the message. Layers of depth and size showcase how the narrative will be showcased and displayed for IDS2014.
Cheers to the New Year! To kick off 2014 we look at how the students of Studio North are bringing awareness to food security through a very elegant and Victorian inspired place setting. When did you last meal look like this?
Fork details
Utensils for dessert.
Water glass.
Knife and spoon details.
The students place the laser cut out table setting into the interior frame.
Studio North experiment with colours for the interior design of the booth.
In order to contrast the wooden exterior, bold choices of colour are intended to shock and excite the viewer through its vibrancy and saturation. Red, orange, and yellow are colours often associated with hunger and appetite.
The exhibition will consist of two views: One, speaks to The Stop and their mandate around local food security and pro bono work. The exterior will lack colour to emphasizes the reality of the issue, and how “it’s not pretty”.
The other view is filled with utensils, in highly saturated display boxes. This highlights how design is about aesthetics as well as serving a purpose – to promote awareness of social issues.
Drawings/renderings by Emma.
In the workshop, Emma and Maral use the bandsaw to cut up wooden panels for a test box of the interior. Varying wood stains are used to test interior colour options and how it will contrast with the raw and unfinished wooden exterior.
Studio North creates mock-up models of the exterior panels in paper. The CAD drawings are printed at full-scale – to test whether or not the size of the cutouts will work physically and how it will be visually experienced by visitors.
For more on the process see Studio North’s blog here
The students got a sneak peak at the exhibition floor this past week. IDS held an orientation meeting at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre where they got the chance to ask the organizing committee questions regarding the move-in-date, what is permitted on site and the construction of the booth.
Their booth will be exhibiting along side 7 other schools across Canada.
They are extremely excited about the fact that our booth will likely be seen by most of the consumers as we will be located in the same location as the coat-check.
The 2014 Creative Class space will revolve around themes of Climate Change and Pro-Bono work. Forms and messaging will guide the exhibition to reflect a thought-provoking and interactive piece.
12 Students from Ryerson School of Interior Design will be exhibiting their work and ideas at the 2014 Interior Design Show (January 23-26 2014)
Come see our 2 booths located in Studio North and Creative Class sections.
(Metro Convention Centre North Building)
Creative Class Location: Room 205/206
Studio North Booth: SN22
It was another successful event for the students of Ryerson’s Interior Design program and The Stop Night Market as the team served to a sold out crowd. Tucked behind the alleyway of Honest Ed’s sat 44 food vendors dishing out delectable treats in support of efforts to combat hunger and malnutrition in the GTA. This outdoor gastro-avaganza proved to have the perfect combination of designed food and crafted carts. Can’t wait for next year!
Bare Minimum (Emma Hannaford, Mckayla Durant, Lindsay Hill, Katrina Clany and Samantha Mirabile) is a food cart that is made of reclaimed wood from already fallen trees in the forest, wood and metal from a barn destroyed by a hurricane and other locally collected materials.
It reflects the basic fundamentals that The Stop encourages. It is the concept of using what is available to its best potential. Using already reclaimed and recycled materials the cart is a reflection of environmentally friendly design and sustainable practices.
With portion of the wood donated from Ryerson University of Interior Design’s Year End Show entitled ‘Raw’, the overall aesthetic maintains a consistent message of unique individuality and overall harmony.
Bare Minimum
Reclaimed. Recycled. Reused. Remade
Can be seen with Samuel J Moore & Hawthorne Food & Drink + Mark Cutrara at tonight’s The Stop Night Market 2013
Palette (Adrian Kenny, Shannon McLeod, Nicholas Roland, Lisa Sato & Crystal R. Waddell) has designed a geometric facade that will allow the contemporary cuisines from restaurants Nyood & The Stockyards to shine through.
The One Stop Shop by Nisha Sewell is a planter that reflects the core values that The Stop Community Food Center believes in – providing people with fresh food in a sustainable way. This piece allows you to grow food in your home. Herbs are an integral part of the cooking process and having these fresh organic crops available changes the experience of cooking and how one relates to their senses and experiences.
Fusion echoes the energy force that balances the universe as one. Developed by Vivian Kwok, the collection takes its influence from the traditional Chinese beliefs of Yin Yang and Wu Xing. Fusion is designed to mirror the five elements: earth, water, fire wood and metal. The fivefold conceptual scheme, when harnessed properly, is believed that it will lead to immortality. Created to be universally adaptable, spoons and bowls were formed with their own unique spirit – when linked together they become one.
Due Order is an exploration into corporate and political influences on society and the economic well being of a country by second year Interior Design student Maryann Adas. The elongated design of the spoon gives the object a fragile appeal and is a translation of what it means to be impoverished. The three oval recessions in the wood gradually get smaller as the depth of the spoon’s mouth increases, represents the societal hierarchy triangle. The capacity of the spoon gradually gets larger as the cavity works its way up the top societal class, leaving the bottom area with the smallest opening or ‘food allowance’ within this social pyramid.
Second year interior design student, Angela Cho, has designed a tea whisk that emphasizes the beauty of tea ceremonies. This western interpretation simplifies and modernizes the intricate lines of its original form. Designed to feel like an extension of the hand, the geometric shapes and sharp corners, offering a juxtaposition to the curvilinear form of a traditional tea whisk. Aside from this function of mixing matcha powder, this piece is meant to develop curiosity and spark a conversation.
Janet Lam, has designed ‘Commune’ is a series of spoons that investigates the relationship between food and eating in a social context. The utensils are a form of communication which conveys the identity of the user. The three pieces are developed from different levels of speech bubbles which are noted through conversation and dialogue. In a social group setting, ‘Commune’ mitigates a discourse of taste, bringing attention to the expression of the individual through the choice of food and your speech.
‘Pearl’ by Jing Yang, is a spoon that reflects seven concepts: scrape, iceberg, slope, limited, gather and coche. Scrape is a reflection of a shovel-like shape that takes into consideration the need for consuming the last few morsels of food. Iceberg is taking the leafy quality of the vegetable into a aesthetically pleasing shape. Slope, symbolizes the incline of poverty that people have to deal with. Limited, is based on the restricted food supply that disenfranchised people have to deal with. Gather captures the act of cupping treasure, unwilling to let food go. And coche looks at the Greek word for spoon and the materials that were used.
Come see us at The Stop Night Market event on June 18th and June 19th and purchase lovely handcrafted one-of-a-kind work for only $60.00. All proceeds go to The Stop’s Anti-Hunger programs.
10 School of Interior Design students were selected to showcase and sell their utensils at The 2nd Annual The Stop Community Food Centre Night Market.
Congratulations to the following 1st year Interior Design Students:
Mary Ann Adas, Angela Cho, Agnes Chow, Kwok, Vivian, Janet Lam, Nisha Sewell, Rosa Youn, Janine Yeung, Catherine Tourigny, and Jing Yang.
Over 100 first-year students designed a kitchen object for The Stop’s Night Market fund-raising event– which will take place in June 18 and 19, 2013.
Students had to complete two adjudication runs: their section faculty leader completed the 1st run of internal judging, and an external invited committee completed the 2nd session. This year’s external committee included:
Parimal Gosai, Public Displays of Affection, former Design Director
Danielle Goldfinger, The Stop Community Food Centre, Event Coordinator
Professor Lois Weinthal, Chair of Ryerson School of Interior Design
“They’re all really beautiful.”
“This piece is excellent for so many reasons. It is so sweet, it makes me want to use it.”
“This is a lovingly elegant piece that is also finished really well.”
“This is a great sculptural and functional piece that is finished really well.”
Also, come and see our Ryerson designed food carts!
Wayne Tell us about your living situation.
“I’m receiving ODSP. I’m grateful for the support, but it also leaves me living below poverty line. Eating healthy for the entire month is really challenging, in not impossible. In the last ten days, I’ve been scrambling around, because I’m out of food. Food is the number one
issue in my life. the money we get is glaringly not enough.”
How much money do you spend on food?
“Half of my money goes to food. for the first few weeks I’m spending
about $100.00, and then it runs out and I have to use food banks.”
Do you ever use food banks drop-in meal programs?
“I quality for one food bank in my catchment area [where you can get an emergency 3-day food supply once a month]. I’ve dropped into six other food banks, but they only let you go once if you’re not in their catchment area. And when you do to the food bank you’re already hungry, so you eat it all in 24 hours. When my food runs out in the
last week of the month, I have to come to the drop-in meals at The Stop every day for breakfast and lunch.”
Describe what it’s like to eat on your budget.
“It’s fine for two weeks at the beginning of the month. And then when it runs out it’s scary. Fear. Desperation. Just scrambling around trying to find something to eat.”
Where do you get your food? How often do you shop?
“I go to No Frills or Price Choppers, looking for deals. I shop 2-3 times a month.”
What factors influence what food you eat?
“I want to eat food I like, healthy food. I exercise and try to maintain my good health, but at the end of the month it’s impossible. The food I get at the food bank has no protein- just junk carbs. I gained about 5 pounds this week, from all the crap I had to eat.
What does food security mean to you?
“Food security means not going hungry. Food insecurity means: I’m hungry and I don’t have anything to eat. And I’m out of ideas of where to get it.”
What do you think the government should do to address food security?
“Increase the amount of money to people on social assistance. Or just increase the amount of food money. Food coupons for No Frills to food vouchers or something- anything. They have to ensure that we have enough money for food.”
—
Linda Chamberlain Tell us about yourself.
“I’m Linda Chamberlain. I work part-time as a Peer Counselor at CAMH. I’m on
ODSP but they take out half of my check because I work, and the other half goes
to rent. I moved into my home in TCHC (Toronto Community Housing) in 1996-
before that I was living on the street and in hospitals for over 30 years. Just
having a roof over my head has helped me so much, given me so much courage,
I feel like I can do anything now.”
How much do you spend per week on food?
“I don’t go by the week. At the beginning of the month, I pay my rent, my hydro,
and my phone bill. After that, I, maybe, have $100.00 leftover, and whatever is
left I use for hygienic products and food. by the end of the month, I have
absolutely no money left, and I am living completely off the food bank.
I am one step behind on my bills all the time. I used the food stipend you gave
me for this photo project to pay my late hydro bill. There’s never enough money
to buy food.
Describe what it’s like to eat on your budget.
“I eat potatoes- it’s all I can afford. In the morning I have fried potatoes with
onions. For lunch I have boiled potato dumplings with flour and paprika- that
gives it some flavor, and they fill you up. For dinner I have mashed potatoes maybe
I can put a can of pineapples or corn on that if I get one from the food
bank. I get full on the food I eat but it’s all starch. I can’t go to bed with my stomach
growling, so I eat cookies from the food bank before I go to bed. I’m diabetic and
that makes my sugar go up, but it’s the only food I have, and it’s the worst thing
in the world to go to sleep with your stomach growling. If I could bring my sugar down, the doctors said I might be able to reverse my diabetes, but if I don’t turn it around, they said it will kill me. They’ll pay for pills to get my sugar down, but they won’t give me any money for healthy food. it would be so nice just to have real food- all I want is lettuce and some vegetables.”
Do you ever access food banks or drop-in meal programs?
“I started a food bank in my building four year ago. Every two weeks we get a
delivery, and anyone from the building can come down and take whatever they
need. But the food bank just gives junk, there’s never any healthy food, no
vegetables. There were three kinds of icing and cake mix at the food bank today,
but no milk or eggs to make a cake with it. They give us syrups and vinegars, but
never any food to put them on.”
Where do you get your food? How often do you shop?
“Every month I buy a bag of potatoes, some onions, a bag of flour. Almost
everything else I have I get from the food bank downstairs. Occasionally I try to
afford something in Chinatown.”
What do you think the government should do to address food security?
“We don’t need more food banks- all they have is junk food. We need money to
buy our own food. They’re paying a lot more money on our hospital bills because
all of us are getting sick off of this diet. They haven’t raised our checks in years,
even though the prices of food and rent keep going up and up. Food costs more
now, but we don’t have any more money, so we just don’t eat.”
To learn more about this issue or to get more involved, visit www.thestop.org
What the World Eats, Part 1, What’s on family dinner tables around the globe? Photographs by Peter Menzel from the book “Hungry Planet”
There are two social assistance programs in Ontario. One is called Ontario Works, and one is called Ontario Disability Support Program.
What is Ontario Works?
Ontario (OW) is the income support program of last resort for people without paid employment. It is an emergency program intended to support people when
something goes seriously wrong in their lives, and to help ensure that they do not fall through the cracks. Because of the high cost of childcare in Ontario, some
single parent families are forced onto OW until their children are school age.
Monthly income for a single person in Ontario Works (which must cover rent, food and all other expenses): $572.00
What is Ontario Disability Support Program?
Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) is an income support program for people who are unable to maintain full‐time employment die to a medical condition. For
people with disabilities in Ontario, ODSP is often the primary source of income for many years.
Monthly income for a single person in Ontario
Disability Benefits: $1020
Recent History of social Assistance in Ontario
In 1995, the provincial government under Mike Harris cut social assistance rates
by 22% and then froze them, until the Progressive Conservative Part was voted
out of office in 2003. Today, these cuts, combined with increases to the cost of
living, mean that welfare benefits have been eroded by approximately 40% since
1995.
Under the current Liberal government, social assistance benefits have been
increased incrementally each year. However, according to economist Jim
Stanford, even with the announcement of a 2% increase to social assistance in
spring of 2008. Ontario’s most disadvantaged citizens are still further behind
where they were when the McGuinty government was first erected in 2003.
In 2004, anti-poverty groups and health provider in Ontario, concerned by the
devastating health issue faced by people on social assistance without enough
income, began to organize to fight for people’s health. They mobilized to help
people on social assistance access a little known benefit called the Special Diet
Allowance. The Special Diet Allowance is a benefit that provides additional
assistance to people who require a special diet as the result of a medical
condition. To quality, people on ODSP or OW must already be sick and have the
feed for a diet prescribed by a qualified medical practitioner.
While some people continue to receive Special Diet Benefits to treat conditions
for very serious medical conditions, the government has taken steps to change
the program and limit its benefits. These changes are currently being challenged
before the Human Rights Tribunal. Meanwhile, a; recipients of social assistance
continue to be at risk of illness due to poverty.
People who experience chronic food insecurity and a lack of access to a healthy
diet from numerous negative efforts on their health, including higher risk of
chronic illness, depression, heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
This is why public health units across Ontario are asking the government to
increase social assistance rates to begin to address chronic cycles of poverty in
this province and prevent sickness.
As a first step, the campaign to Put Food in the Budget is asking for $100.00
monthly increase as a kind of healthy food supplement for all adults on social
assistance. Public health officials view this amount as a down payment toward
establishing adequate income supports that are based on the real cost of living
and that enable people to purchase healthy food.
Where can I find out more information about this?
To learn more about this issue or to get more involved, visit www.thestop.org
