Unknown author, Flammarion Engraving. Coloured by Raven.DIP20 focuses on the relationship between collective subjects and modes of production. We investigate the ways in which artefacts, techniques and forms of representation can construct a common ground wherein individuals identify with a collective, which then establishes a presence within a territory. Working through analogies, juxtapositions and genealogies, our research articulates the complex bond that holds an archive together, linking the life of the collective subject with a larger field of architectural and urban inquiry.
Students chose, observed and engaged with a collective subject in London or elsewhere, constructing an archive using a range of media to form collections of elements which both define the field of inquiry and express a position within it. This process of montage constitutes not only a formal procedure for the construction of images and sequences, but also a method of design and knowledge production. The montage breaks up the continuous flow of history, producing unexpected connections, uncovering genealogies and constructing constellations of objects and meanings that can challenge dominant narratives. Combining the anthropological gaze and the technique of montage, the archive becomes a powerful tool through which to critique existing conditions and propose alternative scenarios.
The paradigm of our investigation is the studiolo, which, in the Renaissance, was a space for contemplation and erudition dedicated the display of art and science. As such, it was both an object and a space; a piece of furniture and an architecture; an interior and a building; an art installation and a place for meditation; a private chamber and a workplace. DIP20 understands the studiolo as our ‘object of design’: an archetype that each student will freely interpret as a way to construct, organise and display the archive of the collective subject. It is the place where our montages are produced and displayed, unfolding their narratives under the eyes of others: a room within a room, within a territory, that exposes a specific way of understanding an entire world.
See student’s projects:
Projects Review 2022-2023
Projects Review 2023-2024
