Karin Fischnaller

Karin and Karin Anders

Speculative talks on human-AI collaborations in design.

How will the human designer Karin work together with the design bot Karin Anders? A series of speculative talks exploring the future design practice in which AI and human intelligence will work together in equal partnership.

•

This project explores the potential of human-bot collaborations. Through projections and podcasts a speculative scenario unfolds, in which designer Karin Fischnaller teams up with her synthetic alter ego: the design bot Karin Anders.

Together they investigate how technology will influence the design profession. Karin is in need of somebody who supports and reflects on her work: is her artificial companion up for the job?

Karin’s new born digital colleague is not a design tool, but an equal partner that can complement her and vice versa. She has built an installation that introduces her personal bot and offers a platform for discussion: step into the circle to hear what various experts have to say on the matter.

Your Spare Kidney

An open confrontation on today's donation models.

What are you planning to do with your second kidney?

•

Yoursparekidney.info is an online platform that aims to raise discussion about the urgent need of kidney transplants due to the increase rate of diabetes or high blood pressure. On the other hand, there is an overflow of healthy kidneys: a healthy human being only needs one kidney to live. Why not donating your second kidney?

The online platform offers four speculative donation models inspired by existing donation models: from an attitude of solidarity to the high prices set in the black market. The exaggeration and even absurdity of the four proposals faces reality when clicking on the ‘switch’ feature of the platform. In a black background real stories and facts are narrated with a journalistic voice.

The information displayed, forms and illustrations are replicated from several donation institutions across the globe and other journalistic reports.

Bike Loop Station

A sound observation in Eindhoven.

Even though every single actor seems to behave isolated on public space, they all perform a composition together. Crossing other people on the street, everyone moving leaves its own sound footprint: walking, cycling, or driving by. Thereby, the most particular audio trace was produced by bikes: clattering and squeaking.

Bikes are used as long as they work somehow, no matter how difficult it is to ride them or in what shape they are. Therefore, they produce recognisable sounds and rhythms.

The object replays a fragment of chosen sounds at the same time at a popular junction. When the visitor steps into the middle of the shape, the bike loop station replays typical sounds of Eindhoven.

Time Writer

A proof of time becoming a proof of presence.

What happens if time passes and nobody is there? The time writer conveys presence and prints time onto thermal paper unintentionally used as time stamp to document, copy or prove a certain moment.

Current time will be printed only if someone is identified nearby. Approaching the object, speed and precision of printing time increase according to the observer’s distance zone. In addition, when booting the machine, it prints the project’s log file: all events, successes, failures—and its research.

Otto-Falckenberg-Schule

A flexible stage performance as a visual identity

The visual language for the academy of drama and direction Otto-Falckenberg-Schule maps ways to articulate emotion on stage by marks used in writing.

In 2017, the academy celebrated its successful history of 60 years. Style of language and mode of expression are fundamental for both departments drama and direction. The expressiveness of texts is performed as well as directed on stage and specified by punctuation marks in the screenplay. This style has been translated into the new visual identity and seizes on unpredictable interruptions typical for theatre acting. As students are constantly asked to challenge their stage area, the logo adapts its size in relation to the medium’s format. Additionally, people’s roles are marked by different colours divided in the phase during the studies (yellow) and the phase after the studies (red).

#nicetomeetyou

Meeting strangers.

We created a platform to provide people with the opportunity to share their stories and thoughts about meeting people from other countries and cultures, especially refugees. The foreign causes fear as long as it remains unfamiliar. Our aim is to use our capabilities of our mixed team made up of designers, lawyers and thinkers to fight against racism and xenophobia.

#nicetomeetyou gives you a chance to evaluate your views after new experiences and contacts. Everyone is invited to post a story and to speak up!

What designers do

A confrontation of the designer’s role from the inside and outside point of view.

What do communication designers actually do? How do they spend their time on an average workday? How do they develop ideas?

This research project looks at the divergence between the designer’s self-perception and the perception of others about designers. It shows both views at the same time: an interior view from the designer’s perspective and an exterior view from the non-designer’s perspective. Where do these views collide and where do the opinions converge? What do they expect from each other?