Creatively Co-designing future spaces: An investigation to develop a new methodology in user engagement and spatial co-design with young people ages 8

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This project aims to construct a theoretical discourse and empirical illustrations of perceived creativity and play in user participation throughdeveloping new methodologies, which support a potential transformation of understandings of children as co-designers of the design processitself. Young people ages 8-16 were identified as the focus of the project as research suggests that they rarely play a role in the co-designprocess. I will be analysing case studies highlighted in the literature review and observing live spatial design projects involving young children asthe participants, focusing on the user participation methods. I will Interview architects who have had experience of working with children in spatialdesign projects and they will be asked to reflect on their exchanges with children through design diaries. I will conduct semi-structured interviewswith children (ages 8-16) who have been part of co-design spatial projects. The interviews will be facilitated by visual methods as prompts fordiscussion, such as photographs taken by the children, storyboards and role play with figurines representing the designer-child interaction. Thefocused ethnography of interviews and observations will enable me to investigate and develop new methodologies in co-design. The researchwill incorporate exploring a range of mediums to develop the spatial co-design methodologies through experimenting, testing and reflecting onpractice. This topic should be of wider interest to the research community as it introduces a new angle, focusing specifically on developing userparticipation through spatial co-design methodologies with young people, facilitating them to become constructive decision makers. Mediumssuch as vitreous enamel can be utilised to engage and be used as a tool to reappraise the methods of communication and create acontemporary platform for dialogue and user connection. I have discussed this proposed research topic with Susan Robertson, Course LeaderMA Architectural and Urban Design