Reflecting on Speculation
Posted on December 2, 2017
Photo by sophia valkova on Unsplash
As Dunne & Raby mention in their book “Speculative Everything”, speculative design is not an attempt in predicting the future instead, it is an invitation to explore different versions of it that could initiate dialogue, debate, collaborations and new ways of creating more socially constructed preferable future scenarios.1 At my initial glance, I was overwhelmed by the potential speculative design holds in helping people become active citizens that are capable in imagining futures and ultimately change the present to achieve these preferable scenarios. However, as I dived into the topic some questions started to rise especially as I started to reflect on the issues of imagination, fiction and speculation as they relate back to Egypt.
As a society that is facing great amount of inequalities that profoundly impact people’s basic human rights, it doesn’t become difficult to understand why there has been a persisting obsession of recapturing the past glories and reminiscing about the good old days.2 As an Egyptian I myself have played part in this game, wether its bragging about our pharaonic ancestors and how they had already initiated many of our present day discoveries 5000 years ago or by reminiscing how things were much better in the past and if we could only get things the way they were, everything would be ok. This form of thinking is evident in many parts of life in Egypt; whether its military propaganda, politics, films, commercial campaigns and even the design scene which tends to be constantly trying to revamp the old. That being said, there is definitely a great wealth of imagination and creativity but by focusing all our strength in the past, we risk the chance of envisioning a better future and moving forward. Furthermore, with all the inequalities people face, there is a constant feeling that things are just getting worse and that there is no hope for change. This puts us in a very vulnerable position, by normalizing the catastrophic possibilities of the future we start to render them as unavoidable. Eventually transforming ourselves from proactive to passive members of society,3 not really interested in understanding and working with the elements that are shaping the world we live in. As a result, people in power keep on dictating how the preferable future of the country should unfold without putting into consideration the needs and voices of everyone else involved in this future.
Just a couple of days ago I received news from friends back home that the police had shown up and collected people’s information at a private screening of a film that was banned from local cinemas, since it contained a storyline that represented the police force in a negative light. Considering that this is only one small example out of many more horrific ones, I started to think how could the implications of a speculative design approach be tolerated. In other words how might we create thought provoking work in an environment that does not always allow people to question the status quo? Could speculative design not be political? Would removing politics render the outcomes irrelevant? Or perhaps the more important question to ask would be how can speculative design address such situations where the act of speculation in itself is compromised?
Moving further along the system I came across another set of questions, this time focusing on the possibilities for speculative design to embrace alternatives to technological evolution.4 Considering that a big amount of the speculative projects use technological evolution as a given, are we excluding people who do not have that luxury from shaping the future? One example of a project that faces this issue is the work of Black Quantum Futurism. I believe that their approach is a good example in trying to work around the fact that being online is a privilege and not a ‘given’. Their work aims at shifting the way people relate to time from a linear process to a more organic one they allow people to reflect and imagine how their past, present and future coexist. Moreover, by focusing on everything practical from workshops, events and etc. They are able to involve people who are usually overlooked in the process of imaging the future.5 Taking from BQF’s example I wonder how might we overcome the lack of scientific and technological development to promote a more future oriented mindset in Egypt? How might speculative design be more accessible and adaptable?
In conclusion, I do believe speculative design could be a great tool for transformative change and that It holds the opportunity to analyze and critically think about our world in new formats that have not been thought of before. However, in order to have a more meaningful and greater impact speculative design needs to expand and adapt to different environments. As Prado & Oliveira point out a lot of the Speculative design projects today are presented through the lenses of the western world, that deal with first-world issues and fears. And in order for it to reach its full potential “it needs to be tested, spread out, modified, re-appropriated, bastardized.”6
References:
- Dunne, A., & Raby, F. (2014). Speculative everything: design, fiction, and social dreaming. S.l.: MIT.
- Al-Saadi, Y. (2012, June 3). Arabic Science Fiction: A Journey Into the Unknown. Retrieved November 29, 2017, from http://english.al-akhbar.com/node/7995
- Mitrovic, Ivica. (2016). Speculative Design in the “Real World” (public discussion). Retrieved November 23, 2017, from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319448638_Speculative_Design_in_the_Real_World_public_discussion
- Mitrovic, Ivica. (2016). Speculative Design in the “Real World” (public discussion). Retrieved November 23, 2017, from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319448638_Speculative_Design_in_the_Real_World_public_discussion
- Duplan, A. (2017, March 14). Moor Mother Explains Black Quantum Futurism. Retrieved November 28, 2017, from https://thump.vice.com/en_us/article/ae8yye/moor-mother-explains-black-quantum-futurism
- Prado, L., & Oliveira, P. (2015, April 22). Futuristic Gizmos, Conservative Ideals. Retrieved November 29, 2017, from http://modesofcriticism.org/futuristic-gizmos-conservative-ideals/