The Worth of Things
Seminar Week: March 16-20, 2020
Although Switzerland is undoubtably a centre for capitalism and its instruments, the wealth, diverse economy and direct democracy of the country support alternatives to the financial industry. The inhabitants of the country have a longstanding interest in high quality and provenance, preoccupations of a rich society, but also concepts that suggest worth is more than only the monetary. As sustainability challenges the logic of capitalism and co-habitation moves humans away from their customary and dominant position at the centre, what are things worth?
This semester we will visit a number of organisations, researchers and producers who are, in different ways, engaged in this question. We will visit master craftspeople whose practices combines ancient with new techniques, people involved in linking the actual with the digital, and finally, those who are providing the intellectual and political lead to these important social developments. Students participating in our Seminarwoche will actively be involved in the discussions and will produce a real-time diary to be shared within the group and beyond.
The seminar week is closely related to the themes of the design studio and we encourage students to enrol in both.
The costs are approximately 250-500 CHF
including 1 Dinner, Entrances, Guides and Reader
Category B, 16 students
Professor Adam Caruso
Assistants: Emilie Appercé, Martina Bischof, Benjamin Groothuijse, Claudio Schneider, Barbara Thüler