In short
I am a curious, ambitious and a little wayward human being. As a
designer I love to explore everyday phenomena that we consider to be
normal. My projects mostly address social behaviour, such as first
impressions, maintaining an Instagram profile and creating a financial
bubble. In June 2019 I achieved a master degree in Information Design
at Design Academy Eindhoven. The project I graduated with is called
Instaturgy, a project exploring the relationship between Instagram and
theatre.
Design practice
My work consists out of a variety of tools for conversation addressing
social complexities. To me, design is an unmissable tool to deal with
complexities we face everyday. Approaching topics visually empowers us
to explore different perspectives and possibilities. I think designers
have an educative role, in a sense that they provide accessible tools
for exploring, understanding and learning.
Performance
Within my projects I often refer to performance. Sociologists (such as
Erwin Gofman) compared our everyday life to performance. Particularly
within the digital realm people tend to perform aspects of their
everyday life. Social media empowers people to control every single
detail of their story. Performance plays a big role in our everyday
lives, especially with the rise of social media platforms such as
SnapChat, Instagram and TikTok.
Method
I design methods, interventions, installations, video series. In doing
so I use design-methods such as: visually investigations, collecting,
observing, speculating, exaggerating, de-contextualising. All in order
to search for new perspectives, and find the right storyline. The tone
of voice of my work is accessible, playful but critical.
Ambition
I aim to contribute to the education of ourselves and next generations
when it comes to social aspects of digital culture. I hope to provide
tools that help people to not lose themselves in the overwhelming
online information-jungle.
Field of research
My focus of research is human social behaviour in the information age.
This often involves the way our offline and online lives merge
together. The internet empowers people to share anything anytime. To
me, it sometimes feels as if we are all together in one big
conversation that’s hard to keep up with. Millions of people post,
share, re-share all kinds of stories. But, which story to believe?
It’s often difficult to distinct fact from fiction. In the information
age we’re constantly asked for our attention. Many of us face
difficulties navigating through this demanding digital environment.
How to grow up in a world that partly exists online? My projects often
explore such sociological questions. Basically all things people do
and think trigger my interest. It is the way we tell stories that I
enjoy discovering.
Let's Connect!
Curious to explore possibilities in how we could work together? Please
don’t hesitate to contact me at
→ info@fennawenselaar.com