Object Subject - National Design Writing Conference, Canberra

Calling designers, writers, bloggers, publishers, researchers, collectors and design lovers.  Object Subject: 2019 National Design Writing Conference is an international platform for writers to address design as a positive change agent in society.

At the inaugural national design writing conference, Object Subject (2017), keynote speaker and NY Times design critic Alice Rawsthorn called on the design sector to take seriously their responsibilities – social, environmental and ethical. This clarion call, teamed with multiple requests from national and international design writers to repeat the event, is a catalyst for the second design writing conference.

Presented as part of the popular DESIGN Canberra festival, Object Subject: 2019 National Design Writing Conference will build on the successful inaugural event, which inspired new conversations, connections and ideas, questioned the very role and responsibility of design,

and resulted in the publication of a special issue of the international scholarly journal, Fusion.

You are invited to submit your proposals for the conference sessions by 5 August 2019.

Stay tuned for announcements about keynote speakers and other featured guests. Join our mailing list here.

Presentation types

We welcome proposals for presentations in a range of accessible and more formal formats. The below are suggestions only, if you have other ideas we would love to hear from you.

Paper
This is a 20-minute presentation followed by 5 minutes of questions and answers.
We recommend against reading entire papers, and suggest you use visual supports such as PowerPoint. Multiple-authored presentations are welcome.

Visual presentation/show and tell
Alternative format proposals are welcomed.

Public conversation
This is a 30-minute conversation between two participants on a proposed topic.

Panel discussion
This involves the panel chair introducing the session followed by 40 minutes of discussion among the panel followed by 5-10 minutes of questions and answers.
Proposed panel discussion topics:Sustainability by design – how can design writing address global environmental crises?

• Kindness in design – can design make the world a better place?
• Representation – counteracting gender imbalance to represent the opinions, ideas, voices, objects and buildings of design
• Beyond superficiality – using design to face unprecedented changes
• The rise of digital – the changing role of the design critic and design writing in a digital age
• Radical design communication – exploring alternatives to the written word and letting design speak for itself
• Design storytelling and object narratives – sharing personal, local, cultural and community stories
• Other: please suggest a panel discussion topic

Key Dates

5 August: Deadline for speaker proposals (including papers, panels and presentations)
16 August: Notification of accepted proposals
1 September: Early bird registration closes
7 October: Deadline for full papers (where applicable)
3 November: Registration closes
8-9 November: Conference

More information at the Design Canberra website.