Planet B
Sustainability
Published 23. 8. 2022
Module for Sustainability and Civilizational Issues
We only have one planet. However, due to human activity, the Earth's ecosystem is changing irreversibly, and everything else will change accordingly: the way we live, produce, move, eat or communicate. How will this process unfold and what will Planet B look like, is (partly) up to us.
Planet B is a new space for interdisciplinary experimental practice and teamwork. It doesn't matter which studio you belong to – sign up for this module as a studio exchange in the winter semester 2022 and come test with us, how to react to future challenges in creative practice.
In short
- In Winter Semester 2022, Planet B will be coordinated by Klára Peloušková and Eduard Herrmann (contact at the bottom of the page).
- The theme of the Winter Semester 2022 will be "Toxic Futures". We will focus on the issue of nuclear power and pose ourselves the question about how to live and work on a toxic planet.
- The module will include many lectures, debates and workshops with experts from both artistic and non-artistic fields. They will relate to the theme of the semester, but also to various methods for creative practice.
- Planet B has the form of a studio exchange. It replaces semestral studio work and the end-of-semester project (klauzura).
- Planet B is open to students enrolled in the 2nd year of their BA studies or higher, irrespective of their field of study. It is possible to sign up for the module even if you´re a student of a different art/architecture/design school than UMPRUM.
- Application Deadline: Sept 15, 2022
- Beginning of the coursework: Oct 3, 2022 (+ introductory workshop Ignored Technology, Sept 19 - 23, 2022)
Project work on Planet B
Art, design and architecture approach the complex issues of contemporary world in a non-conventional and critical way, by means of spatial and material interventions. And it is apparent that society needs such an approach more than ever today. Project work on Planet B will be based on principles that support this kind of open-ended and unorthodox creative practice:
- Interdisciplinarity: Planet B interconnects creative disciplines developed at UMPRUM as well as other scientific fields or domains of human activity.
- Emphasis on research and process: Project work will result in concrete outcomes, however, the process of research and practice will be considered more important than formal and technical execution of the final object.
- Teamwork: Students will use the knowledge and skills specific to their specialization, however, the aim is to temporarily “dissolve” these specifics into a new collective creative entity.
- “Diffused” leadership: Coordinators of the project work will involve a variety of mentors from both artistic and non-artistic fields.
- Collaboration with the public and non-profit sector: Partnerships will be developed with institutions such as environmental and social NGOs, educational institutions, design and material agencies, libraries, hospitals, prisons, city councils, experimental technology labs etc.
Themes
The themes of the project work will span across the domains of ecology, society, politics and technology. They will be articulated broadly in order to allow for thinking and doing in various forms and scales. At the same time, however, they will be situated in specific locations and/or communities.
The form of the projects will emerge from the approach and interests of a given team. The process may result in works of art, products, spatial or material experiments, social innovations, strategic interventions or speculative concepts and visions.