PAD. Pages on Arts and Design

5-10

Authors: Marinella Ferrara, Chiara Lecce

Pages on Arts & Design Journal keeps on its intention to stimulate, through its call, original research topics developing around the countries of the Mediterranean area. While the articles of the previous issue #14 examine prior topics such as Design and Circular Economy Model, Design for the Valorisation of the Mediterranean UNESCO Sites and Mediterranean Design History episodes, the present issue #15 comes back to major problems and potentiality of Mediterranean countries. It pays attention to sustainable development of the Mediterranean Urban Space and Cultural Heritage, giving voice to several authors from the Egyptian Academy, but not only. Therefore, these two last issues configure together a set of design discourses and practices that describe a direction toward what we now call “Social Design”. By this expression, we mean a reflective and creative practice able to face the situations of uncertainty, the challenges of social innovation, the awareness, and their sustainable and durable development. The papers presented address the daily vulnerability of citizens and environments, challenging problems concerning welfare and public services with a social impact, with the aim of re-configuring social and environmental politics.

32-50

Authors: Nariman G. Lotfi

Every year, industrial companies in Egypt discard tons of materials during the production process. However, these unused materials can be utilized by small workshops to make new products. The study aims at investigating disposed materials at the industrial stage of a product life-cycle. The research hypothesizes that by applying design-thinking strategies, designers can establish a link between large industrial companies in Egypt and small workshops, thereby creating a sustainable waste management cycle. By implementing this cycle, companies, workshops, and consumers will benefit. The research collected information from all those involved in the production process: engineers, craftsmen, company managers, and users. Findings showed that the materials industrial companies get rid of can be exploited by small workshops. One example of this production chain, glass, was used to offer a practical solution to the industrial waste problem. The research outcome was a waste management system proposal applied using one of the wasted materials. The report shows that design and product quality need not be compromised for the creation of a sustainable product, emphasizing the importance of the designer’s role in addressing this issue.

70-90

Authors: Ahmed Wahby, Nora Kahil

History is preserved by conserving the heritage of bygone periods and without documentation, future generations would not have any access to this past. It is imperative that records of historical events and/or accomplishments are retained and revisited. The history of Egypt is rich and varied. This paper centers on Egypt’s Belle Époque (1930s and 1960s) and the vision that the Khedive Isma’il Pasha (19th and 20th century) had for developing Egypt. The Belle Époque or ‘beautiful era of Egypt’ to date has received relative attention. Periods such as Egypt’s Pharaonic and Islamic eras are well-known and commonly debated as they were, and remain, continuously researched and documented. Documentation of the past generally occurs through the mediums of writing, engraving, painting, photography and cinematography. The motivation for this research study was to extract information from Egyptian feature films to aid as reference source for present and future studies. This research primarily focused on the metropolitan cities Cairo and Alexandria as they were the predominant centers for Egyptian cinema during the period 1930-1960. The latter cities were competing with the top ranked cities worldwide. However, with time they became out of the ranking due to negligence, mega population and ignorance. Somehow, Cairo’s downtown is still maintained comparing to Alexandria’s architecture. However, the disregard for Alexandria’s architectural heritage is sadly proliferating the loss of original building façades. The threat to Alexandria of losing its bygone charm and therefore the greater part of its identity, weighs heavy on the spirits of its inhabitants who wish to preserve their surrounds.

117-138

Authors: Andreas Sicklinger, Alaa Baligh, Sherin Helmy

Despite the strength, beauty and depth found in the Islamic art, people hold limited knowledge towards it, which creates a superficial and limited understanding of the “Islamic” specification in an object or design. Therefore, our aim is to investigate the public’s perception of Islamic Art, using critical design as the framework of investigation. A one-year research project investigated this issue from different points of view. Initially, a survey was made reaching the result which states that people keep a superficial understanding of Islamic art limiting it to decorative patterns and calligraphy. In order to overcome this, a historical research was conducted in order to investigate and understand the belonging of certain design aesthetics and forms to specific dynasties in relation to location and time as a potential knowledge container. However, the people’s awareness about strength and beauty of Islamic art would stay limited. Therefore, a third approach tried to borrow from the Critical design research strategy, which is aimed at leveraging designs to make consumers think about the everyday objects. It challenged peoples’ shallow perceptions about the role of the daily used products, as opposite of affirmative design. A public experiment was conducted in a public park, juxtaposing contradictory design styles through using “unislamic” forms with Islamic decorations and vice versa.

4-12

Authors: Marinella Ferrara

After generating an interesting debate thanks to PAD 13 “Design for Territory” issue, edited by M. Parente & C. Sedini and awarded with the ADI index selection 2017, we are now glad to launch PAD 14 in partnership with AIAP, the Italian Association of Visual Communication Design, as our new publisher. This new release focuses entirely on the strategic Design Research tracks across the complex Mediterranean scenario, investigating reasons and perspectives. The choice of the topics to be tackled refers to our commitment to join the cause of activism due to the progressive decline of Western culture as well as the crisis of liberal democracy, in the framework of a continuous “metamorphosis of the world” destabilizing the certainties of modern society.

31-46

Authors: Chiara Catgiu

The article wants to be a contribution to the understanding of social and environmental issues that the area of the Mediterranean is facing after the global economic crisis and wants to propose the application of the circular economy model, with particular reference to the materials obtained from organic waste, to resolve the environmental and social problems of the region. The circular materials described in the article are produced starting from organic waste and transformed into a valuable resource, by promoting resource efficiency and jobs creation at the same time. The article presents three case studies focused on the reuse of waste materials in innovative applications, by applying the circular economy concept, within the framework of eco-design and resources reutilization. The materials are analyzed according to the circular economy principles and to other relevant parameters.

61-84

Authors: Marina Parente, Eleonora Lupo, Carla Sedini

Design approaches, competences, and methodologies have a significant impact and reputation on the process of analysis, construction and enhancement of places. Indeed, design is particularly able in driving interventions, focused on the valorization of tangible and intangible local peculiarities, which give shape to, highlight and connect specific territorial identities. In this paper, we are going to propose a model we want to use in order to synthesize the possible approaches design can activate for the valorization of places and in particular of the Mediterranean area. We are going to use the biological and artificial metaphors and express them according to tangible and intangible dimensions. As we are going to explain, this approach is particularly useful for the Mediterranean scenarios but can be extended to other territories with similar characteristics.

114-131

Authors: Anna Cecilia Russo

This paper, far from structuring a historical discourse, aims to analyze how the heterogeneity of the pieces by designer Eileen Gray, furnishing the E-1027 villa, perfectly fused with the spaces, generating interesting aesthetic outcomes. The E-1027 was Gray’s first architectural accomplishment, designed in a sort of life-long companionship with critic and journalist Jean Badovici, on the site of Roquebrune - Cap St. Martin, now Cap Moderne, in that strip of Mediterranean coast renowned as Côte d’Azur. The uniqueness of Gray’s style mirrored the shifting paradigms of the late Twenties, between Paris and this Mediterranean bay of the French Riviera, also hosting other relevant heritages, such as Le Corbusier’s Cabanon, his Camping Units and the beach kiosk l’Étoile de mer. According to Nelson Goodman’s theories, as expressed in Ways of Worldmaking, expanding the qualities of the communicative functioning and symbolizing also to what is not-just-art, we will also briefly explore, along a pragmatist perspective, how design pieces can produce an aesthetic experience. Eileen Gray’s approach to design, framed by the lights and the vibrant lifestyle of Cap Moderne, will add a historical aura to our questioning, showing how aesthetic judgments and social changes may widely impact on design insights and innovations.