DESIGN COMPETITION

Crisis as Calling is an international design competition open to the public that invites participants to reconsider, and respond to the universal condition of Crisis. Crisis as an event implies a breakdown, and the collective response is typified by the attempt to return to “normal.” We see this as more than an opportunity for responsive design; we see this as a calling for an expanded role for the design community, and we seek to explore uncharted courses to reveal innovative models for relevant engagement.

CALL FOR ENTRIES

Communicate a proposal that re-contextualizes the space for design to address the definition of crisis. The details of crisis typology and the boundaries for intervention are open, and should be clearly defined by each unique proposal. As crisis is a universal phenomenon with no bias or preferential destination, there are no restrictions to the type of project one may submit (specific location, program, or range).

For instance submissions might, challenge urban activism in times of trauma, the nature of informal building practices as emergency response, resource allocation as recovery stimulation, or community dynamics that enable awareness at larger scales. What should be clear in each proposal is how a particular challenge that is common to a clearly defined crisis set can be addressed as a materialized solution to a global predicament.

BACKGROUND

Crisis as an event implies a disastrous challenge to the usual course of time, a breakdown in the normal run of things. The extraordinary loss of those immediately affected by crisis, the fear and confusion of the traumatic event, is equaled only by the desire to fill that void which is torn in the plane of experience. In a media-centric, globalized culture, contemporary life often seems organized by an unending series of unrelated traumatic events, one crisis after another. However, for each unique crisis, a new trajectory stretches on long after the media cycle refreshes. If crisis itself can be understood as a traumatic break or interruption in relative “normalcy”, then our collective response to these crises can be typified by the attempt to return life to its “normal” state as quickly as possible.

Seldom is the question seriously pursued that asks if the “normal” course is indeed worth returning to. Yet the moment of trauma itself contains unparalleled opportunity for affecting real change – defining this new current in terms of a new normal. How can the design community participate at this moment to encourage action and build consensus.

In light of the recent Hurricane Sandy disaster, and violence leveled to the Sandy Hook community, as we are still feeling the aftermath and are amidst a state of transition, the impact and relevance of a call for design addressing this condition of crisis is significant.

A portion of the proceeds will be donated to emergency relief.

For more information visit www.crisisascalling.com

Submission deadline: Monday, April 22, 2013

email all inquires to info@crisisascalling.com