Alistair Knox
alistairknox.org
Alistair Knox
The Design Works emulated a university campus, in more ways than its architects had really intended. If a campus was a green quadrilateral described by hulking, hederated Gothics, then this was a campus. But if a campus was also a factory of sorts, most of whose population sat in rows and columns in large stuffy rooms and did essentially the same t
... See moreNeal Stephenson • The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer (Bantam Spectra Book)
Why the Lab failed is a story of grand plans cast into turmoil by the disgrace of the grand planner himself. Among other things, it reveals how difficult it is to hold on to a place at the table, once you’ve got it (assuming you’d even want to). In the end, it boils down to a question: Is local government really the best place for public interest d... See more
Amanda Kolson Hurley • One Mayor’s Downfall Killed the Design Project That Could’ve Changed Everything
The school wasn’t teaching design as ornamentation or styling. Instead, it was an intense course in principled thinking and creating connections between fields of art and making. It forced you to depart from your comfort zone and expertise as an artist and then return to apply it with new knowledge. I recall working with materials like wood (not my... See more
Design Literacy
Kennedy was determined to alleviate the suffering in his community without turning to foreign organisations for help. ‘Since we were the ones who understood all the challenges we faced, we also had the best shot at finding the solutions. As my mother always said: only he who wears the shoe knows how it pinches.’
Jon Alexander • Citizens: Why the Key to Fixing Everything is All of Us
He’d asked himself: Were the basic parameters workable? Could his immediate superiors -- NNL and the Morovian government, -- be trusted? Was the undertaking sufficiently challenging? Would the effort be adequately rewarded? But now that he had made the decision and decided to stay, another kind of question began to bother him: Was he up to it?