Institute without Boundaries is a collaboration between Bruce Mau Design and George Brown College. The Massive Change project is one of their joint projects. (See previous entry on Massive Change and Overrated Sight.) I am not sure what to think about the hubris of their announced goal, “Change the world” and their suggestion that design is the way, “What if life itself became a design project?”. It is good they are audacious, but when you exaggerate design into a salvation project can you live up to your design? Does the project remain a sketch?
What is George Brown actually doing?
Our aim is to produce a new breed of designer, one who is, in the words of Buckminster Fuller, a ìsynthesis of artist, inventor, mechanic, objective economist, and evolutionary strategist.î
Each year, we will select ten applicants from an international pool who will spend twelve months inside the Bruce Mau Design studio working as a team to research, design, and realize a public intellectual project. Students will have undergraduate or post professional experience and will be drawn from a diverse range of backgrounds including the sciences, liberal arts, and the traditional design disciplines. Students will engage in the fullest range of creative practices, from research and writing, to design in myriad media, and project management.
From IwB – A new breed of designer. This is an expensive and intensive 12 month post-graduate program. What I like is that they build the learning around ambitious projects. Projects don’t seem to flow out of the curriculum (or within it) rather they define the curriculum. I’m guessing that Bruce Mau and George Brown staff define a project and build the interdisciplinary team of students to do it (for credit.)
What’s the relationship with Bruce Mau Design? Is there a conflict in building a program right into a commercial design studio? While they get the brand name of Mau to enhance their programs it could also turn out to be a liability.