In 2008 I participated in the research-through-design project Tocomadera. Together with other four Uruguayan industrial designers from EUCD/Farq we developed a system for building basic wooden furniture, open source, suitable both for DIY and industrial production
During my Master studies at VU University in Amsterdam (2011-2012) I did an internship at Het Scheepvaartmuseum, researching the different typologies of European tea cups and saucers during the XVII to XX century. The resulting report focuses on the importance of maritime trade and the cultural context that gave them shape.
In the same period I worked on the topic of design and globalization and intended to show the role of contemporary design as a regulator of material culture homogenization and differentiation through the case study of the SUN in Uruguay. See the article published here.
My MA Thesis, supervised by Hilde Bouchez, compared the phenomena of DIY and open design and analyzed at what extend do/did they promote more democratic, sustainable and anti-consumerist models. (report).
As an Embedded Researcher for VU University and Waag Society (2012-2013) I analyzed the activity of the FabLab Amsterdam users and their relationship with daily objects designed and made by themselves in the lab. By evaluating the attachment of “makers” to their digital DIY artifacts, the project sought to understand the effects of this practice on the durability of goods and therefore its possible environmental implications.
This blog documents and shares information about my research topics. It includes short introductions to books and papers, exhibitions and events reviews.
Irene Maldini. Researcher at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Lectoraat Fashion Research and Technology and PhD Candidate at VU University Amsterdam.
