images via D-Crit conference Flickr

The first Design Criticism MFA conference “Crossing the Line: The 2010 D-Crit Conference” took place in New York on April 30 2010, graduating its first class of students, the event was moderated by author and radio host Kurt Andersen and featured keynotes Peter Hall and John Thackara other speakers included MoMA’s Paola Antonelli, designer Constantin Boym, Core 77’s Allan Chochinov and more. Videos of talks are now available online, here’s a selection:

Keynote: Peter Hall “The Uses of Failure”
Peter Hall is a design critic, and senior lecturer in design at the University of Texas at Austin, he has been a contributing writer for Metropolis magazine since 2000 and has written widely about design in its various forms, including gaming, elevators, building graphics, bridges, neon lights and office chairs, for publications including Print, I.D. Magazine, The New York Times, and The Guardian. He wrote and co-edited the books Tibor Kalman: Perverse Optimist, Sagmeister: Made You Look and Pause: 59 Minutes of Motion Graphics. In his talk he argues for a criticism that seeks out failure, because in failure lies the key to the inner workings of design. (video [51:30])

Keynote: John Thackara, “The Revelation”
John Thackara writes, lectures and organizes conferences about design’s role in driving social change. Thackara founded the international conference and design futures network Doors of Perception, which now has offices in Amsterdam and Bangalore. In 2008, he was the commissioner of City Eco Lab at Cité du Design in St. Etienne, the French design biennial. Thackara’s most recent book is In the Bubble: Designing in a Complex World (MIT Press, 2006). In his talk he discusses: What issues should the next generation of design critics write about? Where and how should they do this writing? And, how will they get paid for doing so?(video [44:29])

Videos from previous D-Crit events:
Natalie Jeremijenko: “Critical Engagement: Re-Imagining our Relationship to Natural Systems and Material Culture”
Natalie Jeremijenko is an artist and experimenter who uses contemporary scientific knowledge and technical resources to redesign socio-ecological systems. She is currently the New York Prize Fellow at Van Alen Institutes, and directs a network of Environmental Health Clinics. She is an associate professor in Visual Art at NYU, and affiliated faculty in Computer Science and Environmental Studies. Her work has been exhibited widely, from the Whitney and the Cooper-Hewitt to MASS MoCA. (Video [51:30])

Deborah Marton, “Design Trust: Building Partnerships to Improve Public Space”
Deborah Marton, executive director of the Design Trust for Public Space, will provide an overview of several of the organization’s projects, the process that went into shaping them and their influence on public space in New York City. Marton has spent her career focusing on the development of public space in New York City. She has been executive of the Design Trust for Public Space since 2004. The Design Trust brings together neighborhoods, public agencies, and design professionals to find innovative opportunities for change and make the city more beautiful, sustainable, functional, and available to all. (video [44:39])

Geoff Manaugh, “Designing the Post-Terrestrial”
Geoff Manaugh is the author of BLDGBLOG, a blog that speculates on architecture, urbanism and landscape, and senior editor of Dwell magazine. He has been called “the world’s greatest living practitioner of ‘architecture fiction’” by Bruce Sterling and one of the 50 “most influential architects, designers and thinkers” in the field today by Icon magazine. The BLDGBLOG Book was published in summer 2009 by Chronicle Books. (video [47:10])

To view all videos and information regarding the talks please click here