What’s the "IKEA Catalogue"?
This project created an IKEA catalogue of imagined products, using an approach called Design Fiction. The catalogue contains photographs, descriptions, and prices of many smart products, or Internet of Things devices. The aim was to encourage conversations about the kind of smart products we would like to live with in the future.
Who's it for?
The project is relevant for anyone looking to learn about using Design Fiction to better understand the future and make informed decisions in the present.
Approach
The project revolved around a workshop where the concepts that went in the catalogue were developed. This happened as part of a collaboration between Near Future Laboratory (experts in Design Fiction), the Mobile Life Center (an academic research group), and Boris Design Studio (a strategic design consultancy). The aim is not to predict the future, or show an aspiration, but to use the whole process to discuss and better understand the kind of future we want.
Contribution
Because it uses the ever so familiar form of the IKEA catalogue, the project has become a widely used example demonstrating how Design Research can use familiar formats to better understand the future.
Why is it in the Observatory?
This is an excellent example of how Design Research can use the creation of an instantly recognisable object (in this case an IKEA catalogue) to stimulate rich conversations about what kind of future we find preferable.