Welcome to the Sensitive Stream.
This is a space to connect with sensitive riverdwelling species.
(please choose a sensory track to proceed)
This stream invites you to dive into a watery media poetics. Your guides are two organisms, Caddisfly Larvae and Sludge Worm. Both are integral to understanding river health; both are vibrant actors that expand human centered views of the world.
The stream shifts modes of address as part of its play with subjectivity. It destabilizes perspectives and seeks to amplify the difficulty of translation and knowledge between water organisms and humans.
Scroll down for each stage of the dive and linger on chapters. Sound, image and text will mix. Swim and come up for air when you need to.
(Part 1)
The Caddis Fly
The Caddis Fly
hide between
stones and stems
where water runs
fresh and clear
build a refuge
of bark and leaves
make yourself
your surroundings
your surroundings
yourself
a portable shelter
camouflage cocoon
The river is my breath, water my air
I breathe its compositions
I sense and signal
biological and physical
chemical interactions
modified water
engineered and impounded
oxygen depletes
slows flow
heat and light
accelerate growth
decaying algae
stifles the river bed
trees along banks
leaves in the water
essential food webs
for hungry mouths
I clean the river
reduce excess
plant growth
and debris
watery bodies
sustain me
I am sensitive
(Looking – Forward)
Offer for
Identity Development
Identity Development is by definition not a one-off project, but an ongoing process. This offer is about the very first phase of this process, which we could call birth. Our birth-package comes with a name, a logo, a profile text and some conceptual cornerstones for the new Identity.
Neo-Metabolism’s standard rate is 100€ per hour, per person. The project gets a 50% discount because we like it and we’re friends. The project team is Georgia Kareola (narrative, 13.33hrs), Carsten Goertz (strategy, 13.33hrs) and Clint Soren (design, 13.33hrs).
Neo-Metabolism’s standard rate is 100€ per hour, per person. The project gets a 50% discount because we like it and we’re friends. The project team is Georgia Kareola (narrative, 13.33hrs), Carsten Goertz (strategy, 13.33hrs) and Clint Soren (design, 13.33hrs).
Timeline
(Projection)
2020
June 15th, 4pm CET
Identity Conception
2hrs session
with Leo, Lucas, Martin,
Georgia, Carsten and Clint
︎
10 days of labor begin
(Georgia, Carsten, Clint)
︎
2000 €
Invoice
Net15 payment terms apply, meaning:
you can pay us in the week after the final delivery, or earlier if you like
on
June 25th
Birthday
Delivery of the Identity Kit, including
name, logo, profile text and a simple website
︎
June 26th
Identity Review
2hrs session
with Leo, Lucas, Martin,
Georgia, Carsten and Clint
︎
one round of amends
(optional, same-day delivery)
roadmap view
ask question say yes
︎
Continuation?
Neo-Metabolism approaches every relationship as a long-term relationship. Birth can be followed by childhood, adolescence, adulthood, seniority, or death
(but also rebirth). We’re here to support at any moment of the ongoing transition.
Homeostasis is a practice.
Finding and establishing an equilibrium in our often disrupted living systems requires attentiveness, care and empathic awareness, as well as thorough research with actionable results. How can we help the planet, our home, maintain homeostasis? What does balance look like, how dynamic is it, and how do we, as individuals and diverse communities, relate with it?
We approach this challenge by looking at smaller living systems – cities, neighbourhoods, houses – as they can function as blueprints to interact and operate at scale. Coming from the fields of architecture, urban design, and finance we analyze urban and non-urban living environments, and identify their potentials.
Collaboratively, we imagine and develop proposals for equitable, resilient living. Academic research, integrative design thinking, modes of participation & co-ownership, and advanced timber work are cornerstones of our practice.
Our purpose is to develop models for human habitation that respect the planet's boundaries, serve the common good, sustain life at scale, and nourish the future.
We make our research and findings available, freely and publicly, on homeostasis.club
"If we do not learn, we do not adapt. If we do not adapt, we do not survive." – Stafford Beer
reach out
Homeostasis is a practice.
Finding and establishing an equilibrium in our often disrupted living systems requires attentiveness, care and empathic awareness, as well as thorough research with actionable results. How can we help the planet, our home, maintain homeostasis? What does balance look like, how dynamic is it, and how do we, as individuals and diverse communities, relate with it?
We approach this challenge by looking at smaller living systems – cities, neighbourhoods, houses – as they can function as blueprints to interact and operate at scale. Coming from the fields of architecture, urban design, and finance we analyze urban and non-urban living environments, and identify their potentials.
Collaboratively, we imagine and develop proposals for equitable, resilient living. Academic research, integrative design thinking, modes of participation & co-ownership, and advanced timber work are cornerstones of our practice.
Our purpose is to develop models for human habitation that respect the planet's boundaries, serve the common good, sustain life at scale, and nourish the future.
We make our research and findings available, freely and publicly, on homeostasis.club
"If we do not learn, we do not adapt. If we do not adapt, we do not survive." – Stafford Beer
Naming
Proposals
for (filecoin wallet)
post-wallet
Proof of Space Time (PoST) is the source of Filecoin. This is where you keep it: the first wallet of its kind.
Vest
(1) give (someone) the legal right to power, property, etc.
(2) an article of clothing worn close to the body, safely holding personal effects.
(3) a tool that enables and safeguards your Filecoin transactions.
Keyp
The keep for your coins.
The key to your storage.
What is the culture of tomorrow?
How can brands have a legitimate place in it?
In order to answer these questions, we need to study and understand where new cultural ideas come from. The fashion, music, and technology that drive innovation and change.
2020 showed us that we can no longer consume from one drop to another. Concerns about the ecological footprint of fashion make seasonal shopping unethical. COVID-19 changed our spending patterns. It confronted us with the stuff we own, and the things we don't really need. What streetwear do we wear now that we're not on the streets?
2020 showed us that we can no longer consume from one drop to another. Concerns about the ecological footprint of fashion make seasonal shopping unethical. COVID-19 changed our spending patterns. It confronted us with the stuff we own, and the things we don't really need. What streetwear do we wear now that we're not on the streets?
Being progressive in 2021 means something different than before. We don't need more stuff. We need real, lasting change. We need transparency about supply chains, and we need our products to last. Choosing to buy a thing will be less about status, and more about creating and strengthening our lively, diverse communities. To remain culturally relevant, we have to define what comes after the hype.
Brands wanting to maintain or increase their relevance, have to participate in this change in a committed and meaningful way. As a brand activator and researcher of cultural innovation, I pave the way.
Brands wanting to maintain or increase their relevance, have to participate in this change in a committed and meaningful way. As a brand activator and researcher of cultural innovation, I pave the way.
Energy Transmissions
Spring 2021
As part of my ongoing research of Cultural Innovation, I host a series of conversations with those who are close to the 🔥. Together, we study where new ideas come from: the fashion, music, and technology that drive renewal and change. For now, I transmit our findings once a month, and clustered in quarterly seasons.
Episode 01
(drops April 1st)
Episode 02
(drops May 1st)
Episode 03
(drops June 1st)
I’m a Brand Activator and
Researcher of Cultural Innovation
In my practice I apply the knowledge, contacts, and skills I gained during my years working in commercial advertising for global clients, to create culturally progressive content, experiences and partnerships. My aim is to initiate and realise purposeful collaborations that take things beyond your internet bubble, giving substance, territory, and attitude to brands and their messages. Offering services such as concept development, cultural mapping, match-making, copy and script writing, I create zeitgeist experiences for the brands and customers of tomorrow.
Living Systems is a practice.
Finding and establishing an equilibrium in our often disrupted living systems requires attentiveness, care and empathic awareness, as well as thorough research with actionable results. How can we help the planet, our home, maintain homeostasis? What does balance look like, how dynamic is it, and how do we, as individuals and diverse communities, relate with it?
Finding and establishing an equilibrium in our often disrupted living systems requires attentiveness, care and empathic awareness, as well as thorough research with actionable results. How can we help the planet, our home, maintain homeostasis? What does balance look like, how dynamic is it, and how do we, as individuals and diverse communities, relate with it?
We approach this challenge by investigating living systems of various sizes — cities, neighbourhoods, houses – as they can function as blueprints to interact and operate at scale. Coming from the fields of architecture, urban design, real estate and finance we analyse urban and non-urban living environments, and identify their potentials.
Our purpose is to develop models for human habitation that respect the planet’s boundaries, serve the common good, sustain life at scale, and nourish the future.
Get in touch:
info@living.systems
info@living.systems
sign up for our newsletter:
____________________________ ︎︎︎
____________________________ ︎︎︎
© 2020 Living Systems
Bittmann, Krupp, Schrage
Finding and establishing an equilibrium in our often disrupted living systems requires attentiveness, care and empathic awareness, as well as thorough research with actionable results. How can we help the planet, our home, maintain homeostasis? What does balance look like, how dynamic is it, and how do we, as individuals and diverse communities, relate with it?
We approach this challenge by investigating living systems of various sizes — cities, neighbourhoods, houses – as they can function as blueprints to interact and operate at scale. Coming from the fields of architecture, urban design, real estate and finance we analyse urban and non-urban living environments, and identify their potentials.
We approach this challenge by investigating living systems of various sizes — cities, neighbourhoods, houses – as they can function as blueprints to interact and operate at scale. Coming from the fields of architecture, urban design, real estate and finance we analyse urban and non-urban living environments, and identify their potentials.
Collaboratively, we develop proposals for equitable, resilient living. Academic research, integrative design thinking, modes of participation & co-ownership in real estate development, and advanced timber construction work are cornerstones of our practice.
Our purpose is to develop models for human habitation that respect the planet’s boundaries, serve the common good, sustain life at scale, and nourish the future.
We make our research and findings available, freely and publicly, on living.systems
“If we do not learn, we do not adapt. If we do not adapt, we do not survive.”
– Stafford Beer
Our purpose is to develop models for human habitation that respect the planet’s boundaries, serve the common good, sustain life at scale, and nourish the future.
We make our research and findings available, freely and publicly, on living.systems
“If we do not learn, we do not adapt. If we do not adapt, we do not survive.”
– Stafford Beer
Enough
Architecture
Enough =
Enough
For too long, the field of architecture has been strained by economic dependencies, short-term planning, and ego-centric thinking, draining it of its creative powers and problem-solving qualities.
We aim to fundamentally reconstruct the architectural practice through applied research, integrative design and alternative financing models, developing approaches for human habitation that respect the planet's boundaries, serve the common good, sustain life at scale, and nourish the future.
To do so, we propose Enoughness as a practice.
Enoughness
as a practice.
Enoughness is as much a decision making principle as it is an existential state.
How much is enough?
The simple yet critical question of sufficiency is a radical departure point, which we believe can deliver much needed systemic change. We use data, science and tools to build towards a more equitable distribution of quality housing and living at a planetary scale, while deeply appreciating the carrying capacity of the Earth with its fertile soils and vital flows. We know we’re lost without it.
This is why we build our practice like our houses, around the Seven Enoughs:
1
Enough
Agency
Everybody has the right to self-expression and autonomous decision making. We believe in an architectural practice that encourages the opportunity of individuals to participate in the design of one’s environment, to grow, to self-initiate, and to own what one needs to live. We design for humans and the biosphere, not for profit extraction and machines.
2
Enough
Wellbeing
A healthy planet with a decent, dignified life for all means a considered distribution of wealth and resources.
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The Circle
Identity proposal (v1)
2021 03 12
Profile
The Circle is a fluid collective of artists, makers, inventors, and
designers established to facilitate interdisciplinary exchange.
We provide affordable studio space; a safe space for personal
practice and access to community, tools, and new ideas.
As a collective, we develop projects like exhibitions or short film
festivals, blurring the boundaries of age, genre and gender. Through
this, we give visibility to people and their work in physical and digital
spaces, while fostering a creative community in Aachen.
On our website we continuously share our work and process. This is
our open studio, where you can see what’s going on.
To apply, fill in the form below.
We give priority to artists, designers, and students from the Aachen
region that are unable to find an interdisciplinary exchange at
institutions and academies.
Prelude
The Abolition of Species
(D. Dath, 2007)
‘Look , there, that mass of bubbles, do you recognize it? It’s a mould fungus.’
‘Looks like a slime,’ said the dragonfly.
She was sceptical. What was this supposed to prove? Her friend gnashed her teeth, settled on a dry patch on the rock and said, ‘That’s what it is. A very special kind of slime, though. The old name was Dictyostelium discoideum. Very interesting life cycle, just watch.’ (...)
‘Mankind,’ continued the dragonfly’s best friend, ‘only discovered what you see here quite late, at the end of their dominance. They never truly understood it. Now–look here, at the close-up: this is the vegetative phase of the life cycle. Single cells. A random collection of unconnected units.’
‘They look like, I don’t know ...swarming amoebae?’
‘In a way, yes. Mankind called them Myxamoebae. They live on bacteria. As long as there’s any around, as long as that food source is available, the cells grow and reproduce. But now, have a look – we take away their microbes.’
‘Ah–hmm. Oh–ho! What’s all this then? They ...the single cells are budging together, tottering towards one another. They’re jostling ...clumping. Kneading one another.’
‘Yes. Odd, isn’t it? They are taking another form. Like a living tissue. Mankind called that Pseudoplasmodium.’
‘It moves by itself! I can’t ...is that a new organism? Distinct?’
‘Hard to say, dearie. Single cells organizing together ...what should I call the result? If I observe, pretty soon I can see that it’s looking for food, clearly independently. A tiny little slug. It’s attracted by light and reacts to temperature differentials, to moisture...’
‘Hunts for food. Like we do.’
‘Quite right. Here, let’s speed up the process. Look, a new food source. It’s feeding. And next...’
‘Another metamorphosis! What is that now, a plant? It’s got a stem, a stalk, then a fruit up there...’
‘Spore capsule. And once the spores are dispersed, the whole cycle restarts. We can see, scattered about the place...’
‘More Myxamoebae. Fresh single cells.’
‘Right. Do you understand?’
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On Group Form
Any effort in collective action necessarily brings with it the question of Group Identity. What is the role and relevance of the individual within the group? Is the group defined by its members, or do its members define themselves by association with the group? Is it the same answer for all members, or does each member have their own take? Assuming a complex and dynamic mesh of relationships within, what coherent entity can be represented to the outside, and how? This is the fundamental question of Group Form. In order to produce an agreeable answer to this question, let’s first establish some shared terminology.
Etymologically, the latin root of 'identity' is 'idem', which signifies 'same'. In the context of an individual, it refers to self-similarity (or sameness) over time, as in: the things about a person, which can be recognised consistently. We may imagine a shape that changes its outline over time, but maintains an immutable core area, or ‘gestalt’.
Examining Group Identity, the notion of consistency over time gets compounded by the question of what is 'same' – or shared – between the diverse members of the group. We could picture this as a central area of overlap, in a venn diagram with several individual circles.
This overlap can be one of shared questions, interests, values or intentions, it can be the shared wish for mutual reinforcement or augmentation (opportunism), or it can be about more literal dimensions of sameness, like ethnicity, gender, cultural or ideological orientation, to name a few. As the overall composition of the group, as well as the gestalt of its individual participants, changes over time, the area of overlap naturally oscillates to a certain extent. However, for any sense of Group Identity to prevail, a core area must also remain intact.
Following this thought, Group Fluidity (the rate of change within a group) can be understood as a counterpart to Group Identity (the degree of sameness within a group). If we operationalise this idea, we get a 'rule of fluidity': the more members there are, and the more fluid they are individually, the smaller and more generic the core area of overlap will be over time.
Understanding these specific relationships of individual, group, fluidity and identity is a requirement towards any adequate aesthetic and symbolic representation (or Visual Identity) of the group as a whole – which we could call Group Form.
When some Metabolists (a Japanese architectural avantgarde from the 60ies) first used the term 'Group Form', they were conceptualising their ideal of a 'grown city', with its various historical layers, contrasting styles, diverse material textures, and the various patterns of life that would emerge from it, as an ad-hoc assemblage. They meant this as an internal critique, in deliberate juxtaposition to the Bauhaus-based idea of the 'planned city' with its 'total aesthetics', which some Metabolists had adopted and advanced towards the 'Megastructure'. In the minds of Fumihiko Maki and Masato Otaka, the imposition of a singular framework onto life, leads to unnatural homogeneity and stagnation (if not fascism, when taken to an extreme). In contrast, the reality of the contemporary city was observed to be "amazingly heterogenous" and rapidly self-transforming.
"In Group Form, each element has an organic interdependence; incompleteness, the bugbear of of modern masterplans, does not preclude a coherent overall image. Maki writes: 'Cities, towns and villages throughout the world do not lack in rich collections of collective form. Most of them have, however, simply evolved: they have not been designed."
– Project Japan: Metabolism Talks (Obrist/Koolhaas, 2011)
Conceptual Propositions
So how can we apply these thoughts on Group Form towards a Visual Identity for the Circle? For now, two main aspects feel important to us:
(1) Liquid States
Since the relationships of individual, group, fluidity and identity are generally in continuous development, and especially in the early stage that the Circle finds itself currently in, it feels adequate to not aim for resolving them in a singular and monumental form. Instead we aim for a responsive visual mechanism, that can capture and communicate the state of these evolving dynamic relationships, as an ad-hoc assemblage, at any given moment now and in the foreseeable future.
(2) Highlight Heterogeneity
'The Circle', as a visual shape and mental model, is one of the most homogenising forms available to our collective awareness. Since the group-subject, about which we want to communicate in an ideally clear and comprehensive way, is in reality a quite complex assemblage, messy-by-nature and containing multitudes, the impulse to radically simplify is understandable, but probably inappropriate. The extreme reductionism of a circular shape by itself is in many ways the opposite of Group Form. Rather than allowing for multitudes to be present (as components that shape a whole), it discards them, in favor of one shape that simply represents the idea of unity, or one-ness (ref. "e pluribus unum" / out of many, one). Since we're learning that the group in its current state is still at a very early stage of finding/defining what its unifying features and ideas would even be, the circular shape is actually hollow, containing nothing. For this reason, we feel the Visual Mechanism that we're looking for now should accomodate for the representation and highlight of the individuals that constitute the group. For it is the members that bring the energy and ideas to the group, and it is the member's exchange, from which all meaning and relevance of the Circle emerges (not the other way around).
Beyond this Circle-specific argument, representation of diversity within groups is also a general political position we'd see as obviously appropriate to our time and would recommend to embrace, ideally on a programmatic level.
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Clint Soren
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