dezein.studio
dezein.studio

dezein.studio

dezein.studio LLC was the independent studio practice of Adam Zeiner, dissolved in Fall 2024

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Why incorporate to operate as a studio?

As a designer by vocation, my intent is to expand the bounds of my practice to focus less on high-technology products, services, and interventions and more on what I am coming to understand as the hubs of the systemic problems humanity faces (and causes) as a global super-organism.

I stood up dezein.studio in order to broaden my remit from problem solving → problem framing + context setting*. This way I can focus on uncovering more meaningful questions to ask, as opposed to continually responding by way of design artifacts to prescribed problems.

*context setting: fostering a better understanding of the strategy, armature, and structure of the systems and sub-systems of focus for any given endeavor, which are meant to be affected and intervened upon, through exploration, mapping, a lot of discussing, and artifact production as needed

recent (primarily avocational efforts) include:

Getting more involved in my local community, w/out imposing

Engaging with networked communities of practice

  • in 2022 I took part in Startupy’s Season Zero as a Curator

playing with ML and Learning Algos more broadly as material

  • jamming on catalyzing a networked t't'' studio w/ my friend Steve and our algorithmic pals

guest lecturing and guest speaking to explore areas of interest

including but not limited to Strategic Design, Design Strategy, and Systemic Design

past primarily avocational efforts include:

Advising to explore areas of interest: Human-action Networks

Strategic Design Advisor → Socialroots

Acted as a fractional Design Partner in an advisory capacity to help the core team bring the Socialroots beta experience to fruition.

Gaining an understanding of the 'Creative Crypto' space a la NFTS

approach + learnings from minting a #GlitchInTheWild as an NFT to ride the wave approach + learnings from minting a #GlitchInTheWild as an NFT to ride the wave

Learning about Community Resilience and Social, Economic, and Racial Justice (or lack thereof) through engaging in Mutual Aid efforts so I can advocate for permanent and deeper change in our civc systems and institutions

Contributed content strategy, information architecture, and Notion support to the early stages of a now much more mature Black Lives Matter pocket guide

My good friend Zoha Shafiq brought together an incredible remote team to stand up a Black Lives Matter protest pocket guide to support people protesting and marching in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. I was grateful to have been able to offer initial Notion support (prior to a literal Notion Pro taking the reigns of the Notion build out), initial content strategy support, and initial information architecture support in order to support those out on the street protesting while continuing to shelter in place with my immunocompromised partner.

#RemoteActivism #MutualAid

Contributed design and information architecture support to an online resource consolidation effort for the refresh of the nascent Austin Mutual Aid website coronavirusaustin.org

This Austin-focused community resilience effort is developed as quickly as the COVID-19 pandemic here in the US, Texas, and Austin respectively. As a way to give back remotely I supported online resource consolidation efforts that came to fruition in the form of a refreshed website. I acted as a Design Partner for the small volunteer team behind the community site refresh. The bulk of my support focused on Information Architecture. This effort is affiliated with the Community Resilience Trust.

#CommunityResilience #MutualAid

Information Visualization in support of knowledge creation

know/edge

I'm engaged in this effort as a general purpose Designer to support the design and development of a highly functional, concept-centric approach for exploring and discovering knowledge within english Wikipedia.

Collaboration with Ian Seyer, Shelby Wilson, and more recently Steven Wilkinson and Peter Silkowski.

#NetworkGraphs #InformationVisualization #DigitalProductDesign

Curation of an Interactive Art & Poetics Exhibition

Hello Neighbor

I engaged in this effort as Co-curator (w/ Mason McClay) of a group exhibition of interactive installations and poetic performances as an official East Austin Studio Tour '19 Event.

Collaboration with vurv collective, Chicon Street Poets, dadageek, Project Ipseity, and THRILLS A/V Productions.

#InteractiveArt #Curation #NewMediaPoetics

Teaching, Training, and Advising to explore areas of interest

Fellowship Mentorship

I was the lead mentor and interim program co-director along with DFI founder Phil Balagtas for the inaugural cohort of CCA's Design Futures Lab on behalf of the Design Futures Initiative in the summer of 2020.

Curriculum advising

From time to time I provide advice from an industry practitioner perspective on the curriculum of various accredited and unaccredited programs:

#DigitalArts&Media #Pedagogy

  • offered advice on the structure of the ARI 350R | ARI 386M | ARC 386M Graduate Seminar 'This is Your Future: How Human Behavior Will Drive Design'

#DesignFutures #Pedagogy

Academic committee membership

#Libraries

Training Support and Production

  • reviewed proposed curriculum for the Kedge TFS x DFI Futures by Design course
  • acted as the Producer for the alpha and beta testing sessions of the TFS x DFI Futures by Design course, supporting the Instructors Jack Wilkinson and Dana 'Doc' Martens

#SpeculativeDesign #DesignFutures #Pedagogy

dezein.studio LLC was a company registered in Austin, Texas USA, number 84-3204044.

Copyright © 2020 dezein.studio