In May this year,British writer William Shaw conducted workshops in four cities in the country,following which 12 designers and design writers were selected. Organised by the British Council,the aim of the workshops was to get these candidates to contribute stories to a publication. Titled Creating Change,this publication was launched earlier this month at the Kyoorius Designyatra in Goa,and will be available online by September-end. The idea is to float discussions on how design could be used to create change in the country,in aspects as varied as wildlife conservation,local tribes,independent music and architecture,among others. To set these discussions in motion and introduce the publication,the British Council will hold a talk on Thursday evening at their office in Lower Parel at 6 pm. The event will see design historian and curator Tom Wilson also recently a curator-in-residence at the National Institute of Design,Ahmedabad in conversation with designer-writer Ruchita Madhok,who is also one of the 12 contributors to the publication. Apart from Madhok,other authors include Benita Fernando,whose piece is titled When Shakti Met Cyborg 2192 and talks about the future of fantasy comics in India,and Mira Malhotra,whose first piece is Design for India,Design for its Villages,and second is Striking a Chord with Design with Ritesh Rathi that talks about design in the Indian independent music industry. Then there is Siddharth Nair,who has written about the National Conservation Foundation and efforts to preserve endangered species of hornbills in his piece,Planning for Paradise. zaira.arslan@expressindia.com
