Design And Outer Space: Crafting Worlds From Within
Sitraka Rakotoniaina, University of the Arts London
Abstract
Above us stretch the boundless expanses of outer space, yet the worlds we imagine there are continuously shaped by the objects we craft and the stories we tell here on Earth.
Design gives form to the materials and stories we hold close, weaving together what's known with what might be. In the context of outer space, design's influence does not simply reflect cosmic imaginings; it actively reshapes them, creating new worlds and realities. Through speculative practices—where design reimagines ethnographies, and cosmologies—poetics and poiesis intertwine. One reiterates the familiar, reinforcing the worlds we inhabit; the other carves new spaces, untangling the threads of conventional thinking and inviting unexpected futures. As design shapes these narratives, it becomes both a boundary and a catalyst—reinforcing what we know, while simultaneously opening the possibility for worlds we have yet to imagine. In outer space, as in all spaces, futures are not given—they are crafted through every act of creation and every engagement with the materials we shape.
Biography
Sitraka is an independent artist and designer with a keen interest in speculative design and world-building. Their practice revolves around the use of designed objects, artefacts, rituals, and various 'things' to construct narratives that aim to provoke, imagine, and engage. Using design as an investigative tool, Sitraka critically examines and challenges prevailing socio-technical imaginaries while forging new connections between individuals and technology. Since 2015, Sitraka has been running a public facing research endeavour called Very Very Far Away (VVFA), which strives to democratise and diversify future narratives. Sitraka is also a doctoral candidate at the University of the Arts London: Central Saint Martins, where their research centres around the production of speculative cosmologies and the design of simulations as critical design practices, with a particular emphasis on postcolonial imaginaries and their influence on design and cosmological narratives.
Location
online via zoom (register for here)