Design Trust Grant Recipient Michelle Poon of Dim Sum Labs | Book Launch and Design Dialogue

19. 9. 2018

Design Trust Grant Recipient Book Launch and Design Dialogue on 25th June 2018.

 

“Humans were never meant to be isolated from one another, residing in concrete boxes hovering in the sky. For thousands of years, our genetic programme has been to co-exist, like that of tribes.” – Michelle Poon, Design Trust Grant Recipient, Director, Dim Sum Labs

Design Trust Grant Recipient Michelle Poon of Dim Sum Labs had her book launch for “The Field Guide To Hacking” on 25th June 2018 at Studio 9. In conjunction with her book launch was Design Dialogue “Perspectives on Open-source & Peer-production” with An Xiao Mina (Design Trust Grant Recipient, Director of Product, Meedan), Jan Chipchase (Design Trust Grant Recipient, Founder, Studio D), Daniel Howe (Associate Professor, School of Creative Media/ Founder, the Rednoise Collective), William Liang (Visiting Assistant Professor, Polytechnic University/ Co-founder, Dim Sum Labs) and Sara Watson (Writer and Technology Critic), moderator for the Dialogue.

Michelle talked about hackerspace (aka makerspace) Dim Sum Labs in Hong Kong where she works amongst a community of “hackers” (or “makers”), students and tech geeks in a collaborative space. She spoke of individuals who are more than willing to share and exchange knowledge and know-hows. ‘Part of the intention of this book is to disavow the pop culture misnomer of what a hacker is.” The Field Guide To Hacking addresses the political, artistic, speculative and scientific aspects of hacking, showcasing the wide spectrum of activities that can flourish within it. Speaking of the skillsets needed and the women within hackerspaces, Michelle spoke of being of an architect background and having no compromises on her projects at Dim Sum Labs.

During Design Dialogue “Perspectives on Open-source & Peer-production”, the guest speakers drew intriguing connections between the hacking phenomenon, the Open Source model and Shenzhen Shanzhai production. Daniel Howe spoke of the Open Source model, whereby peer production and the “democratization of technology” can encourage experimentation and the pushing of boundaries, sometimes going against the big tech’s approach. Along similar lines, Grant Recipients An Xiao Mina and Jan Chipchase talked about their project funded by Design Trust, “Global Digital Shanzhai: Mapping the Reach of Shenzhen” whereby they argued that the Shanzhai model is comparable to the open source in terms of how things are built and how things are made available to the wider community.

“Shanzhai is a non-Western phenomenon with a Western framework. The Shanzhai model looks a lot like the Open Source model in terms of software components, networks of people, skillsets and the open model.”
— An Xiao Mina, Design Trust Grant Recipient, Director of Product, Meedan

A recurring theme throughout the Book Launch and the Design Dialogue is the obvious need for collaboration in the online community today, whereby through peer production and sharing of information more innovation and creativity can be actualized.

For more details on Michelle Poon’s book: https://www.tfgth.com/
For more information on Dim Sum Labs, Hong Kong: https://www.dimsumlabs.com/
Project by An Xiao Mina and Jan Chipchase: https://designtrust.hk/grant-recipients/global-digital-shanzhai-mapping-the-reach-of-shenzhen-2/