MADE. Histories

This talk explores the role of design in shaping collective memory, questioning how objects, spaces, and systems tell stories, or silence them. From archives to artifacts, the choices designers make can reinforce dominant narratives or open space for alternative histories to emerge. Speakers will delve into how design participates in processes of remembrance and forgetting, whether through preservation, reinterpretation, or radical reimagining.

Who decides what is worth keeping, and what is left behind? How can design challenge historical omissions and offer new ways of seeing the past? MADE. Histories brings together practitioners working across disciplines to reflect on the politics of memory in design, revealing how every act of making is also an act of meaning-making. In confronting what has been lost or obscured, this conversation invites us to think critically about the stories embedded in design, and the potential to unmake and remake them.

Language: English

What will you learn? 

Participants will gain insight into how design choices shape public memory, influence historical narratives, and hold the power to challenge omissions. They’ll also be introduced to creative strategies for reinterpreting the past and using design as a tool for critical reflection and cultural storytelling.

Who is it for? 

This talk is for designers, artists, historians, curators, students, and anyone interested in how design intersects with memory, culture, and social narratives.