Short answer
Consider how established business models or organizational structures can be playfully or critically subverted to uncover novel design opportunities and user experiences.
- Field
- Innovation & Design
- Source
- Digital WPI (2015)
- Method
- Qualitative analysis of artist practices and theoretical framework application.
- Evidence
- Moderate effect
Artists are adopting and subverting corporate structures and business models to critique, recontextualize, and ultimately innovate within economic and cultural systems. This innovation & design research insight is drawn from a 2015 study published in Digital WPI. Using Qualitative analysis of artist practices and theoretical framework application., researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: Consider how established business models or organizational structures can be playfully or critically subverted to uncover novel design opportunities and user experiences.
Re:organizational Aesthetics: Artists Disrupting Business Models for Novel Applications
Artists are adopting and subverting corporate structures and business models to critique, recontextualize, and ultimately innovate within economic and cultural systems.
Digital WPI · 2015
Key Findings
- 01Artists use corporate structures for 'identity correction' and critique.
- 02Art practices expose and interrogate the pervasiveness of corporate and legal language.
- 03Mimicking business models allows artists to disrupt and repurpose them for new contexts.
- 04These practices offer opportunities for unexpected connections and redesign of economic/cultural landscapes.
Application
Design takeaway
Consider how established business models or organizational structures can be playfully or critically subverted to uncover novel design opportunities and user experiences.
How to apply
Analyze a common business model in your field, identify its core assumptions, and brainstorm ways to parody, disrupt, or repurpose its elements for a new design project.
Project actions
- 01Look at how artists have used 'corporate speak' or business structures in their work.
- 02Consider how you can 'parody' or 'disrupt' a common design process or business model in your own project.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Provides a novel perspective on the intersection of art and business.
- +Introduces a new term ('re:organizational aesthetics') to describe a growing trend.
Limitations
The artistic context might be very different from a commercial design project, so direct translation of methods may not always be straightforward.
Reliability & validity
The validity relies on the interpretation of artistic intent and the theoretical application. Reliability would be low as artistic practices are unique.
Think critically
To what extent can artistic subversion of business models be directly translated into commercially viable design solutions, and what are the ethical considerations involved?
Design Principles
"Critically engage with and creatively subvert existing systems to foster innovation and recontextualize established practices."
Understanding how artists leverage and transform business paradigms offers valuable insights for designers and innovators. This approach can inspire new strategies for product development, organizational design, and market disruption by encouraging a critical yet creative engagement with existing systems.
What This Means for Your Design
Artists are using business ideas in funny or critical ways to make people think differently about how companies work, and this can give designers new ideas.
How to use in your project
- 1.Reference this research when discussing how you've critically engaged with existing design conventions or business models in your project.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
Paragraph starter
The concept of 're:organizational aesthetics' highlights how artists subvert and repurpose business models, offering a valuable framework for designers to critically examine and creatively disrupt established conventions within their own design practice, leading to innovative outcomes.
Source
Digital WPI
Professional Parody: An Examination of Artist Practices Parodying and Disrupting Business Models to New Ends
journal · 2015
View sourceQuestions About This Research
- What does the research say about re:organizational aesthetics: artists disrupting business models for novel applications?
- Consider how established business models or organizational structures can be playfully or critically subverted to uncover novel design opportunities and user experiences. Evidence: Digital WPI (2015).
- Why does "Re:organizational Aesthetics: Artists Disrupting Business Models for Novel Applications" matter for design?
- Understanding how artists leverage and transform business paradigms offers valuable insights for designers and innovators. This approach can inspire new strategies for product development, organizational design, and market disruption by encouraging a critical yet creative engagement with existing systems.
- How can designers apply this research?
- Consider how established business models or organizational structures can be playfully or critically subverted to uncover novel design opportunities and user experiences.
- What were the main findings?
- Artists use corporate structures for 'identity correction' and critique.. Art practices expose and interrogate the pervasiveness of corporate and legal language.. Mimicking business models allows artists to disrupt and repurpose them for new contexts.. These practices offer opportunities for unexpected connections and redesign of economic/cultural landscapes.
- What research method was used?
- Qualitative analysis of artist practices and theoretical framework application..
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Moderate effect, based on a 2015 journal from Digital WPI.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- Analyze a common business model in your field, identify its core assumptions, and brainstorm ways to parody, disrupt, or repurpose its elements for a new design project.
- What are the limitations?
- The focus is primarily on visual arts; the direct applicability to all design disciplines may vary. The theoretical framework might require adaptation for different contexts.