PADLab:
Post Anthropocentric
Design Lab
The design laboratory for the post Anthropocene in Shenkar enables individuals and groups to internalize nature’s perspective, imagine new possibilities for nature during and after the climate crisis, decode the meanings of these possibilities and communicate them to the public, educators, experts, and decision-makers.
Laboratory
Mission
Methods & Toolkit
Actions
Expeditions
Species
Partners
People
Contact & Collaboration
Shenkar - Engineering. Design. Art.
PADLab:
Post Anthropocentric
Design Lab
The design laboratory for the post Anthropocene in Shankar enables individuals and groups to internalize nature’s perspective, imagine new possibilities for nature during and after the climate crisis, decode the meanings of these possibilities and communicate them to the public, education systems, experts, and decision-makers.
Laboratory
Mission
Methods & Toolkit
Actions
Expeditions
Species
Collaboration & Partners
People
Contact
Shenkar - Engineering. Design. Art.
Simulation for The Jerusalem Design Week: Nahal Taninim / Wādī az Zarqā / Krokodelion
DESCRIPTION
PROJECT FILE
"Taninim Stream" is a group project that offers a glimpse into what our planet's flora and fauna will look like after The Anthropocene. The project presents examples of species predicted or speculated to survive the climate crisis. It charts the course of each species' future evolution, including inter-species relationships and symbioses, and attempts to predict how these changes will affect the local landscape and soundscape.
The species were chosen from the rich biodiversity of the Taninim Stream basin. Bearing the marks of past ecosystems and generations of human intervention, this area has been deemed particularly sensitive to the present and future implications of the current ecological crisis. While speculative in nature, the project is grounded in scientific projections regarding the upcoming ecological changes in the stream and the surrounding area, as well as existing botanical and zoological research about the chosen species' potential for adapting to these changes. The further into the future we venture, the more the speculations reflect humanity's hopes and fears.
Part science, part fiction, the results are an illusory, imaginative glimpse into what our nature could or might become: Holy brambles learned to grow in salty soil by producing salty berries as well as sweet ones; the night herons lost their nesting places when the oaks burned down, so they grew thicker beaks to carve their nests into the rocky hillside and started using the salty berries to preserve fish; the amphipods (tiny crustaceans) have learned to absorb microplastics, incorporating them into their bodies in a long evolutionary process; the dragonflies change the patterns on their wings to communicate with the shrimp, signaling to them which parts of the stream need cleaning; the reeds have evolved into two distinct species, one black (because of frequent wildfires) and one white (because of rising water salinity), transforming the Taninim basin into a stark black-and-white landscape.
This project's value goes beyond its end products. To understand its full scope, we must look at the students' creative process. The project's participants—design students—had to step into the skin of animals and plants, learning to take on nature's point of view and communicate its experiences outward. To do this, the students played a game developed especially for this project, with rules similar to the ones that govern inter-species relationships in nature. Abiding by these rules helped weaken the effect of the students' distinct professional disciplines on their work. By working with scholars and experts in relevant scientific fields, the students were able to examine their role in the project, asking not only "how" but also "what for." Their poetic reading of the narratives they created and processed expresses and enriches the scientific gaze by challenging proven facts through imaginative speculation.
The species were chosen from the rich biodiversity of the Taninim Stream basin. Bearing the marks of past ecosystems and generations of human intervention, this area has been deemed particularly sensitive to the present and future implications of the current ecological crisis. While speculative in nature, the project is grounded in scientific projections regarding the upcoming ecological changes in the stream and the surrounding area, as well as existing botanical and zoological research about the chosen species' potential for adapting to these changes. The further into the future we venture, the more the speculations reflect humanity's hopes and fears.
Part science, part fiction, the results are an illusory, imaginative glimpse into what our nature could or might become: Holy brambles learned to grow in salty soil by producing salty berries as well as sweet ones; the night herons lost their nesting places when the oaks burned down, so they grew thicker beaks to carve their nests into the rocky hillside and started using the salty berries to preserve fish; the amphipods (tiny crustaceans) have learned to absorb microplastics, incorporating them into their bodies in a long evolutionary process; the dragonflies change the patterns on their wings to communicate with the shrimp, signaling to them which parts of the stream need cleaning; the reeds have evolved into two distinct species, one black (because of frequent wildfires) and one white (because of rising water salinity), transforming the Taninim basin into a stark black-and-white landscape.
This project's value goes beyond its end products. To understand its full scope, we must look at the students' creative process. The project's participants—design students—had to step into the skin of animals and plants, learning to take on nature's point of view and communicate its experiences outward. To do this, the students played a game developed especially for this project, with rules similar to the ones that govern inter-species relationships in nature. Abiding by these rules helped weaken the effect of the students' distinct professional disciplines on their work. By working with scholars and experts in relevant scientific fields, the students were able to examine their role in the project, asking not only "how" but also "what for." Their poetic reading of the narratives they created and processed expresses and enriches the scientific gaze by challenging proven facts through imaginative speculation.
Project Guidance: Nirit Binyamini Ben-Meir, Ginosar Wolf-Hansel, Yoav Gati, Prof. Yael Moria, Olga Stadnuk, Michal Pauzner, Oded Kutok, Einat (Nati) Sharon
Professional Lead: Michal Pauzner, Oded Kutok
Design and Production: Ginosar Wolf-Hansel, Olga Stadnuk, Maria Merfeld
Video and visual language: Einat (Nati) Sharon
Sound: Nir Jacob Younessi
Photography: Shira Rotkpf, Dor Kedmi
Students Participating:
Dafna Hofman, Eli Zajicek, Ortal Izhak Baruch, Zohar-Yam Lerer, Yuval Dekel, Sawsan Masarwa, Idan Sapir, Maria Merfeld, Lidor Attas, Inbar Klachkin, Mako Krikheli, Julia Kressirer, Daniela Pascale Rojas Levy, Ira Shtein Rozenman, Anwar Aburiash, Ofir Estrugo, Malak Bshoty, Noy Dabull, Maayan Har Toov, Daniel Yahav, Linoy Cohen, Tali Levdev, Hadar Lang, Amit Mitelman, Nitzan Nagari, Yana Nidich, Yulia Sohovoy, Tamar Sorotzkin, Lamis Onallah, Eden Frenkel, Almog Zipori, Chen Kadosh, Gali Richman, Nahal Shalev, Noy Samooh, Oded ohayon, Noa Brosh, Johnathan Bresler, Tom Govezensky, Hadas Dahan, Amit Dines, Chen Cohen, Adva Loya, Josh Milwer, Liat Netanel, Eilona Flut, Nitzan Friedman, Anastasia Kostuk, Adam Kenneth
The Jerusalem Design Week Website:
https://2023.jdw.co.il/en/exhibitions/display/taninim-stream
Professional Lead: Michal Pauzner, Oded Kutok
Design and Production: Ginosar Wolf-Hansel, Olga Stadnuk, Maria Merfeld
Video and visual language: Einat (Nati) Sharon
Sound: Nir Jacob Younessi
Photography: Shira Rotkpf, Dor Kedmi
Students Participating:
Dafna Hofman, Eli Zajicek, Ortal Izhak Baruch, Zohar-Yam Lerer, Yuval Dekel, Sawsan Masarwa, Idan Sapir, Maria Merfeld, Lidor Attas, Inbar Klachkin, Mako Krikheli, Julia Kressirer, Daniela Pascale Rojas Levy, Ira Shtein Rozenman, Anwar Aburiash, Ofir Estrugo, Malak Bshoty, Noy Dabull, Maayan Har Toov, Daniel Yahav, Linoy Cohen, Tali Levdev, Hadar Lang, Amit Mitelman, Nitzan Nagari, Yana Nidich, Yulia Sohovoy, Tamar Sorotzkin, Lamis Onallah, Eden Frenkel, Almog Zipori, Chen Kadosh, Gali Richman, Nahal Shalev, Noy Samooh, Oded ohayon, Noa Brosh, Johnathan Bresler, Tom Govezensky, Hadas Dahan, Amit Dines, Chen Cohen, Adva Loya, Josh Milwer, Liat Netanel, Eilona Flut, Nitzan Friedman, Anastasia Kostuk, Adam Kenneth
The Jerusalem Design Week Website:
https://2023.jdw.co.il/en/exhibitions/display/taninim-stream
Species in the project
With the support of Shenkar’s International School
With the support of Shenkars' International School