February 12, 2016
Recently I have spent time reading and considering the future of UX and how recent research are affecting our understanding of our cognitive experiences and our perception.
I still had no chance to organise my thoughts into a decently structured article and explain what I see happening in the future. But if you are keen to know more, Marek Pawlowsky, the man behind MEX, invited me to talk about what’s boiling… And the result is a long chat (approx from min 40′) about Lego Serious Play, principles of embodied cognition and evolving research methods for the next generation of digital experiences.
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Posted in cocreation, LEGO SERIOUS PLAY, Methodology, Podcast, ux |
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July 4, 2013
Milena Kaneva
Milena Kaneva is a smiling and bright person, a filmmaker and film director who in 2006 produced one of the most inspiring films about Burma, Total denial.
The main characters of her film are activists Ka Hsaw Wa and his wife, and they wanted to make the difference by documenting how Karen villagers had been treated in Burma. The case came from the building of a pipeline that Unocal, a former oil company, that was built next to the Andaman sea to connect Burma to Thailand: Karen villagers ‘who stood in the way to progress’ – to say it with the oil company’s managers words – have paid their opposition with all sort of human-right violations.
Ka Hsaw Wa engaged and led an 8 years lawsuit agains Unocal and 15 Karen vilagers sued Unocal for human-right abuses with the support of Burmese military.
This is an inspiring story, the story of the victory of Ka Hsaw Wa and the victory of Karen vilagers who have seen recognised their rights in an US court.
Milena has followed this story for 5 years, between 2000 – 2005. Milena’s career yet is not that of a ‘classic’ filmmaker or journalist: she started as an actress, but then her interest towards society and stories that can inspire people has taken the lead and, inspired by the Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and lending the title of her book, she funded the Free from Fear Foundation. The foundation’s aim – as stated in the website ‘is to use the power of film, free media and other initiatives to educate and empower people about human rights and to denounce human rights violations everywhere. By telling the truth we remove the veil of fear.’
Something Milena already did and keeps doing, lending herself and her work to the cause of Burmese people and to those who are oppressed.
When She cames in, she is curious and excited – she immediately loved the concept of a LEGO based interview, and the whole interview had been a relaxed engaging and inspiring talk.
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Posted in Activism, Creativity Project, Journalism, Legoview |
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June 28, 2013
Jean-Philippe Tremblay
Jean-Philippe Tremblay is a Director/Writer, Producer and filmmaker. His latest work, Shadows of Liberty, costed him more than 5 years of work, and it has been presented in June at the Biografilm Festival and here is where I meet him.
Inspired by Ben Bagdikian‘s book “The New Media Monopoly” that in 1984 reported how media is controlled by only 5 conglomerate corporations, Shadows of Liberty is a true and sincere ode to freedom of information, where journalists tell their stories and present the difficulties they face to reveal the truth at any cost, going against the establishment. An inspiring documentary that shows and demonstrates that even today, regardless the corruption and the the power of corporations and governments that do their best – or their worst – to manipulate information and craft consent, there are still brave and hard-working individuals who investigate, research and reveal the facts and the truth. My interview with Jean-Philippe Tremblay could not be anything but about information. Yet, before getting into the real question, I also wanted to learn about what being a filmmaker means to him. And this is how we start.
What is filmmaking? I ask.
He immediately engages with the bricks with an open mind, like anyone who enjoys exploring and experimenting, he is one of those individuals who communicate life and experiences. He stares at the bricks and then he starts telling me the story.
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Posted in Activism, Creativity Project, Journalism, Legoview |
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May 24, 2013
Architect Gianni Cagnazzo
Gianni Cagnazzo is an Architect. But that’s not enough to fully catch his polyhedric and enthusiastic attitude towards his job and his passions. Gianni Cagnazzo is president of IEM (Indoor Environment Management) and ANAB (National Association of Bio-ecological Architecture), member of the International Academy of Colour, he is professor in bio-ecological architecture, colour design and humanisation of the built space, he gives lectures at various institutes, including ANAB IBN (Institut fur Baubiologie und Oekologie – Neuberern), UNITRE, University of Turin… Colour is his passion, therefore the question was certainly due: What is colour?
He knows how my kind of interviews work and he starts building. When he is done, he explains me his model.
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May 10, 2013
Dr Rauf Azar – Beit Sahour medical centre’s Director
I have met Dr Rauf Azar at Beit Sahour medical centre. He is the director of the clinic since 2005. The clinic is part of the Health Work Committees in Palestine, a no profit NGO which main goal is to provide health services to the inhabitants of occupied Palestinian territories, with a special focus on patients from marginalised groups, like poor people, women, children and people with special needs. ‘This centre was founded as a clinic’ Dr Azar says, ‘then it expended and became a day care surgery centre and we are on our way to establish here a small hospital for general and reconstructive surgery’. The reconstructive surgery will be the first hospital dealing with reconstruction and it will be the first one in the Palestinian territories and it will be developed in partnership together with the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive surgery in Bari (Italy) and with prof. Michele Pascone.
Then I go straight to the point, and ask Dr Azar What is Palestine?
He does not say a word for a while. Then he looks at the bricks and without even touching them, he firmly says ‘Palestine is nothing here…’.
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Posted in Activism, Israel and Palestine, Journalism |
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May 3, 2013
Francesca Valan – Industrial Designer and Colour expert
Francesca Valan, an Italian industrial designer, is internationally considered one of the most passionate and experienced colour experts. One of the key problems, when it comes to colour and architecture, is that colour is something that architects add at the end of the design. She strongly disagrees on such an approach and after telling us, with the bricks, of course, what is colour, I asked her about Architecture. What is Architecture?
She stares at the bricks for a while and then she starts building. When she has finished, she looks at me
F. Valan – Model 1 ~ Architecture
and at the bricks and recalling the question – what is Architecture? – she simply says: ‘Rules. Geometric rules. Axes. Vertical and horizontal axes. But the main thing, it’s depletion of chromatic and material elements in favour of formal elements.’
I look at her model: it’s an interesting one, as there are a number of elements and they are all detached. ‘What are these elements you have built here?’ I ask her.
‘Volumes. These are volumes and not architecture. The yellow one, for instance, it’s a solid build following formal criteria I do not know, with improper chromatic criterion. Because colour in architecture is always impoverished. It’s kind of too obvious, if there’s any logic, this is a trivialising one.’
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April 19, 2013
Ciro Pirondi talks about Heritage using the bricks
This LegoView was recorded during Restauro 2013, the main event focusing on restoration, so the question was almost due. What does a well known Architect as Ciro Pirondi, director of the Escola da Cidade in São Paulo (Brazil), think about Heritage? The question, as ever, needs to be answered my way, with the bricks. I ask the question to Mr. Pirondi, put the bricks in front of him and let him to play, allowing ideas to connect and to construct a new vision. While he builds, he sings Agua de Marcio ‘It’s a Brazilian very popular song…’ he says smiling, while he builds and enjoys the process. [Watch the Video]
When he is done, I ask him to tell me something about his model, about Heritage.
Heritage and Nature as built by Arch. Ciro Pirondi
‘This is an allegory representing a bridge where men should find their balance and seek for a balance with nature… this green’ – he says showing me the green bricks – ‘represents nature’.
And then he goes on ‘I think this is a need for the 21st century’s cities… They need to find a bridge that can bring back the balance between mankind and natural nature…. ‘
The bricks and shapes are detached in his model, the human figure is not connected to any part of the model and I ask him why is that.
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April 12, 2013
![Hands on! LSP Faciitators in an LSP workshop! [Photo by Lucio Margulis]](https://legoviews.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/564754_10151530155917398_565878055_n.jpg?w=150&h=112 "Hands on! LSP Faciitators in an LSP workshop! [Photo by Lucio Margulis]")
Hands on! LSP Facilitators in an LSP workshop! [Photo by Lucio Margulis]
Every year, when April comes, LSP facilitators know that a great inspiring event is in the air. It’s the annual LEGO SERIOUS PLAY facilitators’ meeting, the most exciting event for those who practice and experience the power of LEGO bricks as a Facilitation tool. Every year an increasing number of facilitators gather in Billund, Denmark, the place where LEGO was born in 1934.
LSP is a tool which has been developed at the end of the ’90s at IMD in Switzerland based on the studies of Johan Roos and Bart Victor who introduced the “serious play” concept and process as a way to enable managers to describe, create and challenge the views of their business. The Serious Play approach was then further developed and brought into LEGO SERIOUS PLAY by Robert Rasmussen, who worked at LEGO at that time, and who is the main architect of the LSP methodology and one of the most inspiring and LSP enthusiast.
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Posted in Events & Fun, Journalism, LEGO SERIOUS PLAY, Legoview |
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March 9, 2013
Francesca Valan, Industrial Designer
Francesca Valan is an industrial Designer. People call her colour designer, but she doesn’t agree – she doesn’t like the concept that colour is something to be added to an object, an artifact or a building. She works with colours, as one of the most recognised colour experts in the world: her job is to define, understand and give colors the right shape and form, changing the perspective that generally considers colour as something added to an object as a finishing touch.
When I met her, I immediately wanted to interview her, not only because she is responsible for the current shade of green of our LEGO bricks, but because I really had no idea of what colour was.
She accepted – being a curious and creative person, she couldn’t resist the idea to explore the subject she devoted her career to in a new way. When we sit down, she pretends to be comfortable – we’ve been talking a lot of my idea and knowing how things proceed, she was getting ready for the unexpected.
I put the bricks in front of her and simply ask her: What is colour?
She knows how the process works, and she builds.
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Posted in Architecture, Creativity Project, Legoview |
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December 12, 2012
After the pic, here it is a fun clip of what happened during the LegoInterview with Francesca Valan.
It’s a short clip, just to make you feel the atmosphere and let you have a taste of the experience.
A bit thanks to Pietro for the amazing editing!
[I apologise, the video is available only in Italian now – the whole LegoView will be available shortly, with English Subtitles].
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![Hands on! LSP Faciitators in an LSP workshop! [Photo by Lucio Margulis]](https://legoviews.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/564754_10151530155917398_565878055_n.jpg "Hands on! LSP Faciitators in an LSP workshop! [Photo by Lucio Margulis]")
LegoViews 