Human creativity during COVID-19 pandemic: the project Pandemic Objects as an example of sociological reflections on design
Abstract
This article proposes to look at how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the valuation of the world of material culture, and how the subject itself can become an inspiration to describe this particular time. Naive anthropomorphism, and thus criticism of the view of the superior role of human, although present for many years, has taken on a new meaning at this particular time. As a theoretical framework for presenting the proposed issues, I adopt the reference to the interpretation of the concept of an “object” present in the social sciences and humanities, as well as the role of designers and the explication of design in the literature. The picture will be complemented by a reference to the Pandemic Objects project, implemented in 2020 by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, United Kingdom.
Keyword : COVID-19 pandemic, creativity, material culture, sociology of design, sociology of objects, Victoria and Albert Museum
How to Cite
Rojek-Adamek, P. (2023). Human creativity during COVID-19 pandemic: the project Pandemic Objects as an example of sociological reflections on design. Creativity Studies, 16(2), 565–577. https://doi.org/10.3846/cs.2023.16838
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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Barański, J. (2007). Anthropos. Świat rzeczy. Zarys antropologiczny. Cz. Robotycki (Series Ed.). Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego.
Baudrillard, J. (2006). Społeczeństwo konsumpcyjne. Jego mity i struktury. Wydawnictwo Sic!
Bell, D. (1996). The cultural contradictions of capitalism. Basic Books.
Blumer, H. (1986). Symbolic interactionism: Perspective and method. University of California Press.
Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: a social critique of the judgement of taste. Harvard University Press.
Chen, Sh., & Bonanno, G. A. (2020). Psychological adjustment during the global outbreak of COVID-19: A resilience perspective. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 12(S1), 51–54. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000685
Dant, T. (2005). Materiality and society. Open University Press.
Debord, G. (2006). Społeczeństwo spektaklu oraz Rozważania o społeczeństwie spektaklu. Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy.
Desmet, P. M. A., & Pohlmeyer, A. E. (2013). Positive design: An introduction to design for subjective well-being. International Journal of Design, 7(3), 5–19.
Domańska, E. (2007). „Zwrot performatywny” we współczesnej humanistyce. Teksty Drugie, 5, 48–61.
Dunne, A., & Raby, F. (2021). Design Noir: The secret life of electronic objects. Bloomsbury Visual Arts.
Goffman, E. (2005). Interaction ritual: Essays in face-to-face behavior. Aldine Transaction.
Hofreiter, S., Zhou, X., Tang, M., Werner, Ch. H., & Kaufman, J. C. (2021). COVID-19 lockdown and creativity: Exploring the role of emotions and motivation on creative activities from the Chinese and German perspectives. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.617967
Horkheimer, M., & Adorno, Th. W. (1994). Dialektyka Oświecenia. Fragmenty filozoficzne. Instytut Filozofii i Socjologii PAN.
Krajewski, M. (2013). Są w życiu rzeczy... Szkice z socjologii przedmiotów. Fundacja Bęc Zmiana.
Lash, S., & Urry, J. (1987). The end of organized capitalism. University of Wisconsin Press.
Latour, B. (2010). Splatając na nowo to, co społeczne. Wprowadzenie do teorii aktora-sieci. UNIVERSITAS.
Leonard, D., & Swap, W. (1999). When sparks fly: Igniting creativity in groups. Harvard Business School Press.
Manzini, E. (2015). Design, when everybody designs: An introduction to design for social innovation. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/9873.001.0001
Marx, K., & Engels, F. (1955). Bücherei des Marxismus-Leninismus. Kleine ökonomische Schriften. Dietz Verlag.
Maslow, A. H. (1999). Toward a psychology of being. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Mead, G. H. (1972). Mind, self, and society from the standpoint of a social behaviorist. Ch. W. Morris (Ed.). The University of Chicago Press.
Moreno, J. L. (1964). The third psychiatric revolution and the scope of psychodrama. Group Psychotherapy, 17(2–3), 149–171.
Moreno, J. L. (1955). Theory of spontaneity-creativity. Sociometry and the Science of Man, 18(4), 105–118. https://doi.org/10.2307/2785848
Moreno, J. L., & Moreno, F. B. (1955). Spontaneity theory of child development. Sociometry and the Science of Man, 18(4), 137–155. https://doi.org/10.2307/2785851
Norman, D. (2005). Emotional design: Why we love (or hate) everyday things. Basic Books.
Norman, D. (2013). The design of everyday things. Basic Books.
Papanek, V. (1971). Design for the real world: Human ecology and social change. Academy Chicago Publishers.
Pearce, S. M. (1993). Museums, objects, and collections: A cultural study. Smithsonian Books.
Peterson, Ch., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Character, strengths, and virtues: A handbook and classification. Oxford University Press.
Orkibi, H. (2021). Creative adaptability: Conceptual framework, measurement, and outcomes in times of crisis. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.588172
Rogers, C. R. (1995). On becoming a person: A therapist’s view of psychotherapy. Houghton Mifflin Company.
Scott, A. J. (1988). Flexible production systems and regional development: The rise of new industrial spaces in North America and Western Europe. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 12(2), 171–186. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2427.1988.tb00448.x
Simon, H. A. (1996). The sciences of the artificial. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Szpunar, M. (2019). Kultura Algorytmów. Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie/Instytut Dziennikarstwa, Mediów i Komunikacji Społecznej.
Tisseron, S. (2016). Comment l’esprit vient aux objets. PUF. https://doi.org/10.3917/puf.tisse.2016.01
Tuan, Y.-F. (2001). Space and place: The perspective of experience. University of Minnesota Press.
Veblen, Th. (1998). Spectrum. Teoria klasy próżniaczej. Muza.
Victoria and Albert Museum. (2020). Pandemic objects. https://www.vam.ac.uk/blog/pandemic-objects
Warburg Institute. (2020). Curatorial conversations: Pandemic objects | Brendan Cormier in conversation with Prof. Bill Sherman. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfkxfEa3N_k
Waszczyńska, K. (2015). Przedmowa. In A. Rybus & M. W. Kornobis (Eds.), Ludzie w świecie przedmiotów, przedmioty w świecie ludzi. Antropologia wobec rzeczy (pp. 7–16). Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego. https://doi.org/10.31338/uw.9788323520030.pp.9-18
World Health Organization. (2021). WHO Coronavirus (COVID-19) dashboard. https://covid19.who.int/