Shenzhen in Focus: Design, Power, and the Global South

The RVW course  ‘Design in Social and Political Context’ introduces students across the design disciplines to international, leading ideas and voices in the field of design, curation, design writing, design history, social science and practice exploring design in contemporary theoretical context. This semester’s lecture series will explore the social and political impact of Chinese manufacturing and design on the Global South, with a particular focus on Shenzhen that has rapidly emerged into a hub for design and production for the developing world. The series concludes with an online symposium that critically contextualises the histories, legacies, and futures of the design and development paradigms.

As this is a co-taught course students must also register with Prof. Alison Clarke: https://base.uni-ak.ac.at/courses/2026S/S04976/

For successful completion of this course the following requirements apply: 

• regular, punctual attendance (minimum 4 out of 5 sessions, 50% of grade) 
• active participation in the Q&A sessions during the guest lectures and at the symposium (20% of grade) 
• an essay (+/- 1000 words) in the form of an exploratory "think-piece" of reflections on the students’ own practice in relation to the guest lectures (30% of grade) – we do not accept work generated by AI or created through plagiarism; references in footnotes are strictly required (https://www.scribbr.de/chicago-zitierweise/literaturverzeichnis-chicago-style/)