A Genealogy of Designing as Performance

In this final chapter, we provide a genealogy of the Designing as Performance approach taking readers on the journey of how we got here. In an interview with Jonathan A. Edelman, we reflect on our work in the Design Thinking Research Program and specifically our Designing as Performance approach, tracing the events, encounters, and inspirations that have shaped it. The power of our approach to designing is that it leverages a vast array of research generated within the design thinking community, as well as elsewhere. While in previous book chapters we have elaborated on each one of these varied influences, the places, situations, and people that contributed to bringing them together are often missing. Put in simple terms, this document is the conversation that goes along with “An Introduction to Designing as Performance” in a workshop setting. Thus, we trace the events and make the connections that help the Designing as Performance practitioner find inspiration and guidance when working with this approach. In this regard, the following chapter should be read as a companion to our previous writings on Designing as Performance because it complements them. Fellow researchers and practitioners will find in the following pages a myriad of rich examples, stories, and references provided in a more casual tone that places the reader inside the conversation. “A Genealogy of Designing as Performance” aims to make our approach more accessible and closer to the practitioner, fulfilling our long-term goal of bridging design research and practice.