The jury said: "Weglinski continuously addresses the human
condition, choosing to embrace complexity rather than hiding it
behind a polished facade. Going beyond the human-centered design
approach, his concepts are life-centered, reminding us of what it
means to be human in a world that is about more than just us. The
scholarship is awarded to a student who shows great potential and
an ability to address the big questions that we face as a society
through interventions that feel natural, measured and considered.
Dismantling normative societal concepts through an approach that
embraces a diversity of realities, Weglinski's work speaks of
a poetic refinement of both form and thought".
Weglinski will receive the award during a digital conference
organized by SSE House of Innovation, Dialogues at the
Garden, taking place on 3 December 2020. The scholarship,
worth SEK 100 000 is sponsored by Michael Treschow.
"Knowing that a jury of design experts selected me out of
all the amazing candidates is a great acknowledgement for my design
practice and encourages me to further explore different ways on how
we can move beyond the traditional human-centered design approach
towards more life-centered philosophies. Furthermore, it ensures
financial stability for planning and executing my Master thesis
which will help me to conduct necessary research trips or
workshops", said Weglinski. "I would like to thank Michael Treschow
and everyone else who is part of the committee for this singular
honor. I have never felt so grateful, honored, and appreciated.
This is definitely a life-changing event", he concluded.
The scholarship's ambition is to help and motivate creative
design students to pursue higher education beyond Bachelor-level
studies. It is awarded through a collaboration with The
Garden - Center for Design and Leadership at the SSE
House of Innovation. The scholarship was introduced in 2003, and
has been awarded 16 times to brilliant designers, who continued
their studies at Master's level.
Conference where the award will be given - digital and open to
everyone: https://ssehoi.com/gad20
Recent projects by Oliver Weglinski
Siro - A multi-sensorial interface for tele-operative
mining interventions
Siro enables the operator to remotely control an
excavator in different mines around the globe. At the core of
the system are wearables which substitute different sensorial
sensations from the actual location.
A station of being - An interactive bus for arctic
conditions (created by RISE & Rombout Frieling
Labs)
Oliver was part of the initial research and prototyping
exploration phase for a system that increases the quality of the
waiting time at the bus stop. Usually, commuters have to watch out
for their bus and. Here, the bus stop is doing this job for the
user: A comforting spectacle of audio and light informs about the
status of the buses.
Spore - Fostering human to plant relations by
translating bio activity in sounds and melodies
A concept that gives a voice to plants in order to make
their communication more accessible to humans, going beyond the
daily watering routine. Spore explores ways of visualizing the
activity, behaviour and communication of plants through
sound.
Seam - Creating togetherness and connectedness between
individuals with dementia and their loved ones
Product-service systems enabling the elderly and their
loved-ones to remotely communicate with each other by creating
a routine of exchanging memories through photos,
videos and live video calls.
