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Maarten Overdijk: Spatial Narratives

Maarten Overdijk is leading the research project Spatial Narratives: Scenarios for designing environmental plans in Extended Reality. He is developing scenarios for spatial design research by using Extended Reality. In the design studio managed by him, experiments with XR tools and narrative design methods are held in response to spatial challenges presented by the educational and professional domains of HKU Design.

Post-doc research project Spatial Narratives

The work of the spatial designer significantly changing under the influence of technological developments. At the intersection of the physical and the virtual, both new spatial challenges and new solutions for spatial research and design are emerging.

Examples are issues related to public space and social design, well-being and interior design, storytelling and navigation. Spatial designers are facing the challenge of reflecting on these issues and to develop ideas to design the environment of the future. The post-doc research project "Spatial Narratives" is exploring the use of Extended Reality (XR) to achieve this.

Recentyears saw the development of narrative design methods that start from imagination and critical reflection in spatial design research. These methods stimulate imagination, and help the designer to put themselves in (hypothetical) situations and involve users in the design process.

Extended Reality offers new opportunities for designers in this regard. By making it possible to experiment with immersive interactions and representations of space, XR is particularly suitable for visualizing aspects of the designed environment in an experiential form and exploring them through direct, physical experience.

With Spatial Narratives, Maarten is developing scenarios for spatial design research inside Extended Reality. He is running a design studio where experiments with XR tools and narrative design methods are conducted in response to spatial issues from the educational and professional fields of HKU Design.

Knowledge at the intersection of spatial design, environmental psychology, and game design is brought together within a well-substantiated conceptual framework. The scenarios outline new possibilities in the design process for spatial designers and provide practical guidelines for the design practice.

Design studio

Education and research are intertwined in various ways within the project. The activities of the design studio are at the core of this interconnection. Throughout the postdoctoral project, teachers and students are invited to the scenarios in development, in order to explore their applications in the educational practice.

The starting point for the scenarios are case studies presented by the educational (and professional) field. An important aspect is to establish a common objective and language in this process. The scenarios serve as the boundary object (Star & Griesemer, 1989): it presents a practical form that can be applied in education while also serving as a tool in the research. In this way, it enables dialogue and exchange between education and research.

Collaboration

The project establishes a connection via the design studio between the research group and the bachelor's and master's courses, and vice versa. It responds to questions and needs from each side. The postdoctoral makes a tangible contribution to the development of the curriculums of the courses Spatial Design (BA) and Interior Architecture (MA).

Additionally, the postdoc contributes to the development of the educational programme for two minors: Spatialisation Design and Extended Reality. Research results flow out from the design studio back into the educational practice, which ensures that students are properly prepared for their future professional practice, and are even co-designers of that practice.

More information

Would you like to know more about the postdoc research project Spatial Narratives? You can contact Maarten Overdijk via maarten.overdijk@hku.nl


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