A Methodological Playground: Fictional Worlds and Thought Experiments | Speculative Everything book club

Join us for a session exploring a chapter in Speculative Everything, a foundational text in speculative design that asks a deceptively simple question: what if design wasn't primarily about solving problems, but about imagining alternatives? This week, we're discussing Ch. 5, A Methodological Playground: Fictional Worlds and Thought Experiments What is this? Each week on Monday, we'll discuss a chapter in Speculative Everything together, using the book as a springboard for conversation, collective inquiry, and experimentation. The reading group will culminate in a collaborative public showcase, featuring works inspired by the series. The exhibition may take the form of installations, speculative objects, design fictions, research artifacts, performances, publications, or other experiments that help make alternative futures tangible. -- You do not need to attend every session to participate in the book club. Each chapter stands on its own, and you're welcome to join for the topics that interest you most. That said, this is also a cumulative experiment. Participants who attend regularly will have more opportunities to help shape the direction of the exhibition, contribute to collective projects, and influence how the showcase ultimately comes together. Whether you're an artist, designer, technologist, researcher, writer, futurist, or simply curious about how things could be otherwise, this series offers a space to think collectively about possible worlds—and perhaps begin building them. Meeting Schedule June 15, Week 1 — Preface + Chapter 1: Beyond Radical Design? June 22, Week 2 — Chapter 2: A Map of Unreality June 29, Week 3 — Chapter 3: Design as Critique July 6, Week 4 — Chapter 4: Consuming Monsters: Big, Perfect, Infectious July 13, Week 5 — Chapter 5: A Methodological Playground: Fictional Worlds and Thought Experiments July 20, Week 6 — Chapter 6: Physical Fictions: Invitations to Make-Believe July 27, Week 7 — Chapter 7: Aesthetics of Unreality Aug 3, Week 8 — Chapter 8: Between Reality and the Impossible Aug 3, Week 9 — Chapter 9: Speculative Everything Aug 10, No meeting (Final Showcase Planning / Artifact Development) Aug 26, Showcase No prior experience required! — tiat is the intersection of art and technology! we are a 501c3 nonprofit creating places for creative technologists to experiment, exhibit, and expand their practice. ⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ Learn more about tiat: https://tiat.place/