Research

Science and research are an essential element of modern cultures. They analyze, assess, and form the basis for our individual being and the conditions of our social order. This is especially true for the evolution of current media technologies, which has not only resulted in a new interaction between work, life and communication, but that have also become a challenge for our understanding of the world as a whole.

BTK is reacting to these changes by also supporting research projects, in addition to offering courses. These projects can be theoretical and conceptual or artistic and design-based. Their approaches encompass both historical and contemporary sets of problems in equal measure. Since 2014, this work has been coordinated by the Institute for Design Research (IF) at BTK. In addition to supporting projects and quality assurance, this institute has become a place where research topics are freely discussed and experiments are conducted. The mutual premise is the awareness that the creation, the transfer, and the use of social infrastructures are also always a question of design. As a matter of fact, design strategies often provide the decisive impulses today for the renewal of or changes in interactions within society.

The research projects at BTK are built on an interdisciplinary foundation. On the one hand, as a result of the change in importance of design, the number of career fields has risen for designers, who increasingly have to be able to work in development teams beyond applications or services. On the other hand, it is necessary to tie in theoretical disciplines, which allow the knowledge to take on material and operative dimensions.

The research results are integrated into BTK’s courses on offer. Furthermore, they are published as a single book in a series and thus set out to promote discussion. In this way, BTK is also facing its responsibility towards a dynamic society, one that is open to the future.

Institute for Design Research (IF)

The Institute for Design Research (IF) was established in the 2015 summer semester. As an integral part of BTK, it allows us to initiate, coordinate, and support our research projects.

The main research topics are based on the interfaces between design, media art, science, and technology. Digital tools and culture-based techniques also play a special role. In a diverse number of ways, connections to the business world and the integration of the university are leveraged in subject-specific or career-based networks.