2018: A Year of Possibilities
Over a year ago, we named 2018 the ‘year of possibilities’ in search of a new model to continue to grow our work and impact. Over the course of the year, through workshops, residencies, and programs we conducted, the theme of ‘possibilities’ has grown to become a mantra that we resort to: when we are successful, we celebrate with the acknowledgment of ‘possibility’ as a path to achievement of the positive outcome, and when we are challenged we think of ‘possibilities’ as a reminder to remain hopeful and willing, and that a new outcome is around the corner.
Amman Design Week 2019 is a leap into the unknown, an embrace of the unpredictable, and a prompt to get comfortable with a lack of control. Rather than analytics, data, and seeking solutions through a clinical process of reactive problem-solving, ‘possibilities’ has taught us about curiosity, exploration, and dreaming. In other words, it’s about letting go.
We’ve learned that there are many possible paths forward, a multitude of processes, and a plurality of ending points from which new beginnings and paths arise. As much as this breeds excitement, ‘possibilities’ equally instills a cautious feeling of alarm for what may come. It’s about abandoning predefined rules and embarking on a creative process with no clear outcome in place.
At Amman Design Week 2019, things have become other things; food has become textile, textile has become architecture, architecture has become landscapes, and landscapes have become craft.
It’s a retelling of old stories in new ways, and a beautiful call to rebuild lost relationships: reconnecting to ancient traditions, practices, and scripts, forging renewed understandings about our connection to the landscape, and evolving with modern science, virtual and imagined worlds, technologies, and processes. The word ‘new’ is short-lived when tomorrow’s challenges are unpredictable, and faced with this uncertainty, designers have taught us that ‘possibilities’ is also about resilience.
To be resilient, one must learn when to resist and when to accept, when to take ideas forward, and when to leave them behind, what works and what doesn’t. Resilience is a process, much like design is, that demands constant evaluation and reevaluation of the status quo, not by forcing solutions, but by creating a new avenue through which to navigate challenges. It is hopeful in that it does not allow room for defeat, but rather encourages a rewriting of the narrative.
– Rana Beiruti