Mark’s research looks at the role digital technology has on our experience of the natural world around us, specifically how digital technology can act as a transitory tool to create belonging in new spaces. He does this using participatory and systemic design methods with speculative design to create design interventions in the physical space that ask questions and raise awareness of our use of technology and the impact on our awareness of time and space and the world around us.
Mark uses participatory design as a tool to provoke questioning and self-awareness of our relationship, experience & understanding with the physical environment. Through this, his practice based research looks at the intersection of art, design and technology and the impact they have in shaping culture and society.
Mark works specifically on projects about social wellbeing and community building that are cross-disciplinary, collaborative and creative, where digital interactive design and user experience is used to build awareness and engagement.
The way that we experience time and space is changing. Our relationship between the physical space around us and how we interact with it is directly impacted by the digital tools that we use, but how can our digital devices help us discover new spaces and have a sense of belonging in them?
This website is divided into two projects that aim to highlight the relationship between the creator of work and the viewers/users.
The first project looks at journeys and storytelling through the landscape.
Whilst the second project looks at landscape through time, space and seasonal cycles
The geo-experiential project primarily explores the way we experience time and space and our relationship with the physical space around us through memory palaces and place attachment theory. The project aims to enable users to be able experience and see the space around them in a new light and use it as a memory recall device. Through this the aim is to change the relationship of a space and also the attachment to the place and in turn the wellbeing of the users.
This could be explored at many different levels. From documenting s space and moving more slowly through it using photography, a directed journey that could show; the history of a landscape, a journey to help understand the artist (be that metaphorical or physical) or as a place of solitude away and revision space.
The pieces could be experienced over a short or long period of time, but through the same physical location. The pieces could range from images or videos to virtual or physical installations or data visualisations; they are all designed to explore the relationship of the creators and the users/viewers whilst also encouraging both parties to pause and become aware of the space around them and thus their wellbeing.