APPROXIMATELY EQUAL TO

PRODUCT

Approximately Equal To was a conceptual design exploration undertaken as my thesis project for an MFA in Design from NCAD. The goal of the project was to examine how we perceive the value of tacit knowledge and skill developed in creative and craft based disciplines.

Through experiments with creative or craft practitioners, the project gives physical representation to measures of value, which are often difficult to communicate. The skills and knowledge are given this physical form by informing the units on scientific apparatuses and measuring instruments. Each unit is derived from the expert judgement of a skilled practitioner and each represents a different type of creative knowledge or skill. The units collectively form the AET or Approximately Equal To system of measure.

Part of the project also involved creating a visual scheme for the units that could be applied to the objects and the final exhibition display, which took the form of a laboratory bench where the apparatuses were displayed. A mini-thesis or design rationale was also produced in a self-bound volume which further enforced both the visual scheme and the craft based creative practice explored in the project.