DesignLAB
Scarcity is the mother of invention. The designLAB, on the Deck of Het Nieuwe Instituut, will challenge visitors (aged 9 and up) to make more out of less. Participants will discover countless possibilities for controlling a game using a limited amount of resources.
28 June 2014 21:15 - 30 August 2014 21:15
The exhibition Designing Scarcity showcases work by artists, designers, architects and users who see scarcity not as a constraint but as an opportunity to come up with creative new ideas. The designLAB, on the Deck of Het Nieuwe Instituut, will challenge visitors (aged 9 and up) to make more out of less. Participants will discover countless possibilities for controlling a game using a limited amount of resources. With the inventors' kit MaKey MaKey, some wires, alligator clips and conductive materials, the real world can be connected to a computer in creative ways.
In many games, scarcity plays a major part in challenging designers and players. For instance, game designers compete to build great games using minimal computing power. In the 1980s, this spirit led to the 8-bit aesthetic, a style that remains popular in today's retro games (Super Crate Box). But scarcity plays a role in games themselves too. Competition for resources (Mario Bros.) and shortages of time (Wario Ware Inc.) and space (Klax) are used to make play more challenging.
designLAB was made possible in part by the Netherlands Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. The workshop design was made possible by Eric Roelen, Adriaan Wormgoor and the reuse of materials.