As calls for racial justice, climate action, and gender equity grow louder and more urgent, designers, activists, and makers ask: How can we challenge social inequities and systemic oppression in order to activate a better tomorrow?

In partnership with the Chicago History Museum, the Institute of Design at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) is offering a two-day, public Design as Activism Symposium convening design leaders and community organizers in Chicago to explore community-led design approaches that bring about positive impact and to consider the evolving partnership between design as activism.

In addition to virtual presentations and other pop-up events throughout Chicago, on Friday, September 13, the Museum is hosting two workshops and several tours of our newest exhibition, Designing for Change: Chicago Protest Art of the 1960s–70s.

Free and open to the public until full. Registration required for workshops. Public tours of Designing for Change meet at the gallery entrance on the 2nd floor.

Schedule

10:00–11:15 a.m. – Healing Justice Workshop

11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. – Tour of Designing for Change exhibition

1:00–2:00 p.m. – Tour of Designing for Change exhibition

1:00–3:00 p.m. – Intro to Craftivism Workshop with Shannon Downey of Badass Cross Stitch

3:00–4:00 p.m. – Tour of Designing for Change exhibition

Please visit the Design as Activism Symposium website for more information or to register for workshops and virtual online sessions.

This event is supported by the Terra Foundation as part of its Art Design Chicago.