Like many paths in design, this project was driven by several questions and a personal interest: making books. How do we learn to design books? What skills are relevant? How can we expand this knowledge and foster more diverse discourses?

Books are the starting point for this project, but its scope reaches far beyond the boundaries of the book as an object. Its main experiment, Open Books, is a book club for making books – an experimental reflec­ tion on collective practices for self­publishing. Though set within an academic context, it values other forms of non­hierarchical learning, sparking conversations rath­ er than providing single answers. A tool for agency and collaboration, adaptable to a multitude of situations.

Guided by three interdependent components — Playfulness, Collectiveness and Learning — the project is shaped by practice­led and participatory research. What you see in this room is an attempt to capture a portrait of a collective space: therefore, in a constant state of openness.