„DER FACHIDIOT”: The Paratechnic in the Monotechnic

„DER FACHIDIOT?” : The Paratechnic in the Monotechnic | Provocation Paper for The Porous University – A critical exploration of openness, space and place in Higher Education

Since the early ’60s, increasingly integrated paratechnical curricula have been (begrudgingly) hosted by monotechnical art and design schools. I outline the key characteristics and limitations of the (modernist) monotechnical art and design curriculum and give some examples of different integrated paratechnical tactics and strategies. From this, I suggest that the paratechnic attempts to pursue the following qualities:

Diversification of methods and communities of practice Externally-networked dissensus (Bill Reading’s ‘University of Dissensus’) 1:1 scale immediation (non-representational) Ludic, adaptive flow Paragogical cooperation and collegiality
An opportunity lies in admitting that the monoculture of art and design education – its internal ethics – still nurtures modernist assimilation and bias, and that, in preventing art and design from realising its educational potential, fachidiots place their own field at risk of redundancy. From this we may begin a productive transformation of the art school’s communities of practice (its variety of staff and students) and their relations with international communities of purpose.

The programme of activities for The Porous University Symposium is outlined below. See ‘Additional info’ for details of sessions which can be viewed online – this includes sessions to be broadcast live via Twitter, and also a parallel session which will run as a webinar on Day 2.

The hashtag for the event is #porousuni