oh, öland ! . . .

autumn 2011: matthew burger visits ölands folkhögskola, on sweden’s beautiful öland island, in october . . .

i was asked by a enthusiastic, versatile, instructor, louise häggberg, to visit her design students and colleagues at ölands folkhögskola (öland folk high school). here’s a very brief description of the basår design program. the duration of the program is one year. in preparation for university level studies, basår design offers an overview for students who desire a broad, fundamental approach to knowledge within the field of design. in addition to being an introduction to design in general, the program also intends to give students a solid understanding for the need for application materials, such as a portfolio, for institutions of higher education. basår design students have an opportunity to explore various methodologies within different disciplines such as: textile design, graphic design, interior design, industrial design and architecture. the students’ work expresses the basic elements of design continuously. the basår design program encourages their students to be attentive to the interplay of design elements in concert, for example: point, line, plane to volume, color theory and application, ideas as tools, media selection, composition, figure/ground relationships, scale/dimensional considerations, materials identification, structural understanding and finally, the myriad of needs from various groups of people, for a human-oriented design philosophy.

a link to ölands folkhögskola’s basår design program

i had a venue called, “ideas under construction.” along with the students and faculty from ölands folkhögskola, there were also some teachers from linnæus university and jutta swärdh, from the cultural affairs office in mörbylånga municipality, öland island. we talked about everyday objects and our emotional connections to these object as well as individual patterns of behavior and simple rituals that could be considered in relation to these objects. during the evening meal that followed with design basår students, louise häggberg, jutta swärdh, inès burger, myself and others, we talked about the the future of the design profession plus the role of education in the near future, for the next generation. later in the evening, i felt rather inspired by the exchange of ideas from all those who had taken part in the days events and also felt that i had learned something new, from my visit to öland island, especially from all the students . . . about cultural affairs in mörbylånga municipality

we had also made a short visit at the capellagården, school of craft and design,
in the village of vickleby, öland island.

“my vision was to create a school devoted to hand and mind, a meeting place for young people from all over the country who wanted passionately to unite beauty and function in their craft.” carl malmsten . . . would you like to know more about capellagården’s approach? carl malmsten & his educational philosophy for capellagården