The future is a foreign country; they do things differently there.*

The future is not a fact. The only thing certain about the future is that there will be one, though what part we play in it remains to be seen. Our purpose, here in the present, is to; play with the possibilities; poke and prod at connections and creations; make sense and shape stories about the things that could happen; and decide on the next steps we might take in order to make more appealing futures contexts arrive.

In this lecture, John V Willshire will explore the theme of “Imaginaries and abundance” and how our (almost) inexhaustible capacity to create new combinations of ideas, metaphors, and mental models connects to foresight, creative production, and innovation. He will share a variety of different techniques and ways of thinking that provide the basis for people to develop their own methods for embracing this way of thinking.

Later the same day, John will run a workshop with the sculpture park at Wanås as a starting point, as a more hands-on introduction to collaborative futures practice. Read more about the eligibility to participate and how to sign up for the workshop here.

This lecture is carried out in collaboration with Wanås Konst. From May 9 they are presenting the exhibition Fortune and Abundance by Chiachio & Giannone, an Argentine artist duo who are partners both in life and art. They have both been trained as painters but have been working with textiles and different techniques creating intricate and complex motives and designs that are equally appealing for their artistic quality and as for their social commentary.

*with apologies to L P Hartley

John V Willshire

John V Willshire is founder of Smithery, an independent Strategic Design Practice set-up in 2011. They help clients Make Things People Want, rather than Make People Want Things. This practice has grown to help organisations take an active role in shaping their futures as they look out over an uncertain landscape. This involves learning to perceive and understand new realities, sparking appropriate internal innovation, and acting on these instincts to make real change. John’s work is informed by a wide range of different fields, including systemic sensibilities, futures thinking, innovation frameworks, and information design. This combination has helped clients of all shapes and sizes over the last 15 years, including UNDP, Wellcome Trust, BBC, LEGO and Unilever. Finally, John also leads the Futures Through Design short course at the Royal College of Art in London, and teaches at a variety of other institutions including IED in Barcelona.

Program

• 10:30 Registration
• 11–11:40 Lecture by John V Willshire
• 11:40–12 Q&A
• 12 The event ends, but feel free to stay for lunch in Wanås restaurant and/or pay a visit to the exhibitions (entrance fee not included in this event, here’s more information on tickets).

How to get to Wanås Konst

Wanås Art is located in northeastern Skåne near Knislinge. Adress: Vanås, 289 90 Knislinge, Sweden

By car: It is easily accessible by car and you can park your car for free at Wanås Konst

By public transport: Unfortunately it is not possible to reach Wanås Konst by public transport on the time and date for this event, therefore Media Evolution will offer limited seats of free transportation from Malmö C to Wanås Konst by bus. When you register, you can choose “General Admission + Bus” as long as there are seats available. The bus will leave Malmö C at 9 AM and drive to Wanås Konst. At 1 PM the bus will go to Hässleholms train station and drop off those who wants go back to Malmö. The train ticket from Hässleholm to Malmö is not included in this event. If you wish to stay longer, the bus will go back at 5 PM to Malmö.

The lecture is part of Media Evolutions series on Foresight and Futures.

It is also part of Learn, Create, Engage – a project that helps develop competence and strengthen people who work within the cultural and creative businesses in Skåne, by offering free courses and much more. It is run by Media Evolution in collaboration with the Region of Skåne and City of Malmö with funding from the European Social Fund.