[MM] MM039: Notes on a changing web, creative AI, and Ibsen’s impossible play
Hello again, Miscellaneous Materials readers!
We are continuing our journey through the archives. After our first “Curated Insights” deep dive in the last email, we’re back to the serendipity of the main MM series.
This collection, MM039, represents an attempt to change how I approached the project. One of the biggest MM Collection challenges was the “memory gap” — I would find a folder of PDFs collected weeks or months earlier and have little recollection of the thread I was pulling on. The why or how was almost always lost.
With this collection from February 2023, I tried adding notes directly into the Are.na channel as I saved blocks. It was an attempt to leave breadcrumbs for future me, to capture the spark of curiosity in the moment, but help me later make sense of why these things were next to each other. Was it a perfect system? No. But it was the start of a solution to the very problem that led to the long hiatus. Did it help me make sense of this collection from nearly three years ago? maybe.
MM039: The Collection Itself
As for the miscellany and materials. Looking back at this collection with the help of its notes, it is clear my mind was grappling with the rapid changes to our digital world — from the visual refresh of Wikipedia to the explosion of generative tools like ChatGPT.
Here are a few of the standouts from the collection that my past self left notes on:
The Great Flattening of the Web? I was struck by the simultaneous redesigns of Flickr Commons and Wikipedia. While the updates are more screen-friendly, I could not shake the feeling that they made these spaces look even more generic, less “undesigned and pure.” Can a modern, theme-based design make a trusted resource feel less trustworthy?
First Big Encounters with ChatGPT: My own early, hands-on reflections on the implications of generative AI for higher education and creative work. I found it to be a powerful tool for overcoming the friction of utilitarian writing tasks, but not a partner for creating something meaningful. A fancier (though fascinating) typewriter is still a typewriter.
Ibsen's “Unproducible” Masterpiece: I fell down a rabbit hole researching Norwegian cultural history and was reminded of the genius of Henrik Ibsen’s Peer Gynt (1867). He wrote a play that was technically impossible for any theater of his time to produce; a sprawling performance poem that essentially envisioned a feature film before the technology existed. A powerful lesson in creating for a future that isn’t here yet — in not letting the PRESENT POSSIBLE get in the way of your creative intentions.
Eco-Visualization & Design's Role in the Climate Crisis: A couple of resources that get to the heart of our discipline's responsibility. One is a paper on how creative visualizations of real-time energy use can trigger more responsible behavior. The other asks the hard question: “What can graphic designers do in the era of climate crisis when our work so often serves to accelerate consumption?” Climate design? yes please.
Explore the full collection (and my experimental notes) directly on Are.na here: https://www.are.na/kristian-bjornard/mm-mm039
What’s Next
MM Archives (Season 5): I will continue releasing these “forgotten folders” over the coming months. MM040 coming soon.
Curated Insights: Keep an eye out for our next deep dive, where we’ll explore another topical collection from my more current research. I’ve been working on some new classes, so probably the collecting from one of those!
Enjoy! (both the serendipity of random collections and the rigor of themed scholarship).
Current Daily Average CO₂ PPM: 425.27 ppm
(A sobering reminder that our built world must become part of the solution. Our goal remains: back to 350 ppm—ideally closer to pre-industrial levels.)
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this more context-enriched format. What are your thoughts on the sameness of the modern web. How have you integrated generative AI into your own creative process?
Reply anytime, and let’s keep this design conversation moving forward.
P.S. Know someone passionate about sustainability and design? Feel free to share this email or invite them to subscribe