Ernesto Garcia, 25% doctoral seminar

Something is Broken: Exploring the healing concept of repair

Opponent: Åsa Ståhl

Workshop at Konstfack’s restaurant at 11.00
Seminar in Zickerman at 13.00

NOTE: there are limited places for the seminar. Please email mathew.gregory@konstfack.se to register attendance and receive the seminar material.

The research project “Something is Broken” was born out of a deep concern for the ecological crisis we are facing. It considers the act of repair in a metaphorical way as something that we need to do as individuals and in society. As part of his doctoral research, Ernesto Garcia uses repair as a research method. Through the project, he repairs various spaces and objects in his surroundings. These may be his own or belong to others, and they may be either public or private. The project approaches the design and the making of repair as a co-creative process, with forms of collaboration that vary for each repair.

The seminar will address the structure of the research project, discuss plans for following and documenting the ongoing repairs, and gather feedback in preparation for the future ones. In connection with the seminar, you are also welcome to take part in a workshop/happening where we will care for the lounge chairs at Konstfack’s café. The workshop will begin at 11:00 in Konstfack’s restaurant.

Åsa Ståhl is a design researcher and artist with a PhD in Media and Communication Studies from Malmö University. Her research focuses on participatory design, environmental posthumanism, and feminist technoscience. She is currently working at Linnaeus University as a senior lecturer and researcher at the Department of Design. In 2026, she will take up a position as Professor of Design at HDK-Valand at the University of Gothenburg.