Introduction:

The Unboxed Lab is a research collaborative founded by faculty from the Razia Hassan School of Architecture (RHSA) and Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts & Design (MDSVAD) with kind support from the Dean RHSA, Dr Gulzar Haider & the Dean MDSAVD, Rashid Rana.

We aim to examine intersections and overlays between the disciplines of art, design and architecture while providing a research-led platform for intellectual exchange. We endeavour to catalogue, build, and promote interdisciplinary discourse in the region and beyond.

As a group, we are strongly invested in archiving interdisciplinary practices from our shared history. Simultaneously, we are looking at intriguing cross-disciplinary craft and design interventions currently or designed for the future. We aim to expand the possibilities of conceptualizing, investigating and developing spaces, projects and ideas through collaborative reasoning to open new vistas for knowledge production and dissemination.

Activities:

The Unboxed Lab launched its first-ever event in collaboration with the prestigious International research organization, Architecture, Media, Politics, and Society (AMPS) and a famous publishing house, Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

The conference held from 21st-23rd of April titled: Online education: “Teaching in a time of Change” brought together diverse perspectives of academics on virtual pedagogy from 29 countries across the globe. The conference received 201 abstracts, out of which 104 were selected for presentation and published by January 2022. The presentations were centred around key themes of Teaching Practice, Theories of Learning, Educational Technologies, Exploring Pedagogical Initiatives, Education and Workplaces, Educational Psychology and Learning spaces amidst a global pandemic. The team at The Unboxed Lab chaired several sessions at the conference that ranged from art and archives to service and space design, using explorative synchronous approaches layered with textual and visual ways of knowledge dissemination using ever-evolving digital/immersive technology. Along with “The Unboxed Lab” at Beaconhouse National University, the conference was organized by the University of Kassel, Ball State University, and the University of Pretoria in coordination with AMPS.