Class Three-Dimensional Narratives

The Three-Dimensional Narratives course unit explores processes of knowledge construction through the observation, organisation and interpretation of relationships between objects, concepts, contexts and observers. It draws on contemporary material culture and on an understanding of objects as products of communication, capable of revealing ways of thinking, belief systems and social transformations. Through the progressive introduction of new perspectives of observation and concepts as instruments of interpretation, students construct different relationships and narratives from the same objects. The course unit privileges a practical and experimental approach, developing capacities to observe, relate, interpret and explain, transferable to the various domains of design.

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The syllabus is developed through seven progressive phases, introducing theoretical concepts that broaden the understanding and explanation of objects. The phases are grouped into four domains: 1. Observation and Relation - Phases 1 and 2 Initial observation; similarity/difference; proximity; polarities; tension, valence and counterexample. 2. Complexification and Integration - Phases 3 and 4 Emergent property; infra/inter relationships; organic/inorganic; symmetry/asymmetry; harmony/disharmony; dissonance/consonance. 3. Abstraction and Narrative - Phases 5 and 6 Objective/subjective; abstraction; association; conceptual reorganisation; construction of relationships and narratives; transfer to real objects. 4. Diagnosis and Validation - Phase 7 Recovery of concepts; comparison between initial and final observation; progression, additional complexity, cumulative knowledge and validation.

The methodology is developed through a practical and experimental process organised into seven phases. Students observe, group, organise and reorganise the same objects, while theoretical concepts are progressively introduced as perspectives and instruments of observation. Each phase recovers previous knowledge and adds new possibilities for relation and interpretation, according to the principles of Progression, Additional Complexity and Cumulative Knowledge. The process alternates between individual and group work, comparison, discussion and reformulation of the interpretations produced. In the final phases, the knowledge constructed is applied to real objects and the initial exercise is repeated, allowing results to be compared and the evolution occurring throughout the learning process to become observable.

Ansary, T. (2020). A invenção do passado: Uma história de 50 mil anos de cultura, conflitos e ligações humanas. Vogais. ISBN 978-989-564-188-8. Cheng, E. (2020). A arte da lógica num mundo ilógico: Como dar sentido a um mundo que não o tem. Temas e Debates. ISBN 978-989-644-557-7. Epstein, D. (2020). Versátil: As vantagens de ser generalista num mundo de especialistas. Lua de Papel. ISBN 978-989-234-861-2. Kuhn, T. S. (2023). A pluralidade dos mundos: Para uma teoria evolucionista do desenvolvimento científico. Guerra & Paz. ISBN 978-989-702-972-1. Rodrigues, A. C. (2025). Narrativas Tridimensionais. Documento do autor.