Material culture(s). Research paths in an evolving material design culture, and the connected future designer’s attitudes

This contribution will investigate how material design culture is evolving: in fact, as designers, we can choose materials taking into account their variety during the design process, as well as design them. The article, through the analysis of a first exploration of just some of the most active and innovative academic case-study laboratories, in which tests and experiments on innovative materials for design are performed, will highlight the most recent research directions covered by designers in the new materials world: growing and living materials, DIY materials, active materials, materials in the circular economy, manufacturing processes applied to innovative fields and innovative ancient materials, rediscovered from the past and re-launched in the next future will be discussed. Those trends will be investigated to outline the directions of designer’s and research group’s activities and their new attitudes on the topic.