A public lecture series that explores the complexities of design across its various modalities, from practice and activism to discipline and ways of knowing, and beyond.
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The term counterform is typically associated with negative space in design, but it can also be metaphorically extended to the exploration of new ways of thinking. In this broader sense, counterforms represent the spaces and ideas that challenge and redefine existing concepts and norms—much like how negative space in design defines and shapes positive elements.
By exploring counterforms, one engages with the gaps, contradictions, and oppositional ideas that provoke new perspectives and innovative approaches. This practice emphasizes the importance of considering what is not immediately apparent or conventional, thereby sparking imagination and intellectual growth.
In this context, counterforms symbolize the underlying structures and voids within existing paradigms, encouraging a deeper examination of what lies beyond the obvious and prompting a rethinking of established beliefs and practices.
Counterforms was initiated by Trevor Embury in 2024. It has since evolved into a collaboration with Marcia Higuchi and continues as a space for soft, systemic activism.
[Fall 2026]
On Form, Forming, (In)Formation
September 24, 2026
Speaker: Dr. Gabriela Kurtz, Assistant Professor
October 22, 2026
Speaker: Parjad Sharifi, Associate Professor
[Fall 2025]
Dispositions: Spaces and Systems
September 24, 2025
Speaker: Leo Vicenti, Associate Professor
October 6, 2025
Speaker: Joni Low, Writer, Curator, and Scholar
[Fall 2024]
Reflections on Publication Design as Discursive Practice
September 25, 2024
Speaker: Dr. Katherine Gillieson, Associate Professor
Canadian Design and its Question of (Questionable) History
October 9, 2024
Speaker: Dr. Bonne Zabolotney, Professor