Madness and Imagination

We all have reason to get mad about how universally ugly, dumb, and badly made things are around us. And while many of us are angry enough to take things into our own hands, in fact making things better is not for everyone. It takes more than frustration, anger, and rage against the machine, it takes more than money, skill, and brains, to do things differently. It takes imagination.

The Web Beyond the Edges of the Browser Window

Join Niels on a journey to the weird and wonderful fringes of the web – way beyond anything that fits inside a browser window. From using audio to draw SVG images on 1980s oscilloscopes to a CSS-controlled flamethrower (where local law permits), this is a tour of the web like you’ve never seen it before. A JavaScript clock that stubbornly refuses to tell the right time. Chrome's offline dinosaur game, beamed onto a laser projector.

What do these have in common, you ask? They’re all gloriously out there, they all run on modern web standards and they were an absolute blast to build. Buckle up!

Somebody Else’s Idea

Solar Futures

Solar design is more than a discipline. It is a new movement that revolves around designing with the sun. It shifts the narrative from solar being purely technical to a seamlessly integrated and beautiful part of our daily lives. It blends creativity, sustainability, and reverence for the sun and its abundant energy.

Solar design, a term started by Marjan van Aubel herself, envisions a world where solar integration is essential, not just a technical aspect added later. Instead, it should be the starting point – the foundation of the design process. It is believed that in the future, an object or building will be considered broken if it does not generate its own energy. How can we seamlessly integrate solar power into daily life while embracing aesthetics, interaction, and cultural values? How can we use this technology to create something beautiful that enriches our environment and the way we live together?

In her talk, Marjan van Aubel will give a historical overview of how we used to live and design with the sun, what we can learn from this and how to design a post-fossil future with the sun. Through examples of her work – Sunne, a self-powered solar light that mimics the sun, Ra, a solar tapestry, or the Solar Pavilion, a solar mesh on an architectural scale – van Aubel will inspire and provoke you to see solar energy in a new light.

Create, create, create!

The primal call of life.

Mastering the Art of Levitation

A look at how handmade documents – from film props to magic spells in children’s books – help elevate fictional worlds, making them feel lived-in and emotionally real.

This year’s Evening Session is presented by our wonderful Partner Adobe