One Must Invent: Tactical Aesthetics and Imperfect Design

Abstract

Balaisis draws important attention to the legacy of imperfect cinema in contemporary film, digital media, and design practice. Outlining what he calls tactical aesthetics and imperfect design, Balaisis discusses strategies used by Cubans in the post-Soviet period to extend the life cycle of various commodities and create new household items from discarded objects. He also examines the curatorial and critical work of Cuban industrial designer Ernesto Oroza, mapping the influence of Cuban film theory from the 1960s on contemporary aesthetic theory and design practice in Cuba. He situates these practices within the discursive and rhetorical history of industrialism and innovation in Cuba, as well as within emerging international discourses on “making” and maker culture.

“Hay que inventar!” (“One must invent!”)

Colloquial expression in Cuba.