Pattern Language for Systemic Transformation
Pattern Language intro
& Reference links
By Jessie Henshaw on Friday, December
11, 2015 at 6:46pm
____________
General PL Introductions and
PLAST.II References
1. The
Hillside Group has the most general repository of pattern
language work and sponsored the series of world PLoP conferences
sponsored. It's an amazing community of people and record of 20 years of
work hosting multiple conferences, representing a progressive wing of the even
larger software pattern language community. The EuroPLoP
website is one entry into it.
§ Main site: http://www.europlop.net/
§ Hillside Group Wiki http://hillside.net/wiki
2. Pattern Language
community is the other major center of pattern thinking and
network,
§ Chistopher Alexander's community site https://www.patternlanguage.com/.
3. Social Transformation
pattern collections of interest:
§ Tom Henfrey's Transition Networkhttp://www.patterns.transitionresearchnetwork.org/
§ Doug Schuler's Public Sphere, work on educational patterns, "Liberating
Voices" book, GroupWork Card Deck,
and wonderful collection of 136 PublicSpherePatterns…
from 75 authors
- Short text only list of 136 patterns:
http://publicsphereproject.org/sites/default/files/all-patterns-short-verbiage-and-titles-only.pdf
- Long description Pattern pages http://www.publicsphereproject.org/patterns/lv?page=1
4. Takashi Iba Maybe
the most prolific contributor of new content is whose department at, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan concentrates on teaching pattern
language. During the last 10 years, 4000 students have passed pattern
workshops, about 500 patterns have been written in 20 pattern languages, part
of them published in English as books or card sets. As part of his work
a pattern research field "Human Action" has been defined that doesn't
focus on the creation of artifacts. Two workshop formats have been
developed, one "Dialogue Workshop" format or the exchange of pattern
experiences, one "Pattern Mining Workshop" for the development of
pattern languages. In Japan, they have also started a project to
translate all of Alexander’s books to Japanese, as a collective work done
mainly by students. 2 are already available. Most of it has been
presented at PLoP and recently PURPLSOC events. :
§ Designing
Pattern Templates http://www.hillside.net/plop/2014/papers/Social_Related/iba_2.pdf
§ A wonderful
slide presentation intro http://de.slideshare.net/takashiiba
5. Helmut Lietner's lectures and writings are
another great introduction
§ PL ntro & crash course on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4R7dDtLYgU
§ A book
"Pattern Research", available on Amazon
6. In 2015
- Special issue of SPANDA edited by Helene
- PURPLSOC conference papers* in Krems Austria in July made valuable
contributions.
Helene Finidori and Sayfan Borghini presented their model for a 4th Generation
Pattern Language, while Helene presented her current Pattern Language for
Systemic Transformation (PLAST). and Jessie
Henshaw presented her new pattern language for naturally occurring designs and
transformations, "Elements"
(*draft papers not circulated, publication pending)
- PLoP writers workshops** in Pittsburgh in Oct.
offered valuable contributions too
Jessie Henshaw expanded her pattern language for naturally
occurring design with "Mining Living Quality" and David West and
Jenny Quillien presented their study of how
pattern language has evolved with their "Undiscovered
Patterns".
(**http://www.hillside.net/plop/2015/index.php?nav=program#acceptedpapers)
SPANDA Special issue
on Systemic Change, edited by Helene.
Containing a great collection of essays by seminal thinkers.
§ Systemic Change. http://www.spanda.org/SpandaJounrnal_VI,1.pdf
Jessie Henshaw - Guiding patterns of
Naturally Occurring Design
§ "Elements": http://synapse9.com/pub/2015_PURPLSOC%20JLH%20final%20pub.pdf
§ "Mining
Living Quality": http://synapse9.com/_PLref/@2015_PLoP-JLH%20final%20pub.pdf
Helene Finidori and Sayfan Borghini paper
on Fourth Generation Pattern Language is based on their long collaboration on
projects and their teaching of systems thinking and writing from a commons
perspective. Helene's PLAST paper follows a year of work with organizing
a collective to study and begin performing applications.
§ Fourth
Generation Pattern Language
https://www.academia.edu/17543428/Towards_a_Fourth_Generation_Pattern_Language_Patterns_as_Epistemic_Threads_for_Systemic_Orientation
§ A Pattern
LAnguage for Systemic Transformation
https://www.academia.edu/9138366/A_Pattern_LAnguage_for_Systemic_Transformation_PLAST_-_re_Generative_of_Commons
David West and Jenny Quillien have been
working together, both anthropologists and critical thinkers on the leading edge, and at both PURPLSOC and PLoP presented detailed study
of how PL originated in Alexander's study of natural patterns of design and then
went other direction as it became more formalized as a theory.
§ The Mystery Case
of Undiscovered Patterns (conf. d
7. Alexander's work: So... there does seem to be a
large variety of resources "out there", but it takes a bit of digging
to find the threads of interest. Everyone has their favorites of
Alexander's own writings, and it'svery helpful to be
familiar with the discussions of them.
One can find a good bit by web search. I think his two very
earliest writings seem to contain lots of clues to the form of pattern language
that seems to eventually have worked,and
some of his later writings appears to omit... as an interesting twist. That's
his "A city is not a tree" and "Notes on the
synthesis ofform" from the early
60's... Amazon has inexpensive copies of the latter,
and some of his more recent books too.
Helmut says, when one is studying original Alexander, it may be
helpful to think in three phases, that have somewhat
different orientation and terminology. (this means
they are not quite consistent)
§ (1) published
§ (2) published
1968-1985 very pattern oriented, plus generative process, based on "A
Pattern Language" and "The Timeless Way of Building",
description of projects (I especially appreciate "The Production of
Houses" which documents the Mexicali social housing project in a Mexican
slum; the focus is on the enabling of people and participation). Add to this
phase "The Battle for the Life and beauty of the earth" (which
actually documents the Eishin campus Project and the
conflicts around it)
§ (3) published >2002; kind of post-pattern work. Basically
"The Nature of Ordner" towards a science of
living systems. TNoO existed 20+ years as an internal
draft. (therefore Grabow was
able to discuss this in 1983).
§ (4) Stephen Grabow’s book "Christopher Alexander: The Search for a
New Paradigm in Architecture" (1983) may help to get an overall picture.
Contains 80 pages of orginal Alexander texts (audio
transcriptions) which you will find nowhere else
8. Liveliness Science:
Helmut with Franz Nahrada explores
what they call Liveliness science
§ http://www.theoriekultur.at/wiki?Lebendigkeitswissenschaft
Jessie's "physics of happening" and
methods of pattern recognition for "happening" are closely related
§ The Physics of
Continuity = ladders of change
§ http://synapse9.com/signals/the-key-scientific-question/
§ Object oriented
science discussion at end of 2015 PURPLSOC paper.http://synapse9.com/pub/2015_PURPLSOC%20JLH%20final%20pub.pdf
9. Other nice examples:
Sebastian Denef's funded
research on the patterns of front-line firefighting is one of the most
beautiful pattern studies - accessed on ResearchGate
William Isaacs original
source book "Dialogue. The art of thinking together, continue with like
NVC and World Cafe and the work of pioneers like Tom Atlee.
Helfrich & Boiller
One may count the Transition Towns movement in, with the 60
patterns (recently renamed "ingredients") they defined. And maybe the
recent adoption of the Commons Movement to use the pattern methodology to
create a shared language, see the book "Patterns of Commoning"
by Helfrich & Bollier.