Living on the Edge: Design artefacts as boundary objects.

Design is being performed on an ever-increasing spectrum of complex
practices. As a result there is demand on the articulation of design’s application
across disciplinary boundaries. This paper explores this context through
acknowledging the retained role of design artefacts in engaging complex,
collaborative contexts and a developing understanding of boundary objects. This
paper expands on notions of design artefacts as boundary objects by offering
reflections on existing examples from ongoing design research in the context of
health and care innovation. Through the process of framing a design problem, live
models are developed as dialogical tools with collaborators to validate and inform
design solutions. Such models are argued to act as boundary objects that are not
static, but living artefacts open to ongoing scrutiny within the design context,
offering an understanding of the value and practice of design artefacts in complex,
collaborative contexts.