From Bricolage to Speculative Design : Creative Methodologies for Hospital and Healthcare Design Futures

Dalton, Benjamin and Jacobs, Naomi and Chalmers, Madeleine (2026) From Bricolage to Speculative Design : Creative Methodologies for Hospital and Healthcare Design Futures. L'Esprit Créateur, 65 (4). pp. 57-72. ISSN 0014-0767 (In Press)

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Abstract

Abstract: This article explores the potential of speculative methodologies to help reimagine and reenergize elements of healthcare and hospital design. It examines the intellectual and clinical heritages of bricolage in French thought, before mobilizing dialogues between bricolage and speculative design methodologies, such as design fiction. A cross-fertilization of bricolage and speculative design, we propose, opens up creative, playful, and critical spaces for the reappropriation of the material assemblages of healthcare environments. Whereas bricolage is often conceived of as an emergency ‘make-do’ measure, we propose that bricolage, brought into contact with speculative design methods, can deliver pragmatic tools for reimagining healthcare futures.