Beyond reducing the number of new goods produced, consumed and discarded, repairing the things we own is a powerful way to understand the impacts of consumer culture directly and intuitively. In spite of a 50-year decline of repair in the United States, the practice is more relevant now than ever.
Portland Repair Finder is a website that documents repair work and connects repairers, with goals of reducing logistical barriers and exploring the role of repair as a relevant, valuable, community-centered practice. It hosts a directory of repair resources, and stories about repair work of all kinds.
This thesis project examines how people make decisions to repair possessions or replace them, and explores what resources might make more repairs feasible for more people. This research informs the content on portlandrepairfinder.com.
By looking at the number of listings for repair shops in archived phone directories from the Portland area over the last sixty years, we can see the decline of repair trades.
Saul Griffith rigorously calculated his carbon footprint for 2007, categorizing it by activities and purchases.
How we think about whether to repair something or not is based partly on logistics, partly on emotional connection. Breaking the decision down into 4 parts gives insights into how to make it easier for people to choose to repair something.
Sustainability organizations such as the Oregon DEQ typically optimize for material diversion, and see industrial equipment repair or building deconstruction as the best opportunities.
Restructuring material flows for recirculation rather than extraction, use and waste is crucial for living sustainably.
Exploded view of a lawn mower, disassembled and hung from the ceiling with monofilament. Hanging tags explain technology and failure modes of various parts and subassemblies.
Small labels point out various trends and features in the overall decline of repair in Portland.
Exploded view of a lawn mower, disassembled and hung from the ceiling with monofilament.
Exploded view of a lawn mower, disassembled and hung from the ceiling with monofilament.
Exploded view of an iPhone, disassembled and hung from the ceiling with monofilament.
Exploded view of an iPhone, disassembled and hung from the ceiling with monofilament.
The repair chart is painted large on the wall. Axis and category labels are vinyl cut. Explanatory notes are printed on cardstock.
Disassembled pair of soccer cleats. One is split in half and the other is hung from the ceiling with monofilament.
Disassembled pair of soccer cleats. One is split in half and the other is hung from the ceiling with monofilament.
An iMac is available for browsing portlandrepairfinder.com.
Two key quotes describing how repair affects our relationship with objects are vinyl cut on the wall.
Exploded view of a super-8 movie camera.
Exploded view of a super-8 movie camera.
Exploded view of a super-8 movie camera.
Disassembled sweater. 1 sleeve is unraveled on the floor.
Other albums in MFA in Collaborative Design and MA in Design Systems Thesis Works
