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with the special artistic skills of the participants in mind. Visual and performing techniques were used in conceptualizing and developing ideas for the workshops.
Service design and applied visual arts go hand in hand in the nature of their project-like cycles. They both contain continu-ous phases of study such as planning, acting, observing, reflect-ing, and revising the plan. In addition, the use of creative solu-tions in the given location and the identification of stakeholders are common in both applied visual arts and in service design. In the field of art, traditional and non-traditional methods create communication and support interaction with wide and varying audiences. In fact, the participation of the audience is one of the main principles in both applied visual arts and service design.
(Lacy 1995, 19; Stickdorn 2011, 36-45, Jokela et al. 2006.) Service design consists of different ways of working and dif-ferent methods of observing, perceiving, and designing existing and new service entities. The service designer Marc Stickdorn (2011) points out that the main ideas in service design think-ing are in the user-centered ways of workthink-ing and designthink-ing, the phases, stages, design proofs, and overall process together. If there is no possibility of getting real customers involved in the design process, there are exercises and tools to help the design-ers place themselves in the user’s position. (Stickdorn 2011, 36-37.)
It is important for the design process to have participants from the different stakeholder groups. They develop ideas and work together by bringing their knowledge to the process. To make the holistic nature of service easier to handle, it is typical to divide it into different parts and design them in cycles. By us-ing different methods of visualizus-ing and demonstratus-ing ideas, it is possible to collect feedback and develop parts of the service even better. In the end, the parts are then put together for a ho-listic service. (Stickdorn 2011, 40-45.)
The workshops were prepared by using service safari, shad-owing, situational surveys, and interviews (Van Dijk & Kelly 2011, 154-162). The participants for the workshops were in-vited from different fields of the profession and different target
groups to create more diverse co-design groups. The limited amount of time in the workshops was maximized by gathering material from users and customers of art exhibits beforehand and then working with the information concentrating on cus-tomer understanding. After forming an understanding of who the customers and target groups were, the next workshops fo-cused on the conceptualizing and developing the idea for the possible services. The ideation was guided and supported by different techniques like brainstorming (Harisalo 2011; Hass-inen 2008). Using the knowledge gathered from the target groups, the participants co-designed concepts for the possible services.
THE SERVICE DESIGN WORKSHOPS
The themes of the service design workshops varied from ser-vices surrounding the art exhibits to serser-vices that collaborate with visual arts and tourism. Some of the workshops were con-nected so that during the first workshop the aim was to gain an understanding of the users and customers of the service under
The atmosphere was built up with easy and light exercises. Photo: Salla-Mari Koistinen
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design. The second workshop then concentrated on the design of the service so that after the workshop the participants would have ideas and a basis for concepts of their own. The other themes were:
• the customer of an art workshop,
• the art experience of the culture oriented traveler/tour-ist,
• the development of the children’s Art Carnival and the adults’ Art Party,
• the art workshop in collaboration with art educators and artists,
• development of a living Christmas calendar,
• cooperation between social services and visual arts,
• the understanding of visitors in art exhibits,
• services surrounding art exhibits.
Based on customer understanding of art exhibits, prepara-tions were made with service design methods. Shadowing, observing and surveying art exhibit locations allowed the workshop to use techniques to deepen understanding about the viewers and visitors. The marketing perspectives of these services were considered when learning about the different tar-get groups.
NEW EXPERIENTIAL VISUAL ARTS SERVICES
After the service design workshops two new services were launched – the Art Party and the Art Carnival. Under develop-ment are also the Art Anchors of Lapland, the concept of Art Tasting, and the concept of workshops together with the Ko-rundi Cultural House, the TAIKA project and the Arktikum Services to support the ability to work.
The Art Party
The Art Party is an experiential art workshop for adults. The Art Party enables its participants to throw themselves into the fun and relaxing world of painting without pressure. The Art Party is suitable, for example, for company retreats, for
Christ-mas parties or it can be a part of a seminar. The Art Party was launched in the Korundi Cultural House in October 2011.
The Art Carnival
The Art Carnival is a children’s version of the Art Party. The cooperation of the Magenta project and the city of Tornio is linked to the Art Carnival, which was launched during Tornio Week in May 2012. The goal for the children’s Art Carnival was to make an experiential workshop for children where they could take part in an inspiring and creative atmosphere of paint-ing by workpaint-ing together with others.
NEW METHODS FOR DESIGNING VISUAL ARTS SERVICES
The project was challenging but the launched services and the services under development pointed out that service design is one opportunity to apply art to variable contexts. However, the feedback from the participants showed that the workshops should have been connected even more clearly to real-life, con-crete situations. The connection between visual arts, service de-sign and applied arts is developing as enthusiastic professionals keep on working with current topics in the field.
The strengths of the workshops were in the variety of par-ticipants. In addition to the artists, there were also participants from other fields, and the conversations flourished. The work-shops also became a place for creating networks and new rela-tionships with other professionals that one would not neces-sarily meet otherwise. The weaknesses of the workshops were mostly due to the lack of time. A half-day workshop was filled with the exercises of a full-day workshop and some of the exer-cises appeared to be complicated for use by groups without any earlier experience of service design.
The service design workshops provided tools, methods and new contacts for the participants. The ideas and concepts were shared with everyone in the workshops. For the authors, the workshops were a great opportunity to create links between skills already learned and new ideas of applied visual arts.
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SALLA-MARI KOISTINEN
is a student of Applied Visual Arts Master’s program in the University of Lap-land. Her degree of Bachelor of Design is from Kuopio Academy of Design.
She is interested in developing interactivity between the artist, art and audience or participants. In the applied visual arts she finds her way on the borderline between arts and design.
MERJA BRIÑÓN
is arts manager and visual artist living in Rovaniemi, Finland and Madrid, Spain. She works as an arts manager in the Artists’ Association of Lapland and EU-funded Magenta project. Merja Briñón has studied fine arts in University of Lapland and in University of La Laguna, arts management in Sibelius Academy and design in Kuopio Academy of Design. She is interested in co-operation be-tween visual arts and service design and international relations.
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While group working the participants cratednew networks and discussions were livelyPhoto: Merja Briñón
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Edited by Timo Jokela, Glen Coutts, Maria Huhmarniemi & Elina Härkönen