This year is going to be busy: we’ve got some exciting new projects to announce over the next few weeks! Read on for more about our design themes this year, outlined in a recent keynote – and one of the projects we’ll be working on!

​New Interactive Public Art Project
Launches in NYC This Summer!

Last summer, Ling and Usman spent some time at the Simons Foundation in New York City, diving deep into some of the most complex problems in basic science and mathematics.

Through conversations with leading scientists from Computational Quantum Physics, Computational Astrophysics, Computational Mathematics, Computational Neuroscience and Computational Biology they explored concepts like accuracy vs precision; the nature of explanation and causality; thresholds of knowledge and understanding; scales of perception and interaction; the roles of serendipity and intuition in science; and many more.

Building on this work, HAQUE TAN are delighted to announce a spectacular new public space intervention that we’ll bring to Broadway, in the Flatiron District of NYC, later this summer! We can’t say much about it just yet, but keep an eye on our social media for details, coming soon.

Keynote: Architecture of Entanglement Engaging with uncertainty and unpredictability is a challenge for all of us this year, across the globe and at a variety of scales. Last month, Ling and Usman discussed this in their opening keynote for Thingscon (Resize / Remix / Regen) in a talk titled 'Architecture of Entanglement'. Drawing on work about complexity, interdisciplinarity, cybernetics and systems thinking, their talk explored how to rethink creative practice, particularly the design of public space, in the context of ‘entangled’ political, environmental and technological crises. This requires embracing complexity, getting comfortable with the unknowable, tolerating the uncertain and planning for underspecification, rather than trying to make sense of things in isolation. It also means the deliberate designing of entangled systems that put people and communities at the heart – interwoven physical, social, ecological and technological systems – a maximalist approach to design, rather than minimalist. Our cities are increasingly mediated by technology, experienced through all kinds of physical and digital interfaces, and affected by decision-making far beyond our individual reach. In navigating the future, they need to be designed as entangled environments: physical, digital, social and ecological all entwined. There were great contributions from other participants (including Matt Jones’ closing keynote reflecting on Being as Smart as a Puppy!). ​Check out Ling and Usman's joint talk here, which also references work by Karen Barad, Heinz von Foerster, Marilyn Strathern, Kenneth Craik, Gordon Pask and Kevin Slavin. See the full keynote here: Architecture of Entanglement

BBC R&D: Designing for Large Scale
Civic & Democratic Participation

Drawing on our experience in designing for mass participation, a few weeks back we worked on a project with the folks at BBC Research & Development, exploring how to design for large-scale civic and democratic participation – a complex topic in the context of current global events.

We were particularly interested in the impact of lowering UK's voting age by the next election and how to support young people in practising civic participation online and understanding the complex consequences of collective decision-making in democracy.

It was an internal sprint, with no specific built outputs at this stage, but it was a great experience working with the team and we hope it eventually grows into something with broader public impact. More on that hopefully in the future!

Low Carbon Banquet for A Hundred
& 100 Climate Actions

Building on her multimedia exhibition, Harvesting Climate Action, last November Ling hosted the largest Low Carbon Banquet yet, with 100 members of the public, including the borough mayor and councillors, coming together at Hackney Town Hall for an evening of climate provocations and discussion, while enjoying a series of low carbon Chinese dishes, developed collaboratively over the years with UK-based East & Southeast Asian participants, scientists, and acclaimed food writers.

She also developed 100 Climate Actions, a climate resource toolkit detailing the environmental impact of 100 actions that anyone can take – from everyday choices to large-scale advocacy – gathered in collaboration with climate scientists, economists, designers, council staff, and members of the public.

If you missed the Banquet, and want to attend the next one, keep an eye on our social media where announcements usually go first. Visit Low Carbon Chinatown website for more information.

In Other News...

• Ling & Usman have been giving talks to design, architecture and art students around the world over the last few months, including postgraduates at Master in Design for Distributed Innovation at Fab City Foundation in Barcelona, Indus Valley School for Art & Architecture in Karachi, New York University @ Shanghai and Arts & Humanities MFA at Royal College of Art in London.
• In November, the studio visited Naeem Mohaiemen's Through a Mirror Darkly, a three-channel video installation hosted by Art Angel, examining conflicting narratives around student Vietnam War protesters, in the early 70s, killed by law enforcement. The piece will be shown again from March 2026 at Bonington Gallery in Notthingham – highly recommended if you get a chance.

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