Crafting in the backstage: An ethnography on how designers cope with their changing work

This study is based on an ethnographic study of 17-months at a design firm which was amid a shift from product to service design. Instead of tangible products, the designers at the firm created intangible services. This shift in work practices re-duced crafting in design to making visualizations for reports and presentations. As a response, the designers sought ways to spend more time on manually crafting in their work. In the backstage, when among trusted peers and not facing clients, the designers spent a lot of time on making new design tools even though this did not directly con-tribute to the success of the design project. This allowed them to develop their craft skills, make sense of requirements of their renewed work context, and replenish emo-tional energy. This paper shows that it is nearly impossible for designers who consider themselves craftspersons to ‘drop their tools’ and change their relationship with materiality when work changes.