What do the work processes of a neurosurgeon and a painter have in common? Applying the notions of Design, Gestaltung, and Formatività, this book sheds new light on processes of formation and transformation in the material world we live in.

Scholars
from the fields of history, philosophy, psychology, media, and cultural
studies question established processes of giving form, while artists,
designers, engineers, and scientists describe their creative processes.
This book provides its readers with an overview of the spectrum of
"philosophies of making" and invites them to refl ect on their own
creative process, its possibilities and associated responsibilities to
the environment, and ultimately to express these in action. There has
never been a more urgent need to develop a new relationship between
matter and form.

• Discussing and expanding the definitions of Design, Gestaltung und Formatività
• Leading international theorists write about the relationship between matter and form
• A collection of new texts and first English translation of key texts