Gaps, Goals, and Actions for the Development of the AfterLab: A Laboratory for Design Applied to the Dance Floor Experience

Clubs—like those devoted to disco, techno and house music—have worked as spaces for design, artistic and technological experimentation, creating a beneficial relationship between the discipline of design and the activity of clubbing. However, this relationship has caught little attention from design researchers, overlooking the possibilities that the club has to offer as a space for design experimentation and research. As an effort to foster these advantages, this chapter proposes the creation of the AfterLab as a laboratory for design—understood as the application of art and technology to our lives—applied to the dance floor experience. This proposal is divided in two parts: the first analyzes the economic, social, and aesthetic dimensions of clubbing; and the second exposes the research questions, goals, formats and initial actions proposed for the AfterLab, as well as some ethical guidelines. Once the AfterLab becomes a reality, it can benefit designers, artists, and professionals related to the area. Furthermore, the AfterLab can advance and deepen the relationship between design and clubbing, while preserving and improving local club cultures. The present text is shared with the scientific community in the hope of generating feedback and igniting synergies of collaboration.