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School

for

Poetic

Computation

sessions Winter 2025

Apply Now

Gifting Interfaces

Teachers
Spencer Chang, Elan Ullendorff
Date
Section 1: January 15, 2025 to March 26, 2025
Section 2: January 15, 2025 to March 26, 2025
(10 classes)
Time
Section 1: Wednesdays, 1pm-3pm ET Section 2: Wednesdays, 7:30pm-9:30pm ET
Location
Online (Zoom)
Cost
$1200 Or pay $600, $300, or $0 with scholarship
Deadline
Applications closed on November 18, 2024

Apply Now

Description

Images courtesy of teachers.

Outcomes

Blog Posts (1)

September 18, 2025

Gift interfaces


Holiday Schedule

No class on January 29th / Lunar New Year

Course of Study

  • Give a gift to yourself
  • Give a gift to a stranger
  • Give a gift to a loved one (generic gift objects vs. meaningful gifts, gift cultures)
  • Give a gift to a community or public (mutual aid, what can gifting learn from design / what can design learn from gifting)
  • Give a gift interface to the world (gift rituals, gift products, gift objects, gift infrastructure)

Expectations

  • Participants are expected to bring their full self and attention for the duration of each class. Full self and attention, as we will discuss, are the main currency of meaningful gifts.
  • The class itself will be modeled after gifting. We will all participate in an environment of reciprocity. This means that everyone should be prepared to both give and receive.
  • Most classes will include a short lecture, discussion, and a collaborative gifting exercise. You should expect to spend a lot of time sharing ideas, questioning assumptions, paying close attention, and riffing on each others’ ideas.
  • Participants are expected to spend time outside of class engaging with the practice of giving. It is up to you how much time you spend. Deeper engagement generates more rewards.
  • There are no required prerequisite skills or knowledge for this class. We expect that each participant has a unique set of skills and experiences, any of which can be channeled into meaningful giving. You may also choose to adopt a technique outside your comfort zone. Your instructors and peers will be there to support you along the journey.
  • Participants will give four gifts. At the end of the class, each participant will use what they learned to design a gift interface, a ritual or system that facilitates gifting, in any medium of their choice.

Is this class for me?

This class may be for you if:

  • Giving/receiving gifts makes you feel closer to others.
  • Receiving the perfect gift makes you feel deeply seen or uncomfortable.
  • You think anything can be a gift whether it’s a website, meal, ceremony, or absence.
  • You want to unpack what makes certain gifts feel generic and others special.
  • You love seeing or engaging with public community art like sidewalk libraries or chalk drawings and want more opportunities to connect with people in your neighborhood.
  • You want to translate something that you are or aren’t good at into an act of love.
  • You love sharing food, borrowing items from friends and neighbors, or going the extra mile for fun
  • You’re interested in learning about gift theory and cultural practices.

Meet the Teachers

teacher

Spencer Chang

Spencer Chang is an artist, engineer, and toy maker interested in the play, creation, and care that emerges from our relationships with and through technology. Working across internet spaces, interactive sculpture, and creative tools, they engage with everyday practices to explore our online identities and design public good technology. These works leverage whimsical intimacy to interrogate our systems, invite new imaginations, and provide the means to reinvent them. Chang's work has been showcased by the New Museum (New York), Gray Area & the de Young Museum (San Francisco), Hyundai Artlab (Seoul), Tokyo Geidai (Tokyo), Museum of the Moving Image (New York), and Alserkal Avenue (Dubai). Their projects have been featured in MIT Technology Review, It's Nice That, and Frieze, and supported by the San Francisco Arts Commission and APOSSIBLE. A NEW INC Y11 member, they have taught and led workshops internationally for institutions such as the School for Poetic Computation and Stanford University.

he/they

teacher

Elan Ullendorff

Elan Ullendorff is a Philadelphia-based designer, writer, and educator currently serving as Director of Product at The Marshall Project and teaching design at Penn Engineering. He writes a newsletter called Escape the Algorithm (,escapethealgorithm.substack.com,) about reclaiming attention and finding a more human side of the internet.

they/he

How do I apply?

Apply Now

Applications open until Applications closed on November 18, 2024.

You can expect to hear back from us about the status of your application on . Please email us at admissions@sfpc.study with any questions you have.

How much does it cost to attend?

For 10 classes, it costs $1200 + processing fees, for a one-time payment. We also offer payment plans. Participants can schedule monthly payments of the same amount. First and last payments must be made before the start and end of class. *Processing fees apply for each payment.

SFPC processes all payments via Withfriends and Stripe. Please email admissions@sfpc.study if these payment options don't work for you.

Applicant FAQ

For more information about what we look for in applicants, scholarships, and other frequently asked questions, please visit our applicant FAQ.

session

Winter 2025

6 classes · January 12 - March 27, 2025

class

Solidarity Infrastructures

with Meghna Mahadevan, Max Fowler and Olivia McKayla Ross

Mon 12:30pm ET or Thu 6:30pm ET (10 weeks)·Online (Zoom) ·

class

Narrative Constellations

with April Soetarman and Lee Beckwith

Sun 2:30pm ET or Tue 6:30pm ET (10 weeks)·Online (Zoom) ·

class

Drawing Data by Hand

with Meghna Dholakia and Paige Fulton

Sun 6pm ET or Thu 6pm ET (5 weeks)·Online (Zoom) ·

class

Gift Interfaces

with Spencer Chang and Elan Ullendorff

Wed 1pm ET or Wed 7:30pm ET (10 weeks) ·Online (Zoom) ·

class

Relational Reconstructions

with Jeffrey Yoo Warren and Dri Chiu Tattersfield

Wed 7:30pm ET or Fri 8am ET (10 weeks)·Online (Zoom) ·

class

The Browser is Already a Game Engine

with Everest Pipkin

Sat 11am ET (10 weeks) ·Online (Zoom) ·

Interested in more learning opportunities at the School for Poetic Computation? Join our newsletter to stay up to date on future sessions and events, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter. Support our programming through scholarships. Get in touch over email.

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