OK Do is a socially-minded design think tank. We tackle emerging questions exploring the roles and methods of the new designer. Our aim is to cultivate design discussion and practice what we preach – think and do.
We come from hybrid backgrounds bridging design, art and science with an interest towards future. Our approach to thinking and doing is simultaneously theoretical, practical and avant-garde. According to wabi-sabi principles, it seeks to pare things down to the essence without removing the poetry.
We operate through an online publication, events as well as think-and-do projects with public and private organisations.*
Our activities are based on interaction with an international network of creative practitioners and researchers. Contact us to collaborate or say hello@ok-do.eu!
*More detailed info available upon request.
What we do, image by Åh.
The people behind it
Jenna and Anni, photograph by Kaarle Hurtig.
Anni Puolakka
Anni Puolakka is a designer and writer. Her activities range from curating and carrying out creative work to communicating and investigating it.
Having studied Graphic Design and Visual Journalism at the University of Art and Design Helsinki (BA, 2005), she is currently an MA design student of Design Management at the same university. Anni’s background also includes Development Studies (University of London, SOAS).
Interested in multidisciplinary collaborations and design tasks, Anni’s recent activities have included producing events and communication for Helsinki Design Week. In the past, she has worked as a designer with clients such as City of Helsinki and Sitra.
Anni is currently excited about the borderland between design and art as well as the Japanese wabi-sabi world view – finding beauty in imperfection and simplicity. Within OK Do, she will explore design as a tool for bringing up new questions and perspectives. Contact anni(at)ok-do.eu.
Jenna Sutela
Jenna Sutela works in the fields of design and art with a special interest in spatial practices, digital media and music. Her activities include curating and editing for both established organisations and independent projects. She also writes for several international publications.
Jenna studied Media and design research in the Media Lab at the University of Art and Design Helsinki (MA in New Media, 2008), where she later explored social technology in relation to everyday life practices at Arki research group.
Moreover, Jenna’s background in cultural analysis stretches from art and design journalism to media experiments, such as the digital sandbox thisissand.com. She is also a founding member of B, a contemporary culture association and art space in Turku, set up in 2005.
With residencies at Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris and Finnish Cultural Institute in New York last year, Jenna is currently based between London and Helsinki. Trying to understand what and how to design, she reads Stewart Brand’s Whole Earth Catalog (1969) for inspiration. Contact jenna(at)ok-do.eu.