Sympoietic Arrangements: Platforms for engagement with Mystery Guest art book designer-publisher

Presented by Something to think about:

Sympoiesis is a simple word; it means making-with. Nothing makes itself; nothing is really auto-poetic, or self-organising….[Sympoiesis] is a word for worlding-with, in company.
– Donna J. Haraway

Something to think about:’s upcoming project delves into collaboration between beings, a concept Donna Haraway described as sympoietic arrangements. We invited a Mystery Guest who is an award-winning Swiss-based art book designer and independent publisher. He will share his original, compelling work in a captivating image and sound installation he calls Educational Complex. Stta: is hosting a dynamic week of events with our guest, book-ended by two Blind Dates with local Toronto graphic design heroes; and two scheduled installation viewing days with the designer present.

We’re withholding the identity of our Mystery Guest until after the two Blind Dates on October 3 and 4, which will bring him together with 3 Toronto graphic designers for a getting-to-know-you conversation in front of a small audience. The Toronto designers will likewise not know who they’re meeting! Join us for a spontaneous and unscripted experience; and what will surely be fascinating conversations between seasoned designers working with images, artists, and books.

Everyone in a creative field is uncertain, even when you have a strong vision. If you don’t play it safe, you are always uncertain.
– Swiss-based Mystery Guest

Platform I: Blind Date

Saturday, October 3, 2026 | 7:00pm
Sunday, October 4, 2026 | 2:00pm
Something to think about: Toronto
Register on Eventbrite

Four graphic designers—from 2 continents—who have never met each other, have all agreed to participate in a Blind Date in front of an audience. What will happen? Will they like each other? Do they have anything to talk about? Will they come to blows? Will they hate each others work? Will they have chemistry? Will it be love at first sight?

This pairing of professionals in conversation will reveal them and their work to us live in an organic, unpredictable way. They are all up for an unconventional challenge, and open to learning something unexpected about themselves and their work in the process.

My collaboration with curators, artists, and educators was invaluable. It helped reinforce a respect for the integrity of artworks and the critical difference between designing with images and designing for images.
– Local Mystery Designer, and Blind Date guest.

In a world in which we “know” everything about everything without even experiencing it—a film, a book, a meal, a city, a country, a sunset—why not embrace a little mystery? Walk into the unknown.Take a chance. Buy a ticket to a talk by mystery guests. Be surprised, delighted, enraged…. Have a real-life experience that hasn’t been pre-digested and spit back out at you as easily consumed, smooth bytes of processed data for your distracted digestion.

Platform II: Sound Affects: an evening of spinning records & tales

Thursday, October 9, 2026 | 7:00pm
Something to think about: Toronto
Visit the Stta website for information and register on Eventbrite

Is there a track you’d love to play, with a story you’re eager to tell? Bring your vinyl to Stta: for a night of sharing, and we’ll put it on our turntable! Participants will congregate in the Stta: coach house for a collective sound experience. How and when you share your story is entirely up to you. Our Mystery Guest will get things started!

Reading Room, an installation by our Swiss-Based Mystery Guest, 2022.

Platform III: Educational Complex

October 10 – 11, 2026 | 12:00 – 4:00pm
Something to think about: Toronto

During our Mystery Guest’s last week-end in Toronto, we will open our coach house so you can experience his sound and image installation, see a selection of his books, and meet the designer in person. It’s a special opportunity to meet and engage with one of the most original, accomplished art book designers in Europe.

For more information and to register, please visit Something to think about:
Note: capacity is limited.

Understanding starts with looking, then seeing; hearing, then listening. It requires an openness to others and to the unknown. Something to think about: invites you to have collective experiences you want to talk about with others. Storytelling as a form of engagement, and a means to bridging the gaps between us.

Something to think about:
Located at Dundas Street West and Dufferin Street, Toronto, ON
www.somethingtothinkabout.nyc

Contact: wehavetime@somethingtothinkabout.nyc

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