Conference Agenda

Design in Mexico, often disconnected from the local industry value chain, has long relied on arte popular as a self-referential cultural narrative to add value, establish identity, and find its “substance.” While this practice stems from a genuine search for rootedness and authenticity, it frequently leads to stagnation, raises concerns about cultural appropriation, neo-colonial dynamics between designers and craftspeople, neglect of functionality, and lack of innovation. This paper critiques this and proposes a framework for defining functionality, rooted in Mexican philosophy as an alternative value system. Drawing on thinkers such as Emilio Uranga and Grupo Hiperión’s work, it identifies parallels that reveal a more nuanced understanding of the Mexican condition, marked by ambiguity, contradiction, and in-betweenness. Concepts such as relajo, zozobra, and accidentality are reconsidered as epistemological foundations that challenge modernist rationalism. From this perspective emerges Función-Nepantla, redefining functionality beyond utilitarian logic, as illustrated through La Caja de Toques.