
Teacher: Ali Talaat (Lisbon)
Speaks English, Arab, Portuguese
Learn Design
(The transmission of knowledge)
Curso que explora o ato de copiar como ferramenta criativa e crítica nas artes e no design. Inspirado em If Copy Then Value, propõe refletir sobre valor, autoria e transformação através da reinterpretação, prática e diálogo coletivo.
A course that explores copying as a creative and critical tool in the arts and design. Inspired by If Copy Then Value, it encourages reflection on value, authorship, and transformation through reinterpretation, practice, and collective dialogue.
دورة تستكشف عملية النسخ كأداة إبداعية ونقدية في الفنون والتصميم. مستوحاة من If Copy Then Value، تقترح التفكير في القيمة والملكية الفكرية والتحول من خلال إعادة التفسير والممارسة والحوار الجماعي.
The course invites students to copy as a method of learning and invention. Unlike traditional design courses that seek originality, this one redefines copying as a critical and creative act that reveals how value, context, and authorship evolve through transformation.
Class 1 – Introduction: Copying as a Beginning
Overview of the course. Discussion on imitation, influence, and authorship. Reference: Paulo Freire, Roland Barthes, and appropriation in art.
Class 2 – Observation and Repetition
Copying as a form of attention. Exercises in visual and conceptual repetition.
Class 3 – Transformation and Mutation
Exploring how ideas evolve when transferred between mediums or contexts.
Class 4 – Ownership and Value
Debate on intellectual property, value systems, and art markets.
Class 5 – The [ . - T ] Method
Introducing your methodology for building conceptual clarity and depth.
Class 6 – Collective Reproduction
Group exercise: collaboratively reinterpreting an existing artwork or design.
Class 7 – Context and Translation
How meaning shifts when a work is copied across cultural or spatial boundaries.
Class 8 – The Copy as Archive
Copying as preservation and storytelling.
Class 9 – Project Development
Students develop their own “copy” projects—turning reflection into creation.
Class 10 – Presentation & Reflection
Final presentations, critique, and discussion on what was learned through copying.
A public place you suggest
(Lisbon)
At home
(Lisbon)
In your office
(Lisbon)
Hourly rates per student:
| EUR €15.00 [~USD $17.36] | |
| EUR €10.00 [~USD $11.58] | |
| EUR €7.00 [~USD $8.10] |
* Plus EUR €3.00 administration fee per class (per student)
* Single-class purchase fee: EUR €3.00 (per student)
Class duration options:
Online: Not available
In person: 60, 90, 120, 180 minutes
Teacher:
Spoken languages: English, Arab, Portuguese
Ali Talaat (born 1995) is an “artist in an architect’s body,” from Egypt - based in Portugal for the
past five years. His practice explores the interconnection between art and architecture, focusing on
how ideas, objects, and spaces transform across contexts while challenging conventional notions of
ownership, value, and creativity.
His bilingual and cross-disciplinary approach has been shaped by years of collaboration with artists
and collectives, including research and technical production work with the renowned SUPERFLEX
collective in Copenhagen. Out of a conversation during this period, he initiated his ongoing research
project If Copy Then Value, which examines how copying can preserve the essence of an idea while
allowing it to evolve into new, uncopyrighted forms. For Ali, copying is both a tool for self-
education and a method of transformation.
Pre Masters in Architecture and Urban Design
Art and Culture studies + Design + Ephemeral Design
Learn Design: A transmissão de conhecimento