How to engage with the ENM
Instructional Manual
Step-by-Step Guide
Instructions for navigating and applying the framework
A Note on the Open Fields
The prompt questions within the ENM are intentionally open. Where you see [insert specific historical artefact], replace this with your chosen subject and allow the framework to guide your investigation. The ENM is designed to function like a map — the routes are marked, but you supply the destination. This openness is a design choice, ensuring the framework can be applied to any artefact, archive, or cultural object across any context.
Quick Start Checklist — Read Before You Begin
☐ Read the Epistemic Narratives Matrix and its Glossary of Terms.
☐ One person can work on this framework by themselves.
☐ If you decide to work in a team, assemble your team and confirm roles: Lead researcher/facilitator, ethical lead, note-taker, creative lead, participant liaison.
☐ Select an artefact(s) to investigate.
☐ Gather materials: for example, selected artefact(s), recorder, consent forms, large paper/whiteboard, markers, and a laptop for documentation.
Step-by-Step Guide
Read the Framework & Glossary
Read the Epistemic Narratives Matrix front-to-back and the accompanying Glossary of Terms so you / everyone share the same working vocabulary.
Choose Your Starting Point
Start at any point of the framework.
Select an Artefact
Select an artefact(s) (physical or digital) with clear provenance notes.
Document the Artefact
Document the chosen artefact: where it came from, who archived it, what is missing, and known biases in the collection.
Read the Layer's Purpose
Read the importance and purpose section of the layer you have arrived at.
Engage with the Prompt Questions
Read and engage with the prompt questions provided in each of the three sublayers of the main layer you have arrived at.
Record Your Findings & Move On
Once you have investigated and have your results and findings regarding your chosen artefact(s), using the prompt questions, move on to the next layer of your choice.
Repeat for the Next Layer
Repeat steps 5, 6 and 7 for the new layer you have arrived at.
Complete the Framework
Once you have completed and mapped out each layer and its accommodating sublayers, the framework is complete.
Record & Share Your Findings
Record your findings in a written document, an article, a video or an audio format of your choice.
Design Statement
This is an instruction manual for the investigative interconnected design framework, Epistemic Narratives Matrix. Designed as an investigative design tool to establish a novel mode of historiography, wherein archival fixed truths attain auto-poietic qualities.