Frederik Lesage

Biography

Dr. Frédérik Lesage completed his PhD in Media and Communications at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where his doctoral research examined how creative practitioners adopt and adapt digital media infrastructures within collaborative artistic practice. Prior to joining SFU, he held teaching and research appointments at LSE, King's College London, and University of Cambridge.

Dr. Lesage’s scholarship explores digital culture, creative practice, software studies, and sociotechnical imaginaries, with a particular focus on how digital tools mediate creativity and cultural work.

He is co-founder of the Imaginative Methods Lab and is the current Associate Director of the Digital Democracies Institute. Dr. Lesage has published widely in journals including She Ji, New Media & Society, Convergence, and the International Journal of Communication. His most recent book is a co-edited work titled Creative Tools and the Softwarization of Cultural Production.

Teaching & Research Interests

Dr. Frédérik Lesage is an Associate Professor in the School of Communication at Simon Fraser University whose research practice focuses on how digital infrastructures, creative tools, and sociotechnical imaginaries shape contemporary forms of artistic, cultural, and collaborative practice. Drawing on media theory, software studies, and critical design research, he investigates topics such as the softwarization of cultural production, futures literacies, digital creativity, and speculative methods for democratic participation. He co-leads the Imaginative Methods Lab, an interdisciplinary initiative developing collaborative and experimental research methods for imagining alternative futures.

In teaching, Dr. Lesage specializes in digital culture, media theory, and interdisciplinary research methods. His pedagogy emphasizes critical inquiry, collaborative learning, and technical literacy, encouraging students to examine how digital systems shape social and cultural life while developing creative and analytical research practices.