Pedagogy 2025
Abstract
While industry often equates experience design with UX, UNSW Sydney’s School of Art & Design has established an undergraduate program that recognises it as a distinct discipline premised on a much broader notion—that human (and more than human) experience is central to all design and therefore, constitutes its own discipline. Our team has introduced an experience design discipline consisting of three core courses, each taught over 10 weeks, in our Bachelor of Design program, alongside the disciplines of graphics, object, textiles, fashion, interaction, and 3D visualisation. As experience emerges as a key economic driver in its own right, our approach recognises experience design as a critical mediating practice—a complex, multifaceted discipline, extending well beyond user experience or interaction design. We approach it as a holistic practice of curating and theorising human experiences across diverse contexts—from sensory installations, set design and exhibition spaces to brand events, pop-ups, and speculative futures. The three core courses and suite of electives combine conceptual explorations based on contemporary critical theory with practical skills in an experiential learning environment. This presentation describes the course and discusses the challenges of teaching an inherently subjective and immaterial phenomenon, while also establishing the scope of a discipline that is deeply embedded in all types of design. We therefore demonstrate how to navigate between pragmatic and expressive approaches, vocational skills and creative exploration, equipping emerging designers with the ability to understand, analyse, and intentionally shape human experiences in a rapidly evolving design landscape.
Michael Garbutt PhD is a senior lecturer at UNSW Sydney’s School of Art & Design where he teaches experience design and conducts research into museum visitor experience and embodied contemplative practices. He is co-author of Mindful Eye, Playful Eye: 101 Amazing Museum Activities for Discovery, Connection, and Insight (Smithsonian Books, Washington DC, 2024)
Bronwen Williams MFA (Research) is an education-focussed associate lecturer at UNSW, Sydney in the School of Art & Design, and co-author of A Visual Programming Tool for Creative Practice Pedagogy in Embodied Interaction and Media Arts, 2019 (OzChi conference 2019). She has exhibited in numerous galleries and public art exhibitions across NSW with work spanning the fields of installation art, interactive media, experience design, and object design.
Katherine Bond, M.Arts Curatorship (University of Melbourne) is an education-focussed lecturer in the School of Art and Design, UNSW Sydney and an award-winning exhibition and experience designer with nearly 20 years in architecture and Interiors. Her research explores contemporary dance and visual art intersections, focusing on spatial activation and playful engagement strategies for adults. As former lead designer at the Powerhouse Museum and through her independent practice, Bond has created exhibitions for prestigious institutions worldwide, working with the Big Anxiety Research Centre on the Festival of Care project, merging play with health for transformative experiences.