Teaching Beyond the Curriculum
Abstract
In an interconnected world, transdisciplinary partnerships between different design disciplines are on the rise. Tim Brown and Barry Katz in their book “Change By Design” mention how the shift from industrial manufacturing to knowledge creation in the developing world has propelled the need for innovation as “a survival strategy…no longer limited to the introduction of physical products but includes new sorts of processes, services, interactions, entertainment forms, and ways of communicating and collaborating.” (Brown and Katz 12) With this shift, disciplines predicated on the design of physical products and spaces must learn how to participate outside their traditional boundaries. This process must begin with design education. This case study outlines a collaboration between Interiors and Product Design students to re-envision existing exhibits for a local children’s museum. The studio was positioned as a research project for students to better understand the needs of multiple stakeholders across the employee-customer spectrum, with the main customers being children below the age of nine. Working in teams of five, students used a user-centric design thinking framework adapted from Brown and Katz’s Three Spaces of Innovation: Inspiration, Ideation and Implementation. While Product Design and Interior Design are distinct disciplines with different skill sets, both groups could align on experience being the primary goal, even if approached at different scales. The value exists in being able to innovate across traditional disciplinary boundaries. This collaboration serves as a precedent for future transdisciplinary frameworks for design education. Equally important is the potential of such methodologies to serve a broader audience, going beyond businesses and their consumers to produce real community outcomes.
Aanya Chugh is an architectural and experience designer and tenure track assistant professor of interiors at the University of Kentucky College of Design. She has worked across a wide range of design practices including the industry-defining Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, the experience design firm Parc Office and the coworking company Industrious. Aanya received her Master of Architecture from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design.
Justin Lund is a multi-disciplinary designer with a strong foundation in industrial design. As a Senior Designer at TEAGUE, in the Aviation Design studio, he led multiple high-fidelity design efforts for aerospace interiors, products, and experiences. As an Industrial Designer at Glosten, a marine design and naval architecture firm, he helped to lead and grow a multidisciplinary and cross-functional design team. Prior to these experiences, Justin spent many years as a fabricator and designer in the museum exhibit industry.
At both Glosten and TEAGUE, Justin initiated and led company-sponsored student design projects with both Western Washington University and the University of Washington. These experiences working with academia inspired him to obtain his Master of Design (MDes) degree at the University of Washington (UW) in the School of Art + Art History + Design. Justin continued as a Lecturer at UW, teaching both undergraduate and graduate-level classes dealing with the intersection of User Experience (UX), Product Design (PRD), and emerging technology. His research areas involve generative design and design improvisation.