Studio Projects

Senior Showcase | Kyle Dell’Aquila

Senior Showcase | Kyle Dell'Aquila

Kyle Dell’Aquila is amazing. He’s also the feature for this Senior Showcase. If you ever have the opportunity, say privilege, to get a peek into his sketchbook, take it because it will blow your mind. The kid is truly skilled beyond words. Don’t stop at his sketchbook though, go straight to his computer and see [...]


Senior Showcase | Patrick O’Sullivan

Senior Showcase | Patrick O'Sullivan

For this Senior Showcase, we spoke with the fantastic Patrick O’Sullivan. The Tulsa, Oklahoma native traveled far to attend the Rhode Island School of Design here in Providence, but even farther last semester to Switzerland where he attended the Ecole cantonale d’art de Lausanne. When not hustlin in the studio or the wood and metal [...]


Senior Showcase | Oliver Henderson

Senior Showcase | Oliver Henderson

Coming all the way from Portland, Oregon, Oliver Henderson is our latest Senior Showcase. Henderson is probably best well known for his tight spandex shorts, seen below. Why did you decide to become a designer? I wanted to be a designer because I love objects, I am completely materialistic even though I want to own [...]


Kaitlyn Schoeck | The Pill

Kaitlyn Schoeck | The Pill

Kaitlyn Schoeck, a junior here in the Industrial Design department, recently submitted to us her Metals II final, The Pill. The project was an exploration in making custom fit pieces, with different material components, that worked together to create motion. “With my decision to pursue an ambitious project for my final in advanced metals, I [...]


Senior Showcase | Erica Sellers

Senior Showcase | Erica Sellers

For this Senior Showcase, we spoke with Erica Sellers. Coming from New York, New York, Sellers concentrated in Glass as a complement to her Industrial Design degree. Through her work, Sellers hopes to synthesize her fine arts background within the context of functional design, alongside exploring technical glassblowing, and experimental processes using glass. Why did [...]


Senior Showcase | Brett Newman

Senior Showcase | Brett Newman

For our second Senior Showcase, we spoke with Brett Newman. Newman hails from Salt Lake City, Utah and is an integral part of the community at 161 South Main Street. A shop monitor, class representative, and just all around amazing guy, Newman is never too busy to help out other students with their own projects, [...]


Marty Laurita | 30 Day Challenge

Marty Laurita | 30 Day Challenge

Marty Laurita (MID ’14) recently challenged himself to do a drawing each day for thirty days as a way to improve his sketching abilities. Experimenting with pencils, pens, and markers, Laurita drew his favorite thing — motorbikes. Below are some of his sketches from the 30 days, as well as his thoughts on the experience. [...]


Jonah Willcox-Healey | Stackable Chair

Jonah Willcox-Healey | Stackable Chair

Jonah Willcox-Healey has been spending his Spring semester studying abroad in Copenhagen, Denmark, where he has been taking a variety of design courses and traveling. You can check out some of the photos he has been taking while abroad on his blog. Below is a stackable chair he designed and made in Cohenhagen. In his [...]


Robbie Lilliquist | Manta Concept Lighting

Robbie Lilliquist | Manta Concept Lighting

Only Manta is a project done by Robbie Lillquist (BFA ID ’12), a junior here in the Industrial Design Department. A concept for potential lighting, Only Manta is a beautiful lamp that is inspired by the fish. A proud moment for James Cameron and his path breaking dive into the Marina Trench! While we still [...]


Jamie Wolfond | Fern Lamp

Jamie Wolfond | Fern Lamp

Jamie Wolfond, a Junior in the Furniture Department here at RISD, recently submitted his Fern Lamp to us. The lamp is crafted from laser cut steel, which is then bent and powder-coated with a walnut base. The perforations that allow for bends also provide a foothold for the wiring, seen in the below detail shots. [...]


Senior Showcase | Julia Jiao

Senior Showcase | Julia Jiao

As the Spring 2012 comes to a close, we decided to run our second annual Senior Showcase series featuring the fantastic class of 2012. Throughout the series, we will be speaking with RISD Industrial Design seniors about their work, process, and hopes for beyond graduation. Kicking off this year’s series, we spoke with Julia Jiao [...]


Kyle Chambers | Bent Lam Chair

Kyle Chambers | Bent Lam Chair

Kyle Chambers, a junior in the Industrial Design department, recently submitted to us his prototype for a bent lamination chair. Hailing from the Bay Area, Chambers came to RISD initially with the intention of majoring in painting, but discovered that he liked working three dimensionally over two dimensionally. Growing up with two architects as parents, [...]


Cardboard Chair | The Annual Children’s Review

Cardboard Chair | The Annual Children's Review

Starting off the Spring semester with a bang, RISD Industrial Design sophomores were once again tasked with creating a child’s chair from cardboard. This project brought together teams of three to brainstorm, prototype and finish a chair in one week’s time. The chair had to be cut from one piece of 48″ x 80″ cardboard and [...]


Kyle DeHovitz + Isaac Blankensmith | Armada 3D Scanner

Kyle DeHovitz + Isaac Blankensmith | Armada 3D Scanner

Armada is a collaboration between Isaac Blankensmith and Kyle DeHovitz Armada is a concept for a portable 3D scanner built to allow anyone to capture the physical forms of objects on the go. Armada can create a 3D scan of any object through triangulation between it’s cameras and cross-beam laser. Armada is a simple 3D scanner built [...]


RISD ID | Spring 6-Credit Studio Choices

RISD ID | Spring 6-Credit Studio Choices

It’s that time of the year again — time to choose your Spring Studio course. With final decisions due just around the corner next Tuesday, we at RISD-ID.org wanted to a run down and summary of each course to help you make your decision. In addition, faculty will be available for conversation and consultation from [...]


Senior Open Studios

Senior Open Studios

Last Friday was Senior Open Studios, an annual event hosted by RISD’s Undergraduate Student Alliance. The event celebrates the graduating class of 2012, giving them the opportunity to showcase their work to students, faculty, staff, and administration who may not see their work otherwise. The event was open to the public, inviting the greater Rhode [...]


Max McGurl | Kitchen Island

Max McGurl | Kitchen Island

Max McGurl (ID ’13) recently submitted to us his Kitchen Island, a table inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright. Like Wright’s furniture, it has a physically imposing presence due to its large size and dark stained wood. Also similar to Wright’s furniture, the edges of the island are chamfered to provide a more finished and solid [...]


Spring Course | Representing Anthropogenic Climate Change: Marine Environments

Spring Course | Representing Anthropogenic Climate Change: Marine Environments

This spring, RISD will be offering Representing Anthropogenic Climate Change: Marine Environments as a six credit studio in the Liberal Arts department. The studio, sponsored by NSF EPSCoR at RISD, aims to delve into the effects of climate change on marine environments. The course is taught by Nicole Merola and Peter Hocking. Seats are still [...]


Will Harris | Firefly

Will Harris | Firefly

Back in February of 2011, Will Harris BFA ID ’10 told us about some of the initial design reviews of Firefly, a project that started in his Advanced Studio Course, Product Design and Development, in the Industrial Design Department at RISD. He contacted us again recently to tell us more about the progress of Firefly [...]


Production Ceramics

Production Ceramics

Maeve Jopson BFA ID ’13 shared with us these photos she took during the final critique of the Production Ceramics Advanced Studio, which took place Thursday, December 15th in the ID Building. Check out some images of the students’ work below or click through in the gallery at the bottom of the post. Posted by [...]


Nash Palazzo, Lukas Scheurer, + David Lee | The DeLorean

Nash Palazzo, Lukas Scheurer, + David Lee | The DeLorean

The Transportation Design Studio was a new Advanced Studio to the RISD Industrial Design Department this Fall, taught by Matt Grigsby. The studio was offered to juniors and seniors, and focused on designing and modeling a vehicle. Students worked in teams on everything from fire engines to compact cars. Nash Palazzo ’12, Lukas Scheurer ’13, [...]


Sangho Kim | Transportation Solutions

Sangho Kim | Transportation Solutions

Some of you might remember Sangho Kim BFA ID ’13 from the ID Sketching Series we’ve been running for the past few weeks. Kim just sent us some of his final renderings done for the Transportation Solution Studio he took this Fall. His project was to design a two-door sports coupe for the British carmaker, [...]


Maeve Jopson | Production Ceramics

Maeve Jopson | Production Ceramics

Maeve Jopson BFA ID ’13 submitted to us her final project for Production Ceramics, titled “Unearthed.” Production Ceramics is one of the Advanced 6-credit Studio options offered to juniors and seniors in the ID department. The studio explores methods of production for slip-casting ceramic pieces for mass production. Posted by Carly Ayres | Date Posted: [...]


Gracie Canaan | Rapid Prototyped Necklaces

Gracie Canaan | Rapid Prototyped Necklaces

Gracie Canaan BFA ID ’12, just sent us these rapid prototyped necklaces she created during fall semester. Check out more of her work on her website. Below is her comment on the project, followed by images of the final product. These Rapid Prototyped Wing Necklaces were my project for Strategy class with Leslie Fontana. The [...]