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 his nearly tangible renderings, cad models that look like photographs, with more painstaking detail than you can wrap your mind around.

Why did you decide to become a designer?

Regular academia bored me, not because it wasn’t challenging enough, but because I was much more invested in creating than reinterpreting. At age three I was drawing oil derricks obsessively, at five I was into locomotives, at ten I was focusing on eating drinking and sleeping automobiles, by fifteen I discovered computer aided modeling and went down the rabbit-hole of design.

Benchmark Diesel Motorbike

What inspires your designs?

Reason and not by Rule.

I am a sucker for functionality for sure. Functional and minimal are two different beasts but a lot of the times are lumped together in conversation. Dieter Rams, but not Bang & Olufsen. I love simple analogue solutions, products that boast longevity over recyclability, & quality.

Hydrogen Fuel Cell

Hand Held Diesel Engine

What was your favorite course that you’ve taken?

“Business of Product Design” with Bill Foulkes, “Metals 2″ & “Electrathon” with Michael Beresford, and Peter Yeadon’s “Smart Matter”.

These are the classes that changed my outlook and expanded my horizons. No doubt.

P3 Super Utility Rolltop Bag

What is the best thing you’ve learned at RISD?

I learned that team projects are the biggest wrestling match on earth, but it is where earth is. To design by ones self or design only for ones self is unrealistic, selfish and will only yield half baked results.

Electrathon Carbon Car

NASA Moonbuggy 2011

What advice would you give to ID sophomores and juniors for their next few years?

Make each assignment yours, have a sense of humor, don’t undersell yourself, but do not oversell your self. Be honest and know exactly what you like and shut-out those who tell you otherwise.
You only live life once!

Monolith Encounter BWC 2008

What do you want to do beyond graduation?

At this point in time, I find that the Holy Grail is to head my own design firm. (Of course not right away). Thinking in a span of 40 years, I want to shoot high and control my own design process and be uninhibited by those who assume poorly.

Good luck, Kyle! My life is going to be a little bit darker without your bright self in the ID building. Seriously. Please come back and visit. Please.

Posted by Carly Ayres | Date Posted: 15 May, 2012

Why did you decide to become a designer?

I have always been a hands on kid (my closet at home is still packed with Lego’s). Growing up my favorite subjects were math and the arts. When the time came to look at schools I couldn’t imagine myself at a typical liberal arts college and knew I had to pursue something creative. I think I fell in love with the idea that one day I could be designing something that thousands of people will use and interact with.

Stackable Tetris Lamps

What inspires your designs?

A lot of times I am not actively seeking inspiration I just happen upon it in day-to-day interactions with things, people, and places.

Cowhide Chair

What was your favorite course that you’ve taken?

I have two. Chair Studio and Business of Product Design. Chair Studio was the first time I was really able to conceptualize a product and build a fully functional piece. The amount of precision and thought required to build a chair is incredible, and having to build two of them was an extremely beneficial process that has lead me to many design decisions since then. I think Business of Product Design Should be a required course in the ID department. Understanding the basics of how a business operates is an invaluable skill for a designer. Being able to create a product that both makes sense on its own and as a business strategy is integral part of being an industrial designer.

Coleman Patio

What is the best thing you’ve learned at RISD?

RISD has definitely helped develop my creative thinking and problem solving skills. I think RISD’S ID department is exceptional at inspiring and teaching students to think critically and unconventionally.

Flat Pack Honeycomb Chair

What advice would you give to ID sophomores and juniors for their next few years?

RISD will teach you a lot, especially hands on making, problem solving, creative and non traditional thinking, and researching but if you want to be a well rounded traditional product designer you are going to have to teach yourself a lot as well. Look at what students at other schools and people in the field are doing and try and see where they excel (excellent Photoshop and Illustrator rendering skills, hand sketching, and story telling). Take it all in and try and find a balance between studio time and free time!

Reebok Minimal Shoe

What are your plans beyond graduation?

My whole life I have been really involved with sports (club and high school soccer, cross country, track, road bike racing, and skiing) and have always seen myself working in the outdoor product Industry. I recently accepted a job in the innovation design department at Reebok. I also look forward to continuing to collaborate and work with my friends and colleagues in the future.

Good luck, Patrick! Your always cheerful, exuberant self will be surely missed from 161 South Main. Since you’ll be a skip, hop, and jump away in Canton, we expect you to come back and visit.

Posted by Carly Ayres | Date Posted: 10 May, 2012

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 as little as possible. I believe a well designed object is considered from every angle, going beyond the formal aspects to engage with the person on another level. Its this intuitive interaction that interests me and like, designing stuff is cool, duh.

RISD Cycling Kits

What inspires your designs?

I think it’s important not to limit yourself and remember that inspiration can come from virtually anywhere. However to answer the question, I’ve recently been inspired by traditional Japanese philosophies, industrial processes, and americana. The Eames’ work ethic is also something that I aspire to.

Landscape Shelf

What was your favorite course that you’ve taken?

I’ve taken a lot of courses that I loved and a lot that I hated. Most recently I took a class focused around the CNC machine taught by Chris Specce from the Furniture Department. This class explored the ways in which artist and designers could use the CNC router beyond the standard practice of precision. The class allowed me to focus around one process and work back and forth between 3D modeling software, CAM software, and the machine itself, in real time. I also took a Digital Media course about appropriation art in which I probably had the most fun out of any class.

What is the best thing you’ve learned at RISD?

The best thing that I learned at RISD is to experiment, take risks, and to pursue your own interests. Furthermore, I’ve learned that the best thing about RISD is the people and its extended community. You will learn more from your fellow students than from your teachers just because you will spend more time with your colleagues who–big surprise–are also incredibly talented.

Landscape Vase

What advice would you give to ID sophomores and juniors for their next few years?

-Fake it till you make it baby
-Treat every project like its real
-Take advantage of the RISD community
-Make RISD work for you, don’t work around RISD
-Try to take a GD class
-Work hard, play hard

05 Speaker

What are your plans beyond graduation?

I plan on sticking around the East Coast for a little while to gain some more experience in a few different fields from Furniture+Lightning to Branding before heading back to the Best Coast. I also plan to continue racing bikes wherever I am and to eat pizza.

Good luck, Oliver! I hope your dry wit and never failing coolness serves you well post graduation.

Posted by Carly Ayres | Date Posted: 24 April, 2012

Tim Parsons is a product designer, writer, and lecturer on design. He has worked with manufacturers in Britain and Europe and exhibited widely. He has contributed articles to publications including ‘Blueprint’ and Phaidon’s ‘Design Classics.’

Tim’s book, Thinking Objects: Contemporary Approaches to Product Design, is an in-depth study of contemporary product design.

It discusses influences on modern product design such as globalization, technology, the media, and the need for a sustainable future, and demonstrates how readers can incorporate these influences into their own work.

Posted by Carly Ayres&nbsp | Date Posted: 19 April, 2012

“With my decision to pursue an ambitious project for my final in advanced metals, I wanted to design something that related to my SolidWorks model of the propane fueled engine. I decided to take the fundamental principles of an engine, and put each component into a pill shaped acrylic form, so that when the pistons moved, an interesting optical illusion would appear.”

Below are pictures of the final piece.

Posted by Carly Ayres | Date Posted: 19 April, 2012

Why did you decide to become a designer?

It wasn’t really much of a choice… it was a more like an accumulation of all my artistic endeavors that led me to think of producing objects that not only express what I’m feeling, but also resonate interest in other people. I want my work to speak to a larger audience than just my subjective interests, that is, for me, was expresses quality. We’re living in a society where many things have gone corporate, digitized, and we no longer really want to repair what we already own… instead people want to distinguish themselves through products, and more than that, always the best new thing. I want to be a active participate in this shifting society, and that means creating things that visually and/or functionally appeal to a larger population while still staying true to my personal interests and moral values.

Motion using Glass

What inspires your designs?

Reading as many designer magazines and blogs as possible to see what’s out there. Museums, concerts, traveling, living daily life, and trying to bring back all that experience and enthusiasm back to the studio. I’m always interested in new places and experiences (like everyone is) and feel like I gain a lot of insight from taking risks outside of studio, and trying to convert those situations into fuel for my art in design. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. But whenever I’m in a design funk I try to take a breather, and read up on some inspiration quotes from favorite artists and designers. It always makes me realize that everyone else is in the same designer-funk-boat as I am at times, and that sometimes you just have to go with the flow, and accept it, before heading back to the grind–I mean studio.

Glass inspired by Japanese Aesthetics

What was your favorite course that you’ve taken?

First: Glass casting hands down. It was probably one of the most invigorating, intellectually stimulating and physically enduring class I’ve ever taken at RISD. The surprise factor from every successful glass cast, and seeing what you were about to make a week or two after it comes out of the kiln is always a fantastic prize. Also the teacher (Adrianna Evans) is exceptional.

Third: Metals II is hands down the best class I’ve taken in the I.D department. Anyone who thinks they won’t like it because they took Metals I and hated it (kinda like me…) is ultimately wrong–I actually think the class should be mandatory for ID majors, that’s how much I liked it. The machines, such as the bridgeport and the metal lathe, are great resources to have, especially in college. And knowing how to work those machines to a tee makes one look not only really smart, but pretty badass.

What is the best thing you’ve learned at RISD?

This is a loaded question. And something I don’t know I can quite answer still being a student here… But, what I can say RISD has taught me at this moment in time is discipline and awareness and finding ways to apply these terms in action. The laborious techniques and skill sets we learn here are uncanny to other institutions. How many students outside of art school know anything about how to make bent laminated wood? Or machined parts on a metal lathe? These skills are really unique and very important. I also have come to realize that sometimes success is about falling on your face when your art or designs don’t work out, and just getting up and trying again until it does. Sometimes talking about it is important to, and expressing what it was that you were trying to convey will help others respect and understand you better. Communication between visuals and words helps unite the larger picture. I don’t think I would have come to any of these conclusions before RISD or another college.

The Unseen pt. 1

What advice would you give to ID sophomores and juniors for their next few years?

Don’t be a afraid to venture out of the major and see what other departments are doing. This can really inform you on what you want to focus on. It’s also nice to get some unique and outside perspective and bring it back int I.D, teachers really respect that outlook too. Furthermore, let go of the losses sometimes, but don’t ever lose yourself. Functionally is not everything, and neither is nice aesthetics. We all know that product/object needs to be the right balance to be successful but it’s harder than it sounds to come by. And true industrial design, in my opinion, is a project that does not only demand investment and change but shows that heart and desire in the final outcome.

The Unseen pt. 2

What are your plans beyond graduation?

Hopefully continue making, designing, making, and going through that process for the rest of my life. It’s pretty ideal for me. I have an artist-assistant job for the summer, and then I’m working at a glass school in Seattle, and then who knows! I might be working abroad on a large-scale glass project, or move back to New York for a year. The versatility in what I can do is exciting to me, and I hope to keep that passionate and adventurous outlook no matter where my work takes me.

Casting Darts

Good luck, Erica! It was a pleasure getting to know you and I will always admire your strong will and determination for doing what you want and making it work.

Posted by Carly Ayres | Date Posted: 17 April, 2012

Why did you decide to become a designer?

Industrial Design sort of fell into my lap, as it was something I had been unconsciously doing from the age of about 10. I loved drawing, especially soccer shoes and athletic equipment, and that was my dream job before I even knew of Industrial Design as a viable career path. My focus has changed a lot since then, But ID’s primary principles (problem solving, getting your hands dirty, and designing for a real purpose) still drive me forward.

U-lock holster, a collaboration with Oliver Henderson, Patrick O’Sullivan, and Erik Askin

What inspires your designs?

I am a hands-on and materials oriented person, and strive to learn how to use materials in the most appropriate and seamless manner. I am always trying to improve my ability to take a simple concept and execute it successfully to completion, and have a great amount of respect for designers that can do so.

Sustainable Skis, a collaboration with Patrick O’Sullivan

What was your favorite course that you’ve taken?

Every course has been unique and valuable in its own right, but I really loved Digital & Ceramics for its combination of century old technologies in porcelain casting combined with the relatively new technologies of Rapid Prototyping.

What is the best thing you’ve learned at RISD?

Taking risks. I have seen my colleagues accomplish really ambitious projects in incredibly short time windows, and it has led me to believe we can do pretty much anything we set our minds to (as long as we don’t mind missing out on all sleep and all that unnecessary stuff).

Nest Canisters

What advice would you give to ID sophomores and juniors for their next few years?

Soak it up, and WORK IN STUDIO. The last years really fly by, and the atmosphere of working around your classmates and friends is completely invaluable. I have learned so much from my colleagues, and can say without a doubt that they are our greatest resource.

Magazine Bench

Bike Rack

What are your plans beyond graduation?

I will be starting as a junior designer at Kaiju Studios in Providence after graduation, and really excited for the experiences and opportunities that I will be exposed to there. I also want to keep working and collaborating with the friends and colleagues I have made while here at RISD.

Bottle openers, a collaboration with Oliver Henderson and Patrick O’Sullivan

Brett Newman with his crew, Patrick O’Sullivan and Oliver Henderson (from left)

Good luck, Brett! You’ll be missed.

Posted by Carly Ayres | Date Posted: 12 April, 2012

A Better World by Design and Décor Craft Inc (DCI) come together to bring you the annual DCI Product Design Challenge, now open for submissions! A Better World by Design and DCI encourage participants from any field or background to submit their concepts for consideration. The 2012 competition asks participants to tackle this challenge: In today’s society, many people are spending more time indoors than ever before and missing the beauty outside. Submit an idea for a product that will encourage people to re-engage with the great outdoors.

Award/Prize: The winners will be awarded $1,000 for 1st place, $500 for 2nd place, and $250 for 3rd place. Additionally, winners will be presented with the great opportunity to have their winning design produced and distributed across the nation by DCI and showcased at the 2012 Better World by Design conference!

Submission Deadline: April 30th 2012.

More Information: Click here for more information about the challenge and how to enter.

Posted by Isaac Blankensmith | Date Posted: 11 April, 2012

Below are some of his sketches from the 30 days, as well as his thoughts on the experience.

“I really love Motorbikes. Choppers, bobbers, dual sports, naked bikes, cafe racers, all of them. I found though, despite my affinity, that I wasn’t very good at sketching them. Mine all seemed to come out like cartoons. So I set myself a sketch challenge: 30 days, 30 bikes.”

“I found over the 30 days that in the act of reminding myself to keep sketching bikes over and over made me understand the machines better. It was really interesting comparing the early sketches to the late ones. I just plain forgot to add crucial parts in the beginning (like footpegs/brakes/carbs etc.), and I noticed that as I went along.

The tires were a real b**** to sketch, I still have trouble with those.”

“So I challenge you. Take something that you’re not great at sketching, and set yourself the challenge. It’s fun, you will get better, and you’ll have a bunch of cool sketches by the end.”

Posted by Isaac Blankensmith | Date Posted: 06 April, 2012

Anab Jain, a designer, film maker, and founder of Superflux, an London-based design studio, will talk about “design futurescaping”: using design methods like storytelling, experience protoyping, making scenarios tangible, and talking to people on a daily basis, to inspire and influence protoypes for the near future. With an MA in Interaction Design from the Royal College of Art, Jain founded Superflux in 2009.

Honored as a TED Fellow, her work has been exhibited at MoMA New York, Apple Computers Inc, Mattel Toys, Tate Modern and the London Design Festival.

Posted by Carly Ayres | Date Posted: 09 April, 2012