DSGN 395: Design Objects / Furniture Design
Quarter Offered
Winter : Wednesday, 2-5pm, Ford Design Studio 3 ; Hemant Jha
Description
This course seeks to discover and demonstrate what products (specifically furniture) can and should be fore the time in which we live. It is a hands-on immersion in designing and making. You will design and make your own piece of furniture: one that works well, looks good, and captures your approach, values and evolving point of view as a designer and maker.
The class works within defined parameters. Everyone works with the same palette of three materials and two processes. Within these shared limits, how inventive can we be? What can we bring to life with very little? And beyond the furniture we already know, are there new categories suitable for our time?
You’ll learn the essentials of furniture design: ergonomics and design principles, materials, and digital and traditional fabrication, with deep, hands-on exploration of the class palette. We’ll look at the history of furniture design and the business of the field, along with sustainability, ethics, and the responsible selection and sourcing of materials.
You’ll produce two things: a finished piece of furniture, developed from concept through prototypes, and a process book documenting the thinking and making behind it. The work will be shown in a final exhibition.
The class is limited to ten students. It is open to students from all fields across the university, from any school and at any level, undergraduate or graduate. There are no prerequisites beyond a deep interest in designing physical objects and prior workshop or making experience in any field. Furniture-making experience is not required.
Enrollment is by permission only. To apply, write to hemant.jha@northwestern.edu with:
1.0 / a glimpse into the idea you’d like to bring to life
2.0 / an instance where you’ve (creatively) overcome seemingly impossible limitations
3.0 / evidence of your making experienceLet’s make something that matters!