Monthly Archives: January 2012

how is the process of design different when it’s interdisciplinary?

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it’s not about being safe or doing what has been done before

it’s not about following a grid, map, or way of doing things

it’s about new terrain, a different path, being unexpected, and scaring the hell out of people (Brand Gap)

need to be sensitive to how other disciplines define problems and solve them

the design process is not always the answer

working interdisciplinary with a team is about patience and listening

working alone on a interdisciplinary project involves looking at the problem from different perspectives including different processes for solving that problem

when working with a diverse team you must find a common language, which often is bits and pieces of various disciplines

the goal is something that has never been done before, so the process is like no other and unique to the dynamic group who is building it

you should have a toolkit of ways to generate ideas but know that the dynamic of the group will always shift from what you are comfortable and familiar with

as an individual you are most successful with innovation the more you dive into diverse mediums and thought processes. you bring fresh eyes to the medium and subject matter

Introduction — notes

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By Zvez:

  • What is inerdisciplinarity? Various definitions, ending with our own.
  • Brief two-tracked history of academia: segmentation and merger
  • Why is this important for you? What will you gain with this book?
  • Chapter breakdown
  • A shot into the future of graphic design (how is interdisciplinarity changing/enriching the field)
  • Conclusion

Although our target reader is the designer —  student, recent grad, or seasoned practitioner — looking for a way into the interdisciplinary buzz, we hope the book appeals more broadly to any visionary thinker in search of new knowledge.

By Nancy:
In 2011 the boundaries that were once drawn between disciplines are dissolving and deteriorating. This past static perspective is getting turned on it’s head as we face new modes of communication, immigration, and environmental challenges… Within all this change new problems arise. Designers are well positioned as creative problem solvers to face these challenges but they cannot do it alone, collaborative teams of diverse thinkers are often brought together. The borders of the design field have become so far reaching, at what point do you call a project interdisciplinary? What is within and what is outside the borders of graphic design?

Flow charts

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We need to find an example of a flow chart used in an interdisciplinary graphic design process. Here are some random ones that don’t fit the bill, but it’s a start.


This medical flow chart shows tracheostomy decanulation in adults.
http://apps.einstein.br/revista/arquivos/PDF/365-Einstein%20v6n1p1-6.pdf 

This funny chart by julianhansen.com charts the process of picking a typeface. This is not a functional chart, it’s more of a statement on the barrage of typefaces out there.

What’s different about interdisciplinary design?

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Here’s the table of contents of Ellen’s new book, Graphic Design Thinking. In it, she explains the tools of the gd process. In working on the Method chapter, I’m wondering, what makes interdisciplinary design method different from the regular design method? Also, much of this comes from straight forward project management (working with others, making flow charts, accountability, etc); what’s different about interdisciplinary method? Feel free to respond to this post with an answer. Here are some of my thoughts:

IDGD is about breaking down boundaries, not setting them up. It’s about building a joint process where disciplines melt down into something surprisingly new, not done before.

IDGD is about hybrid ways of working and hybrid outcomes.

IDGD is about being visionary.

breakdown of Method in my own words

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YOU- Give a fu*k.
Finding meaning. take time to know yourself, what keeps you up at night? find projects that you care about, break your routine- do something you’ve never done before… introduce yourself to new a new subject matter
-valacenti dinner series
-taking a class
-travelling
-interview with ?? how they find meaning
-tools for gathering ideas and combining disciplines, mind map, flow chart…

TEAM- surround yourself with brilliance
Find people that are smarter then you in one way or another. Make deadlines and hold each other accountable. Play nice and think big- when everyone gets in the same room be humble, open, and ready to make mistakes. Get excited- make big big plans even though you know realistically they are not possible, you can scale down later

SPACE- where you are matters
find a collaborative working environment that excites all participants, think about entertaining all senses beyond sight- taste, sound, touch…
-stanford
-ideo

PRACTICE- moving forward
practical guidelines for moving the project forward, how all voices are heard, decisions made. How can everyone feel like an equal? Giving everyone a role. How do you move forward with no clear leader? With no clear solution?

Finding inspiration in community

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http://couragefaithandcocktails.com

A dinner series seeking inspiration-

More and more we spend our lives staring at screens not only for work, but play and entertainment. Even walking outdoors we’ve become zombie-like, head bowed, connected to the great wide web and cut off from the world. The TV, the computer, the internet, websites with cute cats, these are all a part of our lives, but they are not the meat of our lives. Most of it is actually candy. And there’s a time and place for candy, but we need nourishment. We need meaning. Where are the apps that nourish the soul?

Instead of looking outside of ourselves, to the buzzing and jigging of modern life for inspiration, we need to look inside. Contrary to the pandering-to-a-demographic mentality of advertising, the truth is that the only way to genuinely connect with an audience, is with your own story—your ideals, your histories, with your humor and sex appeal. Ask yourself “what do I have to say?”, “what’s my opinion?” The more personal and specific you can be will speak to the widest of audiences because in the particular lies the universal.

It’s no surprise that many of us are on a search for meaning in our lives and works. It is in this spirit that I’ve created The Dinner Series. (Rick Valacenti)

Tropical Salvage

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Collaborative/Interdisciplinary company to look at.

“We believe that the business community must lead in addressing today’s unprecedented challenges to our world’s social and environmental integrity. Tropical Salvage combines business with social and environmental activism. Our mission is to create good, steady, eco-positive jobs in places experiencing economic hardship; to assist in implementing conservation, forest restoration and environmental education projects to protect the world’s remaining primary tropical forests; and to advocate for best responsible social and environmental practices throughout the business world.”

Sample Chapter: Method — 001

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Chapter Outline
Intro: Methods of interdisciplinarity
How to find interdisciplinary work? Being ready. Being willing to let go of control. Step into the unknown equipped with the right tools. Have respect and trust for the others in your group.

Inside your mind:
Venn Diagram
Mind Map
Flow Chart
Notes (how to look up other knowledge, take notes, make charts)

Working with others:
How to make a welcoming atmosphere for conversations (Ryan’s dinners)
Structured talks
Listening
Role play

Testing in stages
Staying neutral
Observing
Good failure
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Chapter 1

METHOD

“Design is now too important to be left to designers”
(Tim Brown, Change by Design, p. 37″

Interdisciplinary work starts from within. In order to include other knowledge or other people in your process, you have to be willing to try new ways of making design. Here we will discuss mind maps, flow charts and venn diagrams as helpful means of seeing how disciplines can come together. We will then look at larger efforts in interdisciplinary work, where experts from different fields come together to produce new knowledge. How do diverse groups work well together? We will look at how making a welcoming atmosphere, choosing the right structure, listening well and role playing can help.

Venn Diagram — finding overlaps
A Venn diagram is useful when you think about the spaces where two disciplines come together to form a singular problem, need, or outcome. For example, in a freshmen design elective, students at MICA were asked to rethink hospital walls and come up with graphic patterns that would cheer up a doctor’s visit. A Venn diagram illustrated how two opposing kinds of imagery could come together to create these patterns.

(Follow up with completed images from this assignment)

Mind Map
Mind maps are great for thinking through an idea and finding associations with it. They can show us how ideas or words connect. In an assignment at OSU, Students paired up and picked a profession out of a hat. They had to mind map the strengths they held in their profession separately then list the strengths they held together. From there they had to define a collaboration between the two professions, highlighting their combined strengths.

 

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Random notes:

Example: At Hartford Art School’s Design Global Change, Natacha Poggio partners up with engineers, educators and aid professionals to construct meaningful, service-oriented projects for her students. What are some of her strategies?

Example: In an intense study abroad program, Nancy Froehlich led six OSU students and as many Indian crafters to produce a line of scarves. Nurturing trust and sharing control of the process were essential to this project.