Seeing the whole design picture

Thomas, V. (2018) Seeing the whole design picture. Paper presented to: Multi-Discisplinary Design: Distinctions & Blurred Boundaries, Avenue Campus, The University of Northampton, 27 April 2018.

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Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Abstract:	For me the distinctions and blurred boundaries are like the die-cut lines in a jigsaw puzzle. They split the whole into parts and also blur the completed picture. Perceiving the big picture, seeing the parts that make up the total and understanding how the whole has been divided or designed to fit together fascinates me. The academic world is still very split into “ivory towers” even within design. The students choose to specialise before they set on campus. Graduates take that specialisation into the work place and soon find the skills they have learnt are not as flexible as they expect. I run a design practice based on social processes and not on a traditional design specialism. We design things that function in an exchange process. We design things to be given away. I work with a wide variety of designers, generating and managing projects. Our customers vary in size, industry and bring different experience and responsibilities to a project. I came into teaching as I thought design students ought to be taught about “my” world. This paper reflects on my experience. The multi-disciplinary design is still in pieces and far from a coherent whole.
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Design education, social anthropology, The Gift, Multi-disciplinary Design
Subjects:	T Technology > TS Manufactures > TS155 Production management. Operations management > TS171 Industrial art and design N Fine Arts > NC Drawing. Design. Illustration > NC390 Study and teaching
Creators:	Thomas, Vicki
Northamptonshire and East Midlands:	Education, Training and Skills
Faculties, Divisions and Institutes:	University Faculties, Divisions and Research Centres - OLD > Faculty of Arts, Science & Technology > Theses (Arts, Science & Technology)
Date:	27 April 2018
Date Type:	Publication
Event Title:	Multi-Discisplinary Design: Distinctions & Blurred Boundaries
Event Dates:	27 April 2018
Event Location:	Avenue Campus, The University of Northampton
Event Type:	Conference
Number of Pages:	6
Status:	Published / Disseminated
Related URLs:	Conference
URI:	http://nectar.northampton.ac.uk/id/eprint/10340

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