Department Blog
Department news, events, and snapshots of student life at SVA in New York City.
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MASTERS THESIS: Gowanus Outdoors Club: A Field Guide to Soliphilia, by Julia Plevin
Design strategist and storyteller Julia Plevin did not realize how much of an effect the environment had on her wellbeing before she moved to New York City to attend the Products of Design program and found herself yearning for nature. After a harsh New York City winter left her depressed and out of whack, she realized that she suffered from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). And she realized she was not alone. According to the National Institute of Health, 6% of the U.S. population suffers from seasonal affective disorder and 14% of the U.S. population suffers from winter blues. These numbers are even larger if you consider many Americans live in places like California or Florida that do not have long, cold winters.
MASTERS THESIS: Things, by Elisa Werbler
Elisa Werbler’s master’s thesis, Things, explores how we ascribe value to our everyday possessions. It examines the things we cherish from our past, the things that signify our relationships with others, the things we consume, the things we share, and the things we can’t bear to part with. Western society suffers from an affliction known as “loss-aversion”—the pain of losing something is greater than the pleasure of gaining something. This term, coined by world renowned psychologist Daniel Kahneman, goes hand in hand with what’s known as “the endowment effect”—the idea that something is more valuable to you than anyone else, simply because it’s yours. The combination of these two ideas led Werbler down a path of trying to pinpoint the exact moment when a decision is being made about something, whether it is in anticipation of a purchase, or an attempt to let go.
MASTERS THESIS: "I Was There When", by Eliz Ayaydin
Eliz Ayaydin's master's thesis, I Was There When, explores how people deal with traumatic memories-specifically, mental relief following natural disasters. Arguing that "at base, designers make sense of messes," Ayaydin set herself the challenge of making sense of one of the most unexpected and uncontrollable messes there are.
MASTERS THESIS: In Knead: Re-Building Intent in Our Relationship with Food, by Miguel Olivares
Miguel Olivares’s master’s thesis, In Knead: Rebuilding Intent in Our Relationship with Food, examines how food can be a material for relationship building. Miguel’s love for food and design began in a 10-day immersive workshop held in the Domaine de Boisbuchet, France, studying the physical, emotional and experiential benefits associated with cooking. Inspired by the work of neurologists such as Frank Wilson and philosophers such as Martin Heidegger, In Knead focuses on the influence that the hands have on how we engage our way of being in our daily lives. In Knead is a case study in creating purpose through cooking, and is explored as a digital product, tools, public experience, and business enterprise.
ENGENDER from MFA Products of Design is Live at NYCxDesign!
As part of NYCxDesign, the students of the MFA in Products of Design at the School of Visual Arts present Engender, a roving and interactive exhibition that explores the role of design in the construction of gender identities. The exhibition’s eight interventions deconstruct simple artifacts and gestures of our gendered world and invite visitors to play along in a performative game of gender mash up and reconstruction.
Spinute: A Laundromat App "By the Minute"
Spinute is a mobile app that saves time and money in the laundry process. Designed by Adem Onalan, Tahnee Pantig and Louise-Anne van ‘t Riet. Spinute is specifically for users of laundromats. Some of it’s features include a live schedule, on demand booking and namely, a washer to dryer service.
"Bud": A Smart Preganancy Companion that Tells You and Your Baby Where You're At
"Bud" is a smart pregnancy companion that acts as a support system for pregnant women. Designed by Vidhi Goel and Eliz Ayaydin, the device emerged from the design brief of "Reimagining home monitoring" in the Product, Brand & Experience course of the MFA Products of Design Program. The project celebrates pregnancy for parent and child—a precious time that deserves care and attention, and a product category not yet addressed in the from a technology standpoint that is user-centric and humanistic.
#SLIDEFREE: Michael Bierut Delivers His First-Ever "No-Slides" Lecture at MFA Products of Design
Last month, Michael Bierut, partner at Pentagram and one of the most captivating design thinkers and speakers in the world, delivered his "first-ever talk without slides" at the MFA Products of Design Department. In a lecture that is candid and humble, incredibly personal, reflective, and inspiring, Michael examines his "first 10 years and his next 10 years"—sharing his history and dreams from childhood to present day, looking toward the future, and punctuating the talk with side trips to humble ambitions and lessons learned.