Department Blog
Department news, events, and snapshots of student life at SVA in New York City.
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BY CHOICE: Designing the Abortion Journey
Pantea Parsa grew up in Iran, where she encountered a confusing dichotomy: traditional Iranian society taught her that motherhood is the ultimate fulfillment for women, but, at home, she absorbed a different perspective. Her mother was an independent and successful woman who refused to be defined only as a mother and a wife. Pantea strived to be like her mother from a young age and ultimately decided that she doesn't want to become a mother in the future. However, should she become pregnant, she couldn't ignore the harsh reality that she would have to find an illegal back-alley abortion. For her thesis, By Choice: Designing the Abortion Journey, Pantea designed a suite of products that address the abortion journey from different lenses—including access, community, activism, and male accountability.
Transcending Blue: Adolescent Interconnection & Empathy in the Age of Screens
Through her thesis, Transcending Blue: Adolescent Interconnection & Empathy in the Age of Screens, Catherine Weislogel examines how digital technology usage impacts adolescent social and emotional well-being. While all humans are susceptible to the effects of the omnipresence of technology in their daily lives, children and adolescents, in the critical stages of brain development, are the most vulnerable.
Watch Our 2020 Thesis Presentations!
On May 22nd, the students of the Class of 2020 presented their Masters Thesis projects—not at the customary venue, the SVA Theatre, but rather online due to the coronavirus pandemic. Livestreamed in its entirety on a celebretory on Friday night, seventeen graduating masters students shared their work, comprised of research, artifacts, services, experiences, apps, and platforms.
UNFILTER: Dating in the digital age
Anna Chau began her journey into online dating when she first arrived in New York City. With the influx of choices of promising people to meet, she was excited to start searching for her perfect match. Soon after, however, she realized the experience was not meeting her expectations. Disappointed by the endless swiping, ghosting, and catfishing, Anna wondered if there was a way to hack the current online dating system and prompted her to begin research on her thesis, Unfilter: Dating in the Digital Age. The lenses that she explored in her thesis are choice, reflection, communication, and confidence to create a more positive dating experience through design.
TRANSVERSION: Creating Better Spaces for Introverts
Growing up in a traditional Chinese family where extroversion is highly regarded, Yufei Wang—a self-identifying introvert—explored how introverts can thrive in an extrovert-centric world. In her thesis, Transversion: Creating Better Spaces for Introverts, she advocates for introverts by designing spaces in which they are not expected to alter their behavior or personality. Unlike existing social spaces, which reward extroverts and are challenging for introverts to navigate, Yufei’s designs support introverts rather than asking them to “rise to the occasion” through design interventions that include reflection, culture sharing, communication, and recharging.
Happy Plants and A Smiling Belly: Investigating the Probable Future of the Human Food System
Food sits at the center of human life. It fuels our days and is the root of social activities in restaurants and at family meals. Quite literally, it sustains us. Yet, as a culture, we have lost touch with where our food comes from and how a nutritious, delicious diet can be used to create a healthier, happier, more sustainable future. Bart Haney's thesis, Happy Plants and A Smiling Belly: Investigating the Probable Future of the Human Food System, proposes radical shifts in thinking about the design of public information. He designed provocative solutions to heal ailing bodies, toxic lands, and a broken system in the service of happy plants and even happier bellies. Reimagining the production and distribution of fruits, vegetables, and synthetic proteins brings traditional foodstuffs in line with current and future needs, building absolutely toward a healthier future.
Journey to the West: Integration of Chinese Students in America
In his thesis, Journey to the West: Integration of Chinese students in America, Hui Zheng set out to face his contemporaries' problems, focusing on the international student community in the United States. Hui argues that the most significant challenges in this journey are finance, information, language, and culture. In his projects involving multiple disciplines, he answered each of the topics with unique design styles. He hopes that the effort to tackle the challenges in his thesis may encourage more designers to join the league against this inequality that exists under the surface.
Theodore Scoufis Wins WantedDesign Conscious Design Award
We are excited to announce that Theodore Scoufis (class of 2020) has won a WantedDesign Conscious Design Award (in the category of Best Student Project with Social Impact) for his thesis, FireLink: Fighting Fire with Data.
RICH BITCH: Feminine Strategies for Financial Power
Yuko Kanai’s thesis, Rich Bitch: Feminine Strategies for Financial Power, rejects the expectation that managing money is a masculine endeavor. Through addressing the emotional facets of money, breaking down the taboos of financial discussions, and presenting alternative models of financial success, her thesis aims to elevate femininity as a source of power rather than a handicap. The proposed strategies work at the level of community, the household, and the individual psyche as leverage points to address why financial illiteracy is more pronounced among women.