Department Blog
Department news, events, and snapshots of student life at SVA in New York City.
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Register For our 2019 Open House & Info Session!
Join us at this year's Open House and Information Session, taking place on Wednesday, November 13th, 2019—from 6–8:30pm EST! Attendees will be able to meet faculty, alumni, and current students, see projects, learn about the program, tour the studio, classroom spaces, and Visible Futures Lab, and ask questions about life at Products of Design. Delicious refreshments will be shared throughout the session.
Snapshots from our 2019 Orientation Reception
We were thrilled to welcome our new class of 2021, our returning class of 2020, and all of our amazing faculty to last week’s Orientation Reception! Each of the faculty presented a few minutes about themselves and their course, and then it was celebration time to meet new people, catch up with old friends, and enjoy some amazing food from City Bakery!
Announcing New Faculty for 2019-2020!
We are thrilled to welcome four amazing new faculty to Products of Design for the 2019-2020 academic year: Shanti Mathew, Megan Ford, Alexandre Hennen, and Jonathan Meléndez-Davidson. Meet them all below, and see them on the quad!
Roger: A Bedtime Story Platform for Consistent Sleep Schedules
Roger is a device that helps children of low-income families get consistent sleep. Designed for the many children whose parents work irregular hours, it aims to get children to bed on time, especially when parents are not available. Created by recent graduate Kevin Cook as part of his thesis, Closer Kin: Building Stronger Family Environments, Roger releases a pre-recorded bedtime story every night at a specified time and gives children an incentive to get to bed on their own.
DARE + DEFY: A Woman’s Place in the Great Outdoors
As an avid climber and hiker, Alexia Cohen found herself interested in examining the role of women in the great outdoors. When she started climbing three years ago, she attended an event organized by Flash Foxy—a group of women dedicated to celebrating and empowering women climbers. Through this event, she met her climbing partner Janice, who as Alexia recalls “quickly became a friend and a mentor. Her guidance and support helped me develop my climbing technique and become more comfortable in this new space.” She also began to understand the importance of community and women mentors in traditionally male-dominated spaces.
ADAPTIVE DWELLERS launches at Wanted Design NYCxDESIGN 2019
For the seventh annual showcase at Wanted Design, and as part of NYCxDesign 2019, students of SVA’s MFA in Products of Design present Adaptive Dwellers, an interactive installation that explores the role of design in humanity’s adaption in a world devastated by climate change.
Student-Designed Products Launch at the MoMA Design Store!
We are extraordinarily proud that for the entire month of April, the two New York-based MoMA Design Stores are dedicating their windows and in-store displays to the collaboration with MFA Products of Design department! For the launch of 6 new products, an Opening Reception was held in midtown Manhattan last Thursday night. Check out photos below of the packed house, guests, and featured products designed by Products of Design students!
MONO/POLY: Designing for a Post-Marriage Society
After becoming interested in the growing phenomenon of non-monogamous relationships, Yangying developed her thesis, MONO/POLY: Designing for a Post-Marriage Society, to create services, experiences, and educational games that speak to polyamorous partnerships and envision a society where monogamy is no longer the default ordering principle of society.
QUEER CHINA: Diminishing the Tension Between Chinese Queer Youth and Their Families
Through her thesis, Queer China: Diminishing the Tension Between Chinese Queer Youth and Their Family, Xuan set out to design interventions that bring comfort, provide support, and facilitate both personal and political conversations for Chinese Queer Youth and their families.