Department Blog
Department news, events, and snapshots of student life at SVA in New York City.
Rollling admissions still open!
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Rollling admissions still open! 〰️
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What is a Product Designer?
Product design is a term that has evolved over time to encompass both industrial and interactive design. While industrial design refers to physical objects, interactive design is an umbrella term for digital skills like mobile app design, digital interface and platform design, web design, and other non-physical designed experiences. Product Design at SVA offers master's courses in product design that hone students' skills in the areas of industrial and interactive design. While the term 'product design' here is all-encompassing, the applications are unique.
What is an Industrial Designer?
Industrial designers combine business, art, and engineering to develop concepts for manufactured products. The top jobs in this field are industrial designers, product designers, project managers, and design engineers.
These professionals develop concepts for manufactured products including electronic devices, home appliances, furniture, cars, toys, medical devices - really anything you see in the built environment. They create products people use every day.
What Is Storytelling in Design?
Storytelling in design involves using visual elements to create a narrative for your audience. Audiences want to form connections with brands and products. They want to feel that brands understand their motivations, struggles, hopes, and desires. Brands do this by creating designs that fulfill desires or overcome struggles.
Open House & Info Session
This year we will be offering 2 Open House and Info Sessions—one in-person on Friday, November 11th at 6:30pm EST, and another virtual (over Zoom) on Thursday, December 9th at 6:30pm EST! Both events will offer a full house of visitors, prospective students, faculty, alumni, and students, and if you can make the in-person session on November 11th, you’ll be able to tour the space, check out the Visible Futures Lab Next Door, and hang out with everyone here!
A Guide to Becoming a Product Designer
A product designer is an essential member of any design or digital team. They are the person responsible for overseeing and collaborating on the design, usability, and experience of any physical or digital product. In addition to overseeing the visual aspects of a product, product designers make sure a business’s goals are within reach by optimizing the product to meet a user’s needs in an intuitive, functional way.
2022 NYC Halloween Parade Costumes!
Every year, our first-year students design and build Halloween costumes as part of their Making Studios. Following the builds, faculty Becky Stern and the students head downtown to join the annual NYC Halloween Parade—drawing over 50,000 participants this year! Check out some snapshots below. Thanks to Becky and students for the photos!
What Is Design For Social Impact?
Design for social impact is the practice of interrogating systems—institutional, economic, social, political, interpersonal—in order to define opportunities for change that give voice to those who has been disenfranchised or marginalized by design. In essence, this field of study provides a methodology for examining domains of power through Socratic inquiry, structural and systems-based design thinking, and solutions-based design making.
Fall Retreat to Beacon NY and DIA Beacon!
At the midpoint of the semester, the students took Metro North Railroad up to Beacon, NY to check out the fall leaves, the DIA Beacon Museum, and some other sights in the town. Enjoy some snapshots below!
Guest Lecture Video: Amy Whitaker
On September 22, 2022, MFA Products of Design was pleased to host a guest lecture by writer, educator, and advocate Sara Hendren. Amy Whitaker was a founding member of the faculty in SVA's MFA in Products of Design where she taught Business Structures. She is currently an Associate Professor at New York University in the Steinhardt School’s department of art and art professions. She teaches business to artists, art to businesspeople, and economics to arts managers. She started her career in art museums including the Guggenheim, MoMA, and Tate.