Meet the Class of 2025

Ningfu (Nymph) Yang Nymph is a product and interaction designer whose work combines physical objects, digital experiences, and playful interactions. Originally from Beijing, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Engineering at the Beijing Institute

Ningfu (Nymph) Yang

Nymph is a product and interaction designer whose work combines physical objects, digital experiences, and playful interactions. Originally from Beijing, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Engineering at the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology and studied product and industrial design at Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London. Her experience includes collaborating with IBM on design projects and consulting for SPRG as a visual designer. Her practice explores how interactive technologies can support emotional connection and bring moments of play into everyday life. Nymph’s thesis, In the Dog House: Enhancing Human-Pet Interactions and Alleviating Separation Anxiety, explores how design can ease the stress of separation for pets and their owners, using digital tools, interactive toys, and storytelling to support more empathetic relationships between people and their animals.

Website: designlabnymph.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ningfu-yang-0b0949295

Emma Brigaud Emma is a creative strategist based in New York City, currently working at Modern.ai . Her practice spans digital storytelling, product innovation, and experience design across physical and digital environments. She graduated from W

Emma Brigaud

Emma is a creative strategist based in New York City, currently working at Modern.ai. Her practice spans digital storytelling, product innovation, and experience design across physical and digital environments. She graduated from William & Mary with degrees in French and Marketing. Before joining MFA PoD, Emma was a Senior Creative Strategist at The Snow Agency, developing social media campaigns and creator partnerships for consumer brands. Her work also encompasses public art and civic engagement, including producing installations in Princeton’s Dohm Alley and serving on the Princeton Master Plan Steering Committee, with a focus on economic development and land use. Emma’s thesis, Designed to Reconnect: Shifts in Everyday Food Habits for a Less Wasteful Future, explores how design can encourage more sustainable food habits by reconnecting people with the origins of their food and their neighbors, using playful interventions to reduce waste and strengthen community connections.

Website: emmabrigaud.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/emmabrigaud

Yifan Zhang Yifan Zhang studied Communication Design at RMIT University (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology) where she obtained a Destination graduation certificate. Yifan has worked as an Art Editor at ELLE magazine, developing a unique und

Yifan Zhang

Yifan Zhang studied Communication Design at RMIT University (Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology) where she obtained a Destination graduation certificate. Yifan has worked as an Art Editor at ELLE magazine, developing a unique understanding of aesthetics and design. During her undergraduate studies, she became deeply interested in the psychological direction of toy design and speculative design, exploring how design and psychology can be combined to create works with a greater therapeutic function.

Website: yifanz96.com

Jingyi (Jin) Zhu Jin is a multidisciplinary designer based in New York City, currently working at Guard Dog Security . Originally from Jiangxi province, China, she holds an undergraduate degree in Furniture Design and Engineering from Nanjing Fo

Jingyi (Jin) Zhu

Jin is a multidisciplinary designer based in New York City, currently working at Guard Dog Security. Originally from Jiangxi province, China, she holds an undergraduate degree in Furniture Design and Engineering from Nanjing Forestry University. Her work spans furniture, consumer products, and public interactions, with projects exploring material reuse and opportunities for play in everyday life. Her Dial-a-Date Perpetual Calendar, developed through the School of Visual Arts’ collaboration with MoMA, is available at the MoMA Design Store. Jin’s thesis, After the Night Ends: Reimagining the After-Work Life for Third Shift Workers, explores how design can support night shift workers’ recovery and well-being, addressing the challenges of living and working in a society organized around daytime schedules.

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jingyi-zhu-7a7581284

Erica Fink Erica Fink calls Brooklyn and Virginia home. Continually curious, she views design as the most satisfying form of problem solving. Erica earned her BA from the University of Virginia in Global Environmental Sustainability and subsequen

Erica Fink

Erica Fink calls Brooklyn and Virginia home. Continually curious, she views design as the most satisfying form of problem solving. Erica earned her BA from the University of Virginia in Global Environmental Sustainability and subsequently completed a fellowship accelerator for social entrepreneurs. From there, she joined a startup nonprofit which worked to center the voices of those with lived experiences of an issue in designing solutions and policy. Most recently, she has worked in an innovation lab, as a digital product designer and is a member of Design Advocates in NYC.

Website: ericafink.com

Yining (Elaine) Gao Yining Gao studied Industrial Design with a minor in Computer Science at the South China University of Technology. Yining has also served as a CMF designer at a toothbrush company during which she completed color, material and

Yining (Elaine) Gao

Yining Gao studied Industrial Design with a minor in Computer Science at the South China University of Technology. Yining has also served as a CMF designer at a toothbrush company during which she completed color, material and surface process proposals for toothbrushes and water flossers while supervising mould opening and production. Yining is eager to explore CMF design and loves trying new approaches.

Website: yininggao.com

Harsha Pillai Harsha is a product designer at ProductStak , with a multidisciplinary background spanning architecture, digital design, and strategy. She holds a professional degree in Architecture from Illinois Institute of Technology, where she

Harsha Pillai

Harsha is a product designer at ProductStak, with a multidisciplinary background spanning architecture, digital design, and strategy. She holds a professional degree in Architecture from Illinois Institute of Technology, where she co-founded the art zine Cumulus and helped run the college art gallery. Before joining the MFA Products of Design, Harsha worked as an architectural intern at OKW Architects in Chicago. Her practice reflects an interest in universal design and the ways design can bring joy and connection to everyday experiences. Harsha’s thesis, Lost in Translation: Rethinking Acts of Care Across Distances, explores how design can help Asian immigrant families express care across geographical and cultural distances, using shared rituals and tactile objects to support connection and understanding.

Website: harshapillai.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/harsha-pillai

Zhiwen (Kira) Fu Kira is an industrial designer who studied International Media before switching to Industrial Design at Auburn University. Her portfolio is multi-faceted as she has experience working on a variety of projects to further accessib

Zhiwen (Kira) Fu

Kira is an industrial designer who studied International Media before switching to Industrial Design at Auburn University. Her portfolio is multi-faceted as she has experience working on a variety of projects to further accessibility and inclusivity. Most recently, she collaborated as a group member of an amusement park project for PlayCore, designing entertainment and play structures for children. Prior to her work at Playcore, Zhiwen worked as a product designer for Knows sunglasses, modeling and rendering for a user-friendly experience.

Website: kirafudesign.com

Jiaqi Gu Jiaqi Gu studied at Tianjin University in China and received an honors degree in Industrial Design with a minor in Industrial Engineering. He has received the 2022 IF Design Talent Award Shortlist (Top 300) and the Yellow River Award. Af

Jiaqi Gu

Jiaqi Gu studied at Tianjin University in China and received an honors degree in Industrial Design with a minor in Industrial Engineering. He has received the 2022 IF Design Talent Award Shortlist (Top 300) and the Yellow River Award. After graduating, Jiaqi participated in the Interactive Design Summer School at Tongji University while designing “cultural products” for the Starbucks Heritage Project. Fascinated by physical interaction and behavioral economics, he hopes to expand the impact of design through multidisciplinary intersection and explore interactive products under the fusion of a new generation of AI.

Website: jiaqidesign.com

Tao Tao Holmes Tao Tao is a design strategist, writer, and co-founder and Head of Strategy at Lunch Special in New York City, a creative studio specializing in brand identity and content design for start-ups, nonprofits, and small businesses. S

Tao Tao Holmes

Tao Tao is a design strategist, writer, and co-founder and Head of Strategy at Lunch Special in New York City, a creative studio specializing in brand identity and content design for start-ups, nonprofits, and small businesses. She also serves as a senior copywriter and creative strategist for Atlas Obscura, where she previously founded the trips department and served as Director of Trip Design and Operations. With a background in writing from Yale University, her practice brings together storytelling, illustration, and experience design, with a particular interest in creating for children. Tao Tao’s thesis, Gifting Connection: An Attention Project, explores how gifts can strengthen relationships between adults and children through shared attention, creativity, and time together, including ways to sustain those connections across distances.

Website: taotaoholmes.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/tao-tao-holmes-72494b75

Yuancong Jing Yuancong Jing is from Xi'an, Shaanxi and came to the United States in 2019 to study Industrial Design at Auburn University in Alabama. During his studies, Yuancong participated in the design of outdoor fire pits and outdoor furnitu

Yuancong Jing

Yuancong Jing is from Xi'an, Shaanxi and came to the United States in 2019 to study Industrial Design at Auburn University in Alabama. During his studies, Yuancong participated in the design of outdoor fire pits and outdoor furniture while supporting the Aptar Company in designing medical packaging and bottles.

Website: axisesdesign.webflow.io

Hyotae (Haley) Kim Raised in Korea and Canada, Haley Kim earned her bachelor’s degree studying Metals, Jewelry, and Computer-Aided Design and Manufacturing at Temple University. Beyond her expertise in this field, Haley has gained valuable work e

Hyotae (Haley) Kim

Raised in Korea and Canada, Haley Kim earned her bachelor’s degree studying Metals, Jewelry, and Computer-Aided Design and Manufacturing at Temple University. Beyond her expertise in this field, Haley has gained valuable work experience in both fashion and IT industries which informs her approach to both challenge and opportunity. Haley remains committed to pushing artistic boundaries and finds inspiration in her multicultural experiences. At MFA Products of Design, Haley is eager to explore living systems and their role in interactivity and sustainable design.

Website: haleykimdesigns.com

Zai Thakoor Zai is a brand and visual designer and co-founder of Lunch Special in New York City. Originally from Mumbai, she holds a graduate degree in graphic design from MIT Institute of Design in Pune, India. Her practice spans brand strateg

Zai Thakoor

Zai is a brand and visual designer and co-founder of Lunch Special in New York City. Originally from Mumbai, she holds a graduate degree in graphic design from MIT Institute of Design in Pune, India. Her practice spans brand strategy, visual identity, and experience design, translating complex narratives into cohesive visual systems. Before joining the MFA Products of Design, Zai worked at Anomaly Brands in Bengaluru, developing brand identities, packaging, and retail experiences for food and hospitality clients. She also served as Design Lead for the Womxn’s Mobility Project, creating a visual identity for a platform amplifying the experiences of non-binary people, trans people, and womxn in India’s online and urban public spaces. Zai’s thesis, Rethinking Endings: From Ownership to Stewardship, explores how design can support repair and care as products approach the end of their useful lives, inviting a shift from ownership to stewardship.

Website: zaithakoor.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/zai-thakoor-00666317a

Vanishree Gandhi Vani grew up in Chicago, Illinois, and Delhi, India. As an undergraduate student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), she focused on learning fabrication techniques for sculpture and furniture making, specifical

Vanishree Gandhi

Vani grew up in Chicago, Illinois, and Delhi, India. As an undergraduate student at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), she focused on learning fabrication techniques for sculpture and furniture making, specifically woodworking and metalworking. Through sculpture, she visually questioned a chosen object's material choices, size, rigidity, structure, placement, function, and recognizability. As an undergraduate student, Vani worked as an Exhibitions Assistant at the Chicago Artists Coalition, an Instructional Assistant at 280 Woodshop and Metalshop, and a Gallery Technician at SAIC Student Galleries. At MFA Products of Design, she uses these questions and their answers to prototype innovative products. Vani's thesis explores how physical products can provide solutions to daily mental health challenges.

Website: vanigandhi.com

Yining (Jinny) Zhang Yining “Jinny” Zhang received a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communication Design at the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, awarded the title of Outstanding Graduate. Jinny has served as team leader and designer of Beijin

Yining (Jinny) Zhang

Yining “Jinny” Zhang received a Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communication Design at the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, awarded the title of Outstanding Graduate. Jinny has served as team leader and designer of Beijing Design Week, during which they reported research results in the China Millennium Memorial Hall and facilitated the practice of New Year pictures. Yining has received many academic and design accolades, including excellent exhibition work in the packaging design category. Jining has also served as Minister of the Student Union, cadre of the Red Cross and as a volunteer for the Beijing Winter Olympics.

Website: sealion-badger-s4lr.squarespace.com