Speakers + Studios

Speakers + Studios

Students meet design's most creative, rule-breaking individuals—up close and personal.

World-renowned artists, guest critics, creative thinkers, and designers lead our workshops and lectures to help students get the most out of their time at MFA Products of Design.

We host many renowned designers, critics, thought-leaders, and artists in our Visiting Lecture Series. Several events are open to the local New York design community.

Guest Speakers

Debbie Millman

Design Matters

Natasha Jen (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Natasha Jen

Pentagram

Paola Antonelli (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Paola Antonelli

The Museum of Modern Art

Mindy Seu

Cyberfeminism Index

Joey Zeledón

Award Winning Designer, Design is Trans — Joey Zeledón

Award Winning Designer, Design is Trans

Todd Bracher

Betterlab, BRACHER

Tega Brain

Artist and Environmental Engineer, NYU

Jon Kolko

Narrative

Eason Yang

AIGA, Not Entirely Dead

Panthea Lee

Reboot

Chloé Cooper Jones

Writer, Two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, Columbia University

Gail Anderson

Creative Director, Visual Arts Press Designer, Writer, and Educator — Gail Anderson

Creative Director, Visual Arts Press
Designer, Writer, and Educator

Cliff Kuang

Google

Marquise Stillwell

Openbox

Amy Whittaker

New York University

OCAD U

Neri Oxman (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Neri Oxman

MIT Media Lab

Souvik Paul

Founder of Aurie, Johnson and Johnson, Alumni Class of 2016

Bibi Seck (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Bibi Seck

Birsel + Seck

Michael Bierut (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Michael Bierut

Pentagram

Ellen Lupton (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Ellen Lupton

Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Giorgia Lupi (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Giorgia Lupi

Pentagram

Liz Ogbu (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Liz Ogbu

Designer, Urbanist, Spatial Justice Activist

Tala Safié

New York Times

Aimee Mullins (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Aimee Mullins

Athlete, Advocate

Elliott P. Montgomery (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Elliott P. Montgomery

The Extrapolation Factory

Cameron Tonkinwise (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Cameron Tonkinwise

Educator, Critic

Bobby Martin (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Bobby Martin

OCD

Jill Magid (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Jill Magid

Artist

George Aye (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — George Aye

Greater Good Studio

Nate Silver (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Nate Silver

FiveThirtyEight

Valerie Casey (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Valerie Casey

Samsung

Dong-Ping Wong (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Dong-Ping Wong

Plus Pool

Anthony Dunne (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Anthony Dunne

Dunne & Raby

Debbie Chachra (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Debbie Chachra

Olin College of Engineering

Douglas Rushkoff (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Douglas Rushkoff

Author

Layla-Joy Williams (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Layla-Joy Williams

Iylia

Sam Potts (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Sam Potts

Sam Potts Inc.

Ari Melenciano (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Ari Melenciano

Creative Technologist

Ti Chang (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Ti Chang

Crave

Nathan Shedroff (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Nathan Shedroff

Author

Debera Johnson (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Debera Johnson

Pratt Institute

Ezio Manzini (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Ezio Manzini

Desis Lab

Ingrid Fetell Lee

The Aesthetics of Joy

Timothy Bardlavens

Facebook

Liz Jackson (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Liz Jackson

The Disabled List

Jessica Helfand (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Jessica Helfand

Design Observer

Margaret Maile Petty (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Margaret Maile Petty

Victoria University

Chelsea Mauldin (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Chelsea Mauldin

Public Policy Lab

Tina Roth Eisenberg (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Tina Roth Eisenberg

Swiss Miss

Chuck Hoberman (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Chuck Hoberman

Hoberman Associates

Conor Clarke (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Conor Clarke

Design Factory

Laura Forlano (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Laura Forlano

IIT Institute of Design

Michael Anastassiades (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Michael Anastassiades

Designer

Elizabeth Scharpf (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Elizabeth Scharpf

Sustainable Health Enterprises

Stephen Kavanaugh (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Stephen Kavanaugh

Design Factory

Deborah Adler (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Deborah Adler

Target Pill Bottle

Steve Portigal (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Steve Portigal

Portigal Consulting

Sloan Leo (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Sloan Leo

FLOX Studio Inc

Tim Brown (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Tim Brown

IDEO

Ralph Caplan (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Ralph Caplan

Author

Lea Simpson (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Lea Simpson

Brink

Charles Adler (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Charles Adler

Kickstarter

Andrea Steele (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Andrea Steele

Ten Arquitectos

Jane Penty (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Jane Penty

Sustainable Design Consultant

Dale Dougherty (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Dale Dougherty

Maker Media

Nicole Katz (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Nicole Katz

Paper Chase Press

Scott Wilson (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Scott Wilson

MNML

Gillian Crampton Smith (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Gillian Crampton Smith

Interaction Designer

IDSA

John Dimatos (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — John Dimatos

Kickstarter

AnnMarie P. Thomas (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — AnnMarie P. Thomas

Playful Learning Lab

Matthew Burnett (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Matthew Burnett

Makers Row

Alexa Courtney (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Alexa Courtney

Frontier Design Group

Caroline Baumann (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Caroline Baumann

Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Josh Owen (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Josh Owen

Industrial Designer

Julia Marsh (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Julia Marsh

Sway

Lina Srivastava (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Lina Srivastava

Center for Transformational Change

Mariana Prieto (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Mariana Prieto

ArtCenter College of Design

Danny Alexander (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Danny Alexander

Who Gives a Crap

Noelle Marcus (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Noelle Marcus

Nesterly

Jeff Kapec (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Jeff Kapec

Tanaka-Kapec Design Group

Sunny Bates (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Sunny Bates

Sunny Bates Associates

Matthew Manos (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Matthew Manos

verynice

Sally Rumble (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Sally Rumble

CreativeMornings

Sara Hendren (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Sara Hendren

Olin College of Engineering

Helen Armstrong (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Helen Armstrong

Author

Mansi Gupta (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Mansi Gupta

Unconform Studio

Pune Dracker (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Pune Dracker

Researcher

Every month, students see the professional working world up close and personal—from independent designer and artist studios to corporate creative hubs

Studio Visits

New Lab (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — New Lab

10XBeta (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — 10XBeta

Tomorrow Lab

Tom Sachs (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Tom Sachs

Stickbulb

Fort Standard (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Fort Standard

SIMS Municipal Recycling Center (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — SIMS Municipal Recycling Center

Google Creative Lab (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Google Creative Lab

The New York Times Design Dept. (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — The New York Times Design Dept.

Lindsay Adelman Studio (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Lindsay Adelman Studio

Lyft (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Lyft

Etsy (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Etsy

Kickstarter HQ (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Kickstarter HQ

P.E. Guerin (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — P.E. Guerin

SYPartners (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — SYPartners

IDEO & IDEO.ORG (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — IDEO & IDEO.ORG

MoMA Library (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — MoMA Library

Genspace (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Genspace

Richard Clarkson Studio (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Richard Clarkson Studio

Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum

M&S Schmalberg (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — M&S Schmalberg

Harry Allen Design (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Harry Allen Design

Aruliden (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Aruliden

David Zwirner (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — David Zwirner

Chen Chen & Kai Williams (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Chen Chen & Kai Williams

Brooklyn Navy Yard (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Brooklyn Navy Yard

ESI Design (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — ESI Design

Baggu (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Baggu

Fab.com (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Fab.com

Areaware (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) (Copy) — Areaware

Tenement Museum

Krypton Neon

Climate Museum