What Career Industrial Designers Have to Say About Design Communications

Here's a sneak peak. To see the rest of the interview, visit:

http://www.daapspace.daap.uc.edu/files/download/abendam/s11X5nQx4c7fHZEMepIg0Ciwa2lAidglXYY_lOhp0UshEoehEJLiS95115K6FYvA

What piece of advice, about school or life, would you give to Industrial Design students graduating in 2010?

Lita

The old adage of it’s as much as “who you know as it is what you know” is so true. My first
job was the only one that I got the hard way. Everything after that was via someone I knew.
You must always be true to yourself as that is the person that you are building your reputation
on in your personal life as well as your professional one.

Don
Remember throughout your career, wherever you work and regardless of your title there will beone central element which will never change, your name. Everything else will change from thecompany you work with, your e-mail, your phone number, etc. You will likely be on both sidesof the table with people you meet during your career and your personal integrity is your coreasset. Treat is as such. Good luck!

Dan
Draw, draw, draw… never underestimate the power of good sketch to sell an idea.

Barry
Know many ways to communicate your ideas. Hand sketch, Sketch on a tablet, Sketch in
Photoshop, Illustrate in Illustrator, know proficiently a 3D program and if you know how to do
websites/graphics/user interface/flash or something like that then you are going to be more
valuable to a company vs. someone with just a talent to do one of these things super weel.

Tea Kettle Process Book

Get a closer look at the process book for Sip, my tea kettle design.

http://www.daapspace.daap.uc.edu/files/download/abendam/pdGqzUyjK34eEDjvnAgtbDLQTqjrOfOAcbwmFvxXAUlnd_y6myF24tDOiN2UDpKI

Image Inspiration

I choose to design a tea kettle for a Japanese career person who takes tea time to slow down and relax with friends or family. The goal was to design a kettle that would not over shadow the delicate nature of tea, but highlight its inherent qualities.

The above is an image board I created for the project. I was not as interested in other tea kettles as I was natural patterns and textures from Japanese culture. The exercise of sorting through many images and getting down to just a few that represent the concept best is a very helpful process for me. It enables me to further define my design aesthetic, but also broadens my thinking.

Goals Revisited

Those beginning of the quarter goals I set... well...

I don't spend every minute of my spare time looking at design blogs, reading design magazines, or talking about design. I am, however, doing these things more often.

I have worked more efficiently this quarter as I start to learn how I work best. I know I need to set short term, accomplishable goals and take frequent breaks. When I plan things with friends I have motivation to help me focus and get my work done before I get to play.

I have been observing different sketch styles I admire, but as of yet I have failed to put in the practice time. I have been putting it off until co-op.

So now a need some goals for my next co-op quarter.
To be continued...

So what kind of designer are you?

*** I will preface this entry by saying: most people have a skewed view of themselves and the work they do. It is a constant challenge to step outside yourself and try the see what the rest of the world sees.

I think my number one strength as a designer is empathy for the user. I try to understand a person fully-- from what they say about an experience, to what they do, how they feel, and why. I'm driven by the potential to find that special insight that can lead to a benefit the user never knew they needed, but suddenly can't live without. I love doing this research and I love communicating my findings through visuals and stories.

Check out some of my research in my portfolio at:
http://www.daapspace.daap.uc.edu/files/download/abendam/uabsIC6Ry3xgjCrub0U0fBVLZma2dsVDqS27uBYymN6_yCUOWhOurNd6uEX4wG6e