Reflection. Week 7
In today’s session of Design and Human Condition, we discussed interdisciplinary studies and how IVS provides a platform that encourages interdisciplinarity amongst its student body. Interdisciplinary is a collective set of ideas, that is: relating or combining different branches of knowledge to work as a team and learn from one another. This idea encourages an individual to learn from its surroundings to become well versed in his environment.
Collaborative teamwork, where people share information and collectively plan out the terms helps a team consider different aspects of intervention and this also encourages individuals to learn interdisciplinary ideologies. The shared learning experience benefits the team as a whole and also nourishes the brain for potential growth in each and every participating member.
Interdisciplinarity is also encouraged amongst designers. The inclusivity of different modules can improve the layout of the compositions. The design explores different disciplines collaborated to enhance the learning experience when it comes to the overlapping of shared areas of concern. A product, space, and communication needs a well-coordinated team of designers to deliver the right information, this is where combining design disciplines play a vital role.
To give an example our “Research for Design” and “Design and Human Condition” are combined courses where three emerging design disciplines like graphic design, media design, and interactive design students learn together and share their different points of view in a discussion. Furthermore, our Liberal Arts component has “Introduction to critical film theory” where different disciplines like architecture, interior design, textile design, communication design, and fashion design students all explore and discuss the visuals of a film together. The students with interior and architecture as their major tend to notice lighting from ceilings and furniture playing the role to create dramatic shadows, whilst textile and fashion students tend to notice the role of clothing and layers of material controlling the light, and communication design further divided with different majors are observed noticing extra effects, the role of music, movement of cameras and overall layout of the film. I learn from my fellows and their discussion on the different point of views to broaden my horizon and be more vigilant when watching and criticizing a film.
Gere Kavanaugh is known as an interdisciplinary designer who has explored design in many different disciplines, she has designed interiors of a store, including furniture and town clocks, she has also designed textiles and a research room for the Nixon Presidential Library and Museum. She studied at Cranbrook Academy of Art where students set their own programs, one of the rules include every student to visit different studios to learn and observe different disciplines. Her program included silk screening, textiles, and developed furniture and toys but she happens to learn way more than that. She started her career by designing exhibitions and office interiors to moving on to designing departmental stores and interiors. She later shared a studio where different designers worked together and they ended up collaborating on one project where Frank Gehry and Greg Walsh worked on the architectural interiors, Deborah Sussman worked on the graphics, and Kavanaugh worked on the interiors, color, and furniture.[1] This multitalented wonder woman has started her own textile company to designing various interiors, to designing products of her own, she is a great example of how interdisciplinary learning can benefit young brains and turn them into one-man army.
Interdisciplinary environment helps develop critical thinking, communication and research analysis skills that help an individual in all stages of life.
[1] Paul Makovsky, “Gere Kavanaugh: Pioneer With a Penchant for Color,” February 28, 2017, https://www.metropolismag.com/design/gere-kavanaugh-pioneer-with-a-penchant-for-color/.
