This Project based studio will focus on the intersection of food, design, and systems thinking. This Class looks through the lens of the multifaceted food system to develop scalable and actionable design outcomes that discover and respond to ruptures in the food system. Each iteration of this studio elective will address a particular theme as it pertains to food design. This year’s theme will be Food Waste. Outcomes will be comprised of prototypes and small scale design interventions.

This Project based studio will focus on ideas and work surrounding any and all of forms of Design and The Performing Arts. Students will be asked to seek and nurture collaborations with other students, faculty, and artists within the New School community or with other institutions. Collaborations locally and remotely are encouraged within both The Performing Arts and Design. Students can explore traditional or non traditional media as well as new and emerging digital and social media in their Collab projects. Once explored, outcomes, schedules, and final deliverables will be created and agreed upon by both the student(s) and faculty member. Projects can emerge from individuals or in small groups of students. Today there is a deep and sincere need to celebrate and embrace creation and human connections in all forms. We want to be able to connect and express ourselves emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually. We will look at ways we can connect, create and share with others what we manifest toward all forms. Works and ideas will be supported to explore and express via art, music, film, poetry, objects and environments including mixed media and multiple platforms and outputs.

In this multidisciplinary collab students will obtain dog fur from their local grooming center and learn the wet felting technique to create their own material. Using this material, they will be expected to design art pieces, products, or accessories. After developing their designs, students will be introduced to the fundamentals of visual concept creation, from brainstorming ideas for presenting their work to transforming those ideas into images. These hyper-local products will be captured photographically to add this project that is sourced, crafted and designed entirely in NYC to student portfolios.

The course will engage community residents, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, students and faculty in a design-build project focused on a community-engaged design of open space furniture. The design build course will use inexpensive, readily available materials that can be turned into furniture with basic tools. Students will design furniture kits ranging from a table to a bench and a stool in numerous ways to create furniture that responds to the preferences of the community and adapts to a variety of sites throughout New York City. This course will have offsite visits to community gardens throughout this Friday/Saturday intensive happening the first month of the semester.