We caught up with the Product Design students from Ravensbourne who are exhibiting with us this week to get an insight into their practice and where they see themselves in the future of the Design Industry. Come and see them this week on FP78 & FP76!
Tell us about your University and Course
Having the opportunity to experience different areas of product design has helped to shape each of us as designers. We have learnt to apply design processes in a range of different situations.
We have had many opportunities at Ravensbourne to work with industry organisations including: Marks and Spencer, Burgopak (packaging design), Spectral (lighting design), REED Rejuvenate (up-cycling at the Cavendish and Radisson Hotel groups), not to mention having the chance to enter various design competitions.
Each of us has found our own passion to pursue. We have been working on a diverse range of projects, many of which will be on display at the New Designers exhibition on stand FP76.
1: Field Modular Light – Yu Chan
Field is a #modular lighting system designed by Yu Chan for workplaces or educational institutes #design #lighting #spectral
Tell us about how you/your classmates became interested in to design?
We all have very different backgrounds and come from a number of different countries. This means not one of our experiences have been the same. However, it is fair to say that most of us realised our passion for the creative industries early on. Product design is unique. It’s all about making informed decisions through understanding people and using research to create outcomes that both solve a real problem and are visually stunning.
We have all dreamt about seeing our products being used and valued by consumers and that’s exactly what we are starting to see happen.
2: Sweeper – Nick Grafakos
Sweeper is a simple floor cleaning product designed for people in later life by Nick Grafakos, enabling them to take care of their home. Sweeper is designed to avoid back pain and can be used by people with arthritis due to its simple and ergonomic #design… #productdesign #innovation
Give us an insight into life at your University i.e. tell us about your studios/workshops/facilities
Prototyping, both rapid and final models, is essential to any project’s success. At Ravensbourne, we have a wide range of equipment at our disposal that enables us to realise almost limitless design ideas. Many of us have become highly efficient at 3D printing and have many hours of wet and dry sanding experience to prove it!
We also have our own product design space that we use as a studio. Any project that we are working on, we pin up our sketches and inspiration so that everyone can see. We always accept each other’s opinions and trust the feedback that we receive. Everyone wants each other to succeed.
3: Bioscape – Nick Prodromou
Nick Prodromou from Ravensbourne’s #productdesign course designed Bioscape with the aim of creating a self-contained #ecosystem in a small form that could be used as a teaching aid in schools, increasing students awareness and exposure to #biodiversity… #biodesign
What are you most looking forward to about New Designers?
We are very much looking forward to meeting industry professionals and receiving advice on how to take the next step on our chosen paths. New Designers is a highly esteemed and well attended show so the range of people that will be looking at our work is very exciting.
We are also looking forward to seeing what other people have on offer. It’s always wonderful to see other designers’ work, knowing first hand just how much hard work everyone has put into their projects.
4: Lophii – William Richards
It is said that 30% of people in the UK are ‘severely sleep deprived’. William Richards from Ravensbourne’s #productdesign course came up with #Lophii to help address this issue. Lophii is linked to the user’s heart rate through wearable smart tech, which in turn creates calming, sleep inducing movements in the light #sleep #wellbeing
Where do you/your classmates see yourself in 5 years?
Thanks to the diversity of projects and aspects of design, we have varied paths for our future, some less conventional than others. We have future crafters, packaging designers, researchers, UI/UX designers, teachers, toy designers, CAD/CAM specialists and much more. Our talents are strong and varied. The class of ’18 are definitely ones to watch in the future and will no doubt add to the distinguished list of Ravensbourne alumni.