professional practice_ assignment 3.0

For assignment 3.0 of the professional practice class we were formed into mock firms in conjunction with the 3rd years who also were divided into mock firms in order to enter into the Chicago Architecture Today Skyscraper Mock Firm Competition. I was a member of the Tertia Studio Inc. As the professional practice class our responsibilities were directed towards the business side of the design industry. I directed my attention towards graphics and marketing materials. We began by designing a company logo and then through out the duration of the assignment we created a set of graphic standards that ideally the firm would follow. These set of standards covered every aspect from color, logo, font, stationary, form templates, presentation templates, and even more. Below are a few pages from the 15-page Tertia Studio graphic standards.

professional practice_ assignment 4.0

High Point Furniture Market
April 2011


http://www.highpointmarket.org/default.aspx

www.flickr.com

For my second networking event I attended the High Point Furniture Market. More specifically I attended one of their educational events called "Marketing Yourself by Design". This event focused on the increasing interest in marketing yourself using different tools like a blog, twitter, and facebook. I received a lot of insight and knowledge about doing each of these approaches to better yourself and company. I also went to the Natuzzi showroom, a building that I have always dreamed of going inside. I absolutely love the design of the Natuzzi building. I was fortunate enough to receive a personal tour from Edgar Cabrera, an alum of the IARc department. Edgar was great to talk to and had a lot of advice for us graduating seniors. Edgar is truly an inspiration and I appreciate the wonderful experience he gave us.

professional practice_ research paper

I just completed a research paper on a very interesting topic in the design field. Technology and it's many advancements are truly amazing in their abilities and their rapid growth. For the topic of my paper I chose to focus my attention on the seven technology trends of design that have been designed by Autodesk. As a subgroup, Autodesk Labs creates all kinds of different software that they imagine could aid the design field in any way. Once they create initial versions of the software they then make them available to the public to download, mess around with, and then provide their personal feedback on what could be improved and what is not available. The seven different trends that they have defined include: Human Centered Design, Analog to Digital, Cloud Data and Search, Cloud Computing, Digital Reality, Digital to Analog, and Software as a Service.

Check out this link to find out more information for yourself.

professional practice_ Atlanta Trip

For the professional practice class we had the opportunity to travel to Altanta, GA to visit several showrooms and design firms. We were blessed to have Bettye Russell, of Herman Miller, as our host. We appreciate her planning and organizing the itinerary for the trip.

Our first day was spent visiting Interface Flor, TVS Design, Gensler, and Cooper Cary. We were honored to meet with Michel Belland from Interface Flor, Paula Carr from TVS Design, Richard Macri, the Director of Design at Gensler, and Richard Stonis, the Design Director at Cooper Cary.

The second day we started at Herman Miller (drooling over anything Eames), where Bettye Russell spoke to us, then we headed next door to AI3 to speak with Lucy Aiken-Johnson, the principle and founder of this small, forward-moving firm, which I believe all of us fell in love with. Then we headed to ASD to speak with Mike Neiswander.

Each place that we visited presented a short presentation about their firm/showroom, and current projects that they are working on. Then following the presentation we received a tour of each. For me this was the best part. It was interesting how the each of the firms were all different in the way they worked, and collaborated. Each has created a system that works for them. It was encouraging because in a way they were all similar to our own studio structure. They each all ranged in size and in types of projects.

This was such a great experience meeting with some very talented people and some of the top firms in the country.

Interface Flor

Maiken posing next to the her favorite, the tulip table.

TVS Design





Can you believe this view from the TVS lobby?

Gensler

another great view


Cooper Cary





Alyssa and Eriko

Herman Miller


Travis, Jo, and Mira

Leah admiring Charles and Ray Eames

Heather lounging in the famous lounge chair

My all time favorite



AI3




ASD



another great view

professional practice_ avenues event

Attending the Avenues event was a great experience. I had the opportunity to speak to some great people that had alot of advice and information to share. I spoke with Mike Cindric, from Design Dimension Inc., Rob Easton, from Davis Furniture Design, Blair Davis, from ID Collaborative, and Paula Carr, from TVS Design.

Mr. Cindric spoke of the importance of community engagement in their work, an example
of which they involved several different departments of a local high school to design, create, and build the installment of a park.

Mr. Easton spoke of the role that Davis Furniture has in designing new and innovative modern/contemporary contract furniture.

Ms. Davis provided great advice about the industry and how material and furniture selections are organized in their company. She spoke of how these packages are distributed to the client, architect, themselves, and others involved in the process.

Mrs. Carr was very inspirational and provided great feedback on ways to go about retrieving a job in the industry.

professional practice_ assignment 4.0

IIDA Design Days Event

For the networking assignment in professional practice I attended the Triad City Center's "Design Days", an event for both design students and professionals. The event was hosted by the Momentum Group, a textiles company located in Archdale, NC. First the students were presented with a presentation about textiles and the processes involved in designing and creating them. Following we were given a tour of the facility, which was very interesting because we saw how they create their own labeling and tags, how they organize and distribute memo samples of the fabric, and how they cut and fill orders that then get shipped off to the customer. After the tour, professionals of the organization provided helpful yet directed feedback on our resumes and portfolios. Following this portion of the event was a presentation about the etiquette for business effectiveness given by Elizabeth Ebihara.

professional practice_ assignment 2.0

For assignment 2.0 of the professional practice class we were to create a self marketing package for ourselves that would include a portfolio, resume, cover letter, leave behind, and a business card. Here are a few select pages from my portfolio, along with a variation of my personal logo.

pro practice _ mock firm logos

For the Chicago Architecture Today design competition I am working in the graphics group for the Tertia Mock Firm. Here are a couple of logos that I have been working on individually. At our weekly meeting we will be discussing all the different logo ideas and trying as a group to determine which best explains the mock firm. Both the number 3 and the tertiary colors have significance in name of the firm and their design intent.

professional practice_ assignment 1.0

For assignment one of the iarc pro practice class we had to submit a cover letter, resume, and a single page portfolio to determine which of the four mock firms that we were going to be in for a different assignment. The was a really helpful task because it helped me start to figure out my personal branding and the manner in which i would like my portfolio design to head. After submitting the assignment I came to the conclusion that the green that I often use for my graphics and projects was not exactly the right way to express who I am. It is not very accurate in describing me. Ever since I have been working on determining the correct branding for myself and my design philosophy.

This assignment was also the first time that I had to write a cover letter. This was definitely a beneficial task. I realize how important it is to know about the business that you are writing to and that it is also important that you don't say the information that you plan to tell them in the resume. The one thing that I feel is really awkward is that you have to say so much about yourself. I feel like this starts to sound really selfish and shallow, but I understand it is necessary to best explain yourself in a very short period.