Category: Smart List

Books on Cross-disciplinary Design

The Smart List is a monthly list of multi-media recommendations on everything design, curated by Interwoven Design. As a group of aesthetically obsessed designers, there are a lot of beautiful products and objects we love and enjoy. These products make our daily lives special and inviting and we want to share them with you. Pick up these Books on Cross-Disciplinary Design in this issue for the design savvy people on your list!

Books on Cross-disciplinary Design

1. The Senses: Design Beyond Vision

Edited by Ellen Lupton and curated by Andrea Lipps

Dive into the awesome world of inclusive and multisensory design with “The Senses: Design Beyond Vision.” This book is like your backstage pass to a cool exhibition at the Cooper-Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum that flips the script on the idea that design is just about what you see. Get ready to explore how space, materials, sound, and light mess with your mind and body, all while getting insights from hip designers like Petra Blaisse, Bruce Mau, and Malin+Goetz. And guess what? This isn’t just about solving problems – it’s about making life better for everyone, especially those with sensory disabilities.

The book isn’t your typical read—it’s got essays on all kinds of stuff like designing for the table, cool tactile graphics, making sound tactile, and even visualizing the senses. It’s like a shout-out, telling you to jump on the multisensory design train. Students and pros in things like products, interiors, graphics, interaction, sound, animation, and data visualization need to check it out. But hey, even if you’re just curious about design, “The Senses” takes you on a wild ride of thought-provoking exploration. And they’ve got a dream team behind it—Christopher Brosius, Hansel Bauman, Karen Kraskow, Binglei Yan, and Simon Kinnear all pitched in, with a killer design by David Genco and Ellen Lupton. It’s like the Avengers of the design world got together to drop some knowledge!

via Cooper Hewitt

2. Ways of Being

by James Bridle

In “Ways of Being,” James Bridle, the artist, tech whiz, and deep thinker, dives into a cool exploration of intelligence in all sorts of areas—plants, animals, humans, and even artificial stuff. This mind-bending work shakes up the usual ideas about intelligence, asking if it’s just a human thing or if it’s hanging out with creatures made of flesh, wood, stone, and silicon. Bridle gets real about the progress in artificial intelligence, making it sound like this mysterious force that’s messing with our sense of being at the center of the universe.

Bridle doesn’t stick to one subject—he throws in biology, physics, computers, books, art, and deep thoughts into the mix. “Ways of Being” dives deep into all the different ways we know stuff, do stuff, and just exist in this world. As we try to wrap our heads around artificial intelligence, Bridle pushes us to rethink what we know about intelligence itself. It’s like a wake-up call to think about who we are, what our gadgets are doing, and how we fit into the big picture of nature. And hey, it’s not just for the science nerds—this exploration totally connects with the world of cross-disciplinary design, telling designers to think big about how their creations impact all kinds of intelligence and the crazy interconnected world we live in.

via Barnes & Noble

3. Videogame Atlas

by You + Pea Architecture and Game Design

In the vast digital world, the only limits are the ones we cook up in our minds. Stuff like games and shows throw open doors to these wild and captivating worlds, often inspired by architectural research. Check out game design in hits like Assassin’s Creed, where they smoothly mix architectural stuff with the gameplay. The cool team You+Pea, led by Sandra Youkhana and Luke Caspar Pearson, dives into this whole blend of architecture and gaming. They run You+Pea, an architectural design studio that’s been showing off their game-based creations in fancy galleries. Plus, they just dropped a book called “Videogame Atlas: Mapping Interactive Worlds.”

This awesome book, a brainchild of You+Pea’s research, breaks down twelve rad games—from big-budget ones to indie gems—using panoramic maps, diagrams, and over 400 illustrations. “Videogame Atlas” makes the whole link between architecture and games easy to get, even if you’re not a gaming whiz. The book digs into games where the city takes the spotlight, like Assassin’s Creed: Unity, Cities: Skylines, and Dwarf Fortress, as well as those with crazy fantasy vibes like Final Fantasy VII + Remake, Death Stranding, and Dark Souls. The authors want us to see video game worlds like we look at real cities, recognizing the deep meaning they hold for gamers. They’re all about how games not only get ideas from real spots but also twist them in new ways, creating cool perspectives in gamer communities. With games leaving their mark on how architects learn and design, the line between architecture and gaming is getting blurry. And hey, The Bartlett just launched a fresh master’s program called “Cinematic and Videogame Architecture,” led by Lukas Caspar Pearson. It’s like the next level of blending these two worlds!

via Parametric Architecture

Follow us on Instagram for design news, multi-media recommendations, and to learn more about product design and development!

Podcast Episodes on Education + AI

The Smart List is a monthly list of multi-media recommendations on everything design, curated by Interwoven Design. In this issue we share some podcasts episodes discussing the collaboration between Education and Artificial Intelligence. As any creative knows, you can’t generate output if you aren’t continually feeding yourself inspiration and staying up to date with the latest trends and technology. In addition to helping us stay informed about art and design, listening to podcasts and other media allow us to be inspired by what design and tech leaders around the world have to say about AI and Education.

Anant Agarwal: AI for Education

The Gradient: Perspectives on AI

The Gradient podcast is a platform that engages in conversations with prominent industry figures immersed in the realms of AI research, development, and application. In Episode 85, the host, Andrey Kurenkov, has the privilege of conducting a thought-provoking interview with Anant Agarwal. Anant Agarwal is not only the Chief Product Officer of 2U but also the visionary founder of edX, a pioneer in online education. 

During this episode, Anant Agarwal graciously offers profound insights, sharing both his personal perspective and the collective wisdom of his students, amassed over years of learning, working with, and teaching AI. One specific teacher proposed an alternative approach, combining digital resources with human interaction. Students would select books, read silently, participate in literary circles, and engage in shared read-alouds. While still incorporating AI-driven fluency work, the emphasis would shift towards building motivation and reading endurance through human connection.

via The Gradient

AI Education and the Creator Economy

AI for Creatives

AI for Creatives, a podcast created by and for the creative community, serves as a bridge connecting art, and innovation. The hosts, Kamilah and Nova, dive right into the latest developments in AI tools and technology, shining a spotlight on innovative solutions such as Clip Drop, a compelling alternative to Midjounrey, and Claude 2. They delve into how these tools are being harnessed and draw insightful comparisons with ChatGPT.

Throughout the episode, Kamilah and Nova share their thoughts on how technology is transforming once-impossible ideas into tangible realities. Nova, shares compelling statistics on the transformative impact of AI on employment, highlighting the anticipation of creating a net of 12 million new jobs. Kamilah observes that the entire landscape of education is undergoing a profound shift, prompting a reassessment of the necessity of a formal college education in light of the burgeoning alternatives available. The duo explains how AI has firmly established its presence as an enduring tool, and its diverse applications necessitate innovative and comprehensive education. 

via Apple Podcasts

ChatGPT Transforms A Classroom + Is ‘M3GAN’ Real?

Hard Folk

“Hard Fork,” hosted by Kevin Roose and Casey Newton, and produced by Davis Land, delves into the transformative impact of AI software on education. Cherie Shields, a high school English teacher in Oregon, shares her experience with integrating AI, such as the Chatbot from OpenAI, into her classroom. She highlights the accessibility of ChatGPT, allowing both her and her students to swiftly embrace this technological advancement. Shields advocates for ChatGPT’s use as an assessment tool for refining organizational methods and essay structure, implementing specific usage constraints. Moreover, Cherie leverages ChatGPT for various classroom tasks, including crafting lesson plans, generating topic lists, and assisting with paper evaluations. 

In a different vein, the movie ‘M3GAN’ explores the intriguing implications of Artificial Intelligence and technology. This horror/comedy film revolves around the overreliance on AI over human interaction, touching on topics like screen time and parenting. It provokes thoughts with the question: “What is the appropriate amount of screen time for children?”

via The New York Times

What Does Personalized Learning Look Like in an Age of AI?

The Creative Classroom with John Spencer

One librarian is providing students with valuable strategies for selecting the appropriate research strategies through books. This specific library experience challenged the traditional image of a quiet, stagnant library. Many school libraries, like this one, are evolving to engage and excite students about reading. She builds relationships with students, working collaboratively to discover texts that resonated with their interests. As a skilled curator, she explored a wide range of books and regularly introduced students to new authors and genres, aiming to ignite their passion for reading. 

This podcast explains how Generative AI holds the potential to revolutionize adaptive learning by creating customized content, including math word problems, science examples, and non-fiction texts tailored to students’ interests and reading levels. This AI-driven approach aims to challenge students at their skill level while allowing them to interact with AI as a tutor, asking questions and seeking clarification. Personalized learning emphasizes empowering students with voice and choice.

via John Spencer

And there you have it, Podcast Episodes on Education + AI! Follow us on Instagram for design news, multi-media recommendations, and to learn more about product design and development!

Design Weeks Around the Globe

The Smart List is a monthly list of multi-media recommendations on everything design, curated by Interwoven Design. In this issue we share the Design Weeks Around the Globe that we are really looking forward to this fall. As any creative knows, you can’t generate output if you aren’t continually feeding yourself inspiration. In addition to helping us stay informed about art and design, going to the fantastic Design Weeks around the Globe is a great way to be influenced by international design culture and stay up to date with aesthetic and functional trends.

Designart Tokyo 2023

Tokyo, Japan

Designart, situated in the vibrant and culturally diverse city of Tokyo, stands as one of Japan’s premier art and design festivals. In its 7th year, this year’s theme, “Sparks – Freeing Your Thought,” invites visitors to explore groundbreaking creations that liberate their thinking, enabling them to embrace change and discover emerging societal trends. Acting as a dynamic platform, Designart Tokyo continually evolves to showcase a rich array of Japanese art and design to a global audience. The event unfolds over 10 days, running from October 20 to October 29, 2023.

via Designart

Design for Planet Festival: Collaborate

Norwich, United Kingdom

The Design for Planet Festival, now in its third edition, is an award-winning, free-of-charge event that rallies the design community to confront the climate crisis. Taking place from October 17 to October 18, 2023, at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, United Kingdom, this year’s festival features online workshops and panel discussions featuring some of the world’s most influential thinkers and talents in the design community, all centered on the theme of sustainability. “Collaborate” takes center stage this year, emphasizing the importance of cross-pollination not only within design but also among consumers, nature, AI, supply chains, and various disciplines from engineering to the performing arts as we strive to build a regenerative world.

via Design Council

Habitare: Together

Helsinki, Finland

Habitare, Finland’s premier furniture, design, and interior decoration event, is scheduled from September 13 to September 17, 2023. Designers Anna Pirkola and Kirsikka Simberg, partners at Studio Plenty, creatively manifest the theme, “Together,” this year’s focus centers on humanity’s desire for togetherness in today’s world, while also emphasizing the need to jointly care for nature and one another. Habitare 2023 doesn’t just highlight the challenges our world faces, such as pollution, inequality, biodiversity loss, and the climate crisis; it positions these issues as opportunities for positive change. The organizers encourage collective action, fostering unity through joy, empathy, purpose, and hope as we work towards a common goal during these challenging times.

via Habitare

Barcelona Design Week 2023: Design for Human Future

Barcelona, Spain

Created by the Barcelona Design Centre in 2006, Barcelona Design Week has a clear mission: to launch a global initiative that promotes the 17 sustainable goals outlined by the United Nations. Under the banner of “Designing for Human Future,” this event addresses the pressing need to navigate a world marked by uncertainty, complexity, and volatility. As we reach the halfway point of the 2030 Agenda launched in 2015, Barcelona Design Week seeks to provide a realistic assessment of what has been accomplished and what remains to be done. As a proud member of World Design Weeks, BDW advocates for the significance of design. The event is scheduled from October 16 to October 28, 2023, and is organized by the Barcelona Centre de Disseny in collaboration with the Barcelona City Council, FAD Fostering Arts and Design, and Museu del Disseny.

via Barcelona Design Week

And there you have it, Design Weeks Around the Globe! Follow us on Instagram for design news, multi-media recommendations, and to learn more about product design and development!

Design Museums Around the World

The Smart List is a monthly list of multi-media recommendations on everything design, curated by Interwoven Design. In this issue we share the Exhibits and Design Museums Around the World that we are really looking forward to this fall. As any creative knows, you can’t generate output if you aren’t continually feeding yourself inspiration. In addition to helping us stay informed about art and design, going to the fantastic galleries and museums throughout the city is a crucial strategy for those of us in the studio to stay engaged and open as creative people.

Life Cycles: The Materials of Contemporary Design

at the Museum of Modern Art

From September 2, 2023 to July 7, 2024, The exhibition “Life Cycles: The Materials of Contemporary Design” delves into the rejuvenating influence of design as it shifts its attention towards a more cooperative relationship with the environment.

Within this showcase, the artifacts on display illuminate the complete life span of the materials from which they are crafted. Starting from their extraction to eventual reuse or disposal, designers are delving into novel approaches—sometimes inspired by age-old customs—to engage materials in their endeavor to harmonize ecosystems. The instances on display prove that design can possess grace, originality, and allure, all while introducing fresh tactics to mend our planet.

via MoMA

A Dark, a Light, a Bright: The Designs of Dorothy Liebes

at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum

Dorothy Liebes, the eminent textile designer, wielded a profound influence across a multitude of design realms, encompassing fashion, interior design, and industrial design. Through her masterful use of vibrant colors, materials, and finishes, Dorothy pioneered her own distinctive style known as the “Liebes Look.” Her collaborations extended to an illustrious roster of architects and designers, boasting names like Frank Lloyd Wright, Henry Dreyfuss, Raymon Loewy, Pauline Trigère, and Adrian, among others.

From July 7, 2023, to February 4, 2024, the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum in New York City will host an exhibition featuring over 175 works by Dorothy Liebes. This captivating display will encompass textiles, fashion pieces, furniture, photographs, and other documentation that left an indelible mark on the American fashion industry of the mid-20th century.

via Cooper Hewitt

Garden Futures: Designing with Nature

at the Vitra Design Museum

Gardens encompass realms of leisure, delight, and productivity. They serve as canvases where our aspirations and desires have been projected for centuries—an interface bridging the human and natural domains. In the present age, issues pertaining to climate change, ecological balance, food insecurity, and social equity saturate our daily existence.

The upcoming exhibition titled “Garden Futures,” slated for presentation from March 25, 2023, to October 3, 2023, explores gardens as domains of experimentation and potential horizons. This showcase portrays an array of historical, modern, and speculative garden concepts. Encompassed within are not solely remarkable gardens, but also contributions from artists and landscape architects who conceive of gardens as experimental grounds for testing novel ecological and social synergies.

The exhibits encompass a spectrum ranging from visionary landscape architects’ concept sketches to immersive contemporary audiovisual installations, artistic creations, furnishings, tools, and photographs.

via Vitra Design Museum

Indigenous Histories

at the Museu de Arte de São Paulo

Spanning from October 20, 2023, to February 25, 2024, the expansive collective exhibition “Indigenous Histories” unveils diverse narratives of native histories worldwide through the lens of art and visual cultures. This assembly brings together an assortment of works across multiple mediums, genres, origins, and eras.

Structured into eight distinct sections, “Indigenous Histories” is composed of seven sections that delve into varied regions around the globe, alongside one section themed around indigenous activism. These seven regional segments will delve into indigenous histories spanning Oceania, North America, South America, and Scandinavia. The objective is not to comprehensively encapsulate the indigenous histories of each specific region, but rather to offer a cross-sectional, fragmentary, or illustrative insight into these narratives via a concise yet pertinent selection. This approach encourages a comparative exploration with narratives from different corners of the world.

via Contemporary and América Latina

And there you have it, Design Museums Around the World! Follow us on Instagram for design news, multi-media recommendations, and to learn more about product design and development!

Small Scale Manufacturing

Prototyping and Initial Production Runs

The Smart List is a monthly list of multi-media recommendations on everything design, curated by Interwoven Design. As a group of aesthetically obsessed designers, there are a lot of beautiful products and objects we love and enjoy. These products make our daily lives special and inviting and we want to share them with you. This issue is a collection of small scale manufacturers for prototyping and initial production runs.

The Smart List: Small Scale Manufacturing

Print Parts

We rely on Print Parts’ impressive 3D Printing capabilities to conduct early design tests and validate ideas during our creative process. Their team of skilled additive specialists is always on hand to assist with printing parts and overcoming any challenges that arise.

Conveniently located in Manhattan, just a short subway ride away from our studio, Print Parts facilitates a swift turnaround of iterative 3D printed components. Their manufacturing lab excels at producing cost-effective prototypes and high-quality samples.

To ensure top-notch quality, every order is accompanied by a comprehensive Quality Assurance Checklist. This meticulous inspection is carried out by one of Print Part’s operators before the parts are dispatched for delivery. This way, all parties involved can rest assured that the components meet the required criteria.

via Print Parts

Athena 3D Manufacturing

Athena 3D Manufacturing was established in 2019 with a clear objective: to utilize 3D printing to produce top-notch parts at scale and competitive prices. Over time, Athena has grown its offerings to include a range of additive manufacturing methods like HP Jet Fusion and Markforged Metal X technology, post-processing services, CNC machining, injection molding, cast urethane, and engineering design services.With their ability to develop high-performance, quality parts quickly, Athena 3D helps us iterate quickly through 3D printing and even runs small production runs for us to develop high fidelity prototypes to our clients. Combining their exceptional components with our prototyping capabilities empowers us to fabricate fully functional, photoshoot-ready products with confidence.

via Athena 3D Manufacturing

Carbon 3D

Carbon® is a pioneering 3D printing technology company that empowers businesses to create superior products and accelerate their time to market. Their impressive client roster spans the globe and is particularly distinguished by innovative solutions in the automotive, footwear, and athletic industries. Among their standout projects, Carbon’s ongoing collaboration with Adidas stands out, where they utilize 3D printing to craft lattice midsoles for shoes.

Through their ingenious application of additive manufacturing methods, Carbon 3D has revolutionized lattice structures, allowing us to replicate foam-like qualities in plastic parts. This opens up unique use-case scenarios that were previously unattainable through injection molding or traditional 3D printing. Working alongside their personable and knowledgeable team, we’ve enjoyed a seamless process of iteration and prototyping.

via Carbon 3D


Follow us on Instagram for design news, multi-media recommendations, and to learn more about product design and development!