Submitted by lukedjohnson on Tue, 07/15/2008 - 15:24.
Luke Johnson, MFA Candidate
Media Design Program, Art Center
I am not a “traditional” design student. I received my undergraduate degree in both pre-med and political science. And before attending the Media Design Program (MDP) at Art Center, I spent the past two years teaching art to inner city students in Washington DC.
What makes the MDP unique is that embraces students who are relatively new to design but have other training and life experience. This wide range of interests complements a curriculum that challenges its students to consistently work across a range of media platforms. As a result, thesis projects are as diverse as geodesic dome that reveals poetry with the passing daylight to a human-centered case study aimed to improve medication safety.
In the fall, the MDP will be undergoing a massive curriculum change to promote its role as a leader in human-centered research. Summer sessions will now be devoted exclusively to internships, individual study or design research.
In my first year, I have had the opportunity to work on three design research projects. These projects include The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and their work with teenagers with chronic illness, my work as an official selection for Mieke Gerritzen and Koerte van Meenswort's "Biggest Visual Power Show," and the completion of the MDP's signature Super Studio course, a three-term exploration into design research.
What binds all three projects together is a greater sense of collaboration. Before coming to graduate school, I realized that alone my craft had become stagnant. At its best, a graduate school education provides an immersive environment for learning between like-minded individuals, the contacts to move you forward, and the curiosity for a self-sustaining practice.
Watch the video of this presentation here: http://www.socialstudiesconference.org/node/265