DESIGN THINKING

Design is a virtue and not a department, it is not a tool based operation but a holistic approach to living. It is for self and more human oriented than client oriented. This is the core idea of my design lecture "Design Issues and Human centric Design" 

I have already done a small series in this approach for MDes students of NIFT and the results I should say is not yet fruitful. (Since it is an approach and not product oriented)

The classes would involved various aspect of Visual Design

1) Visual Order - Practical exercise (knowledge of illustrator - photoshop -- indesign - paper drawing a must - but can do without) This deals with hierarchy in designing visual solutions. Students will design an infographic/ to a problem given.

2) Design thinking - Which basically deals with the understanding Annoyance - problem -Design ethics - Desirability - feasibility - Viability 

3) Image as a tool for communication - which deals with photography and graphic design and there relation - (the product might be a giff poster or comic strip)

4) User experience design - an intro 

(Kids will be taught about wireframes - and basics of UX - that is user interviews - ethnography -wire framing - storyboarding - and if we get time an intro into Prototyping - since this is not my core area - I can only briefly introduce them into it - I have worked on the UX of earlier version of taxi for sure, grabhouse and my own website)

IMAGERY, PHOTOGRAPHY and ME

After a long break Kiran Sasi ( friend- fellow filmmaker) gave me a three day lecture series at Sacred hearts college Thavera. The class was on Imagery ,Photography for Master students and Graphic novel design language for bachelor students.

I made detail slides on the design principles involved and how I can communicate about those in an interesting manner. Moreover the subjects are close to my heart and has become a part of my everyday life. When i say it friends and family they consider me and boring meandering blabber mouth. Whereas I could do that in my class at Sacred hearts college Thavera. Unlike NIFT design school which teaches tool oriented design Sacred hearts Thavera has a vision to teach design holistically.

It was a surprise when the professors at NIFT told the students more about Photoshop than about design in their orientation lecture. Indeed I had to give a pep talk on telling how Photoshop is just a tool like Hemingway's pen or Sachin's bat. The conversation was initiated not to rub shoulders with the authority at NIFT but to make students understand that design is not photoshop or illustrator. Representation of  course is a tool based game.

(photo credits to Mahesh Vijay)

The students at Sacred hearts college Thavera are a naughty bunch. They are noisy and has a pedestrian attitude towards classroom education. If they are treated with respect they do try to treat you back with respect and in 9 out of 10 times it works.

I was also made one of the members in the board of studies. I don't know what change that would make. I wish I could make my students think more. The way I was made to think deeply and non objectively by my professors like prof. Raja Mohanty  and subjectively and intrinsically like prof.Mandar Rane.

Some slides from the presentation - they are not in order and are complied work 

Design education in colleges have reduced to photoshop learning and illustrator vector making. How do we bring about change ?