When Savannah College of Art and Design gave us an open invitation to conduct a series of workshops on a topic of our choosing for a mix of graduate and undergraduate Industrial Design, Systems Design, and Furniture Design students, we began our planning by asking ourselves a few simple questions:

“What kind of experience would be valuable to such a broad range of design students?”
“What sort of experience is our studio uniquely equipped to give to design students?”

Solution

These questions fueled a productive dialogue in our studio, providing opportunities for us to reexamine our own processes and assumptions. Our area of focus emerged as we identified a frequent gap in design education between instruction of technical skills and instruction of critical thinking.

It occurred to us that this relationship between craft and visual thinking is a common point of friction for students, design educators, and professionals alike. Despite the perceived difficulty of balancing these elements, our own attempts yielded the best results when technical skills and critical thinking were practiced together as an interrelated set of techniques.

We began referring to this practice as “thinking through making” and it became the foundation of our workshop pedagogy. We wished to convey to the students that design was both intellectual and physical; fetishizing either element would only result in thin blood.

To communicate this concept, we planned a series of exercises in designing and prototyping elemental objects (paper products and, eventually, simple lighting devices) as an armature for uptake of our “thinking through making” lesson.

The first part of the workshop was conducted over three days on campus in Savannah, culminating in a design competition with the prize being admission to the second workshop. That heralded second workshop took place two weeks later in our own studio in Atlanta.

Results

We sought feedback from the students (through video interviews) and many of them viewed our workshops as a welcome opportunity to step out of their ordinary routine and explore fundamental boundaries of their philosophies and processes.

We were also pleased to see the students emerge with new practical skills (book-making and prototyping) and, in some cases, portfolio-worthy product outcomes.

To wit: “Although their forays into a wild variety of projects (furniture, interior architecture, products, web design, videos) could be mistaken for the experimentation of ebullient, wild-eyed youth, it is more likely that the firm is representative of a shift in the way that a new breed of designers is responding to the current economic climate.”

The spread features the photography of our good friend and frequent collaborator Jason Travis. The text and images were art-directed and assembled into a cohesive whole by MA Creative Director (and Armchair Art Director) Kevin Byrd.

Roots Atlanta provides an encouraging and challenging support system to enable young people to flourish from the inside out. The heart of this organization and its desire to serve in a meaningful way attracted the People of Resource to run alongside its pursuits and actions.

After creating an identity and web site for Roots Atlanta, we approached them with a program of fun and interactive custom furnishings. When the unexpected difficulties that come with every start-up effort appeared, the time and budget demands tightened significantly.

Solution

We responded to the situation by calling on local organizations for donated materials, and using some clever design details to deliver an exciting, modern, and functional space.

With the help of the local school system surplus and Mohawk carpets, we were able to obtain old art tables, work tables, chairs, and carpet tiles.

We fabricated a shelving system out of a single piece of reclaimed walnut to showcase the best children’s books. By retrofitting affordable Ikea shelving with a mason jar storage system, craft supplies became easy to find and organize. We also utilized extra legs from school desks to make a maple reading table and a twelve-foot, solid, heart-pine bench.

Results

The space is now brimming with fun and excitement. Just from walking in, kids can feel the energy and intent of Roots’ energetic founder, Nicki Keys.

Amy Rouse, a California-based herbalist and consultant, wanted to create a platform to provide quality advice for healthier living. She was seeking a new identity and website to showcase her services and products. She turned to People of Resource for a clean, modern update.

Solution

Our approach to the Backyard Remedies logo was to create a mark with texture, playing off the blending of Amy’s medicines, by overlaying primary-color ink splotches to create specific floral compositions.

The primary goal of the website was to create appropriate avenues for learning about the services and products Amy offers, with each path on the site leading people to contact her directly.

David Daniels is an Atlanta-based architect with an extensive portfolio that includes restaurant interiors, private residences, and modern live-work spaces. With experience at nationally-recognized firms like Cooper Carry and Ai Group under his belt, David approached us ready to accelerate his private practice.

People of Resource’s relationship with David goes back – we’ve designed and fabricated furniture for a variety of his interior architecture projects. This history allowed People of Resource the luxury of already being familiar with David’s distinct style. The longevity of our relationship with David is something we take great pleasure in.

Solution

David’s work features distinctive contemporary forms. We approached the identity for David Daniels Design particularly inspired by his local residential projects. We elected to represent this work through a form that resides in the area between two- and three-dimensionality.

By developing an architecture based on project type, creating project pages that focus on imagery, and highlighting his best work through a rolling feature page, we established the breadth and variety of his portfolio.

Results

We created a clean environment that allows David’s work to be viewed at a high resolution, highlighting the striking character and precise details of his spaces and exteriors. The identity we created for David aligns with the aesthetics and quality of his architecture to reinforce his brand and build awareness of his practice in the marketplace.

You can find a link to the article to the right.

The events feature some of our favorite designers and architects (Merrill Elam, Mack Scogin, Thom Mayne, Liz Diller, Peter Eisenman, and Rem Koolhaas, to name a few) and it was a true pleasure to work with the Dean of the College, Alan Balfour.

You can find links to the schedule of events and a PDF of the poster in the sidebar of this post.