Arts Thread

What is industrial design? There’s no one answer, but that hasn’t stopped us from asking the question and pushing the boundaries. Some faculty members recently answered this way: “One definition of industrial design is the translation of ideas into form, with all the implications that the notion of translation (both linguistic and geometric) brings with it. In a very positive way, this translation occurs daily in virtually every course in Pratt ID.” “Design is the expression of culture in objects.” “Design is the application of the belief that we are responsible for our own environment.” In its most basic sense, Industrial Design is a field of artists, designers, and inventors who create the objects we live with every day—from toothbrushes to jumbo jets, from cameras to computers, along with the context of product development in which these objects come into being. At Pratt, the core values of visual abstraction (line, plane, color, form, structure, and volume) and pragmatism (function, materials, processes and sustainability, and marketing) coexist. Our mission is to teach aesthetic value and form development as well as pragmatism, focusing on the principles of accessibility, responsibility, and creativity. In this carefully balanced environment, tempered by reality and vision, students are encouraged to design the everyday forms of the future. Our students arrive with a wide range of emerging capabilities: in math and science, in drawing and painting, in model making and sculpture. All find a home in Industrial Design, where Pratt ID develops students’ individual talents. Faculty members are demanding; all are experienced educators and professionals, many are principals at world-renowned firms and recipients of prestigious design awards. Together, teachers and students at Pratt explore, challenge, and re-define the forms and inventions with which we live, and the processes of creating them. Both team and individual assignments revolve around problem solving. Students learn to design and execute in resonance with professional practice—from presentation sketches to finished models—ensuring a practical understanding of the entire industrial design process. With its magnificent collection of top-flight museums, libraries, and galleries, New York City is one of the world’s centers for design. Students learn from both the richness of past culture and the cutting edge of contemporary design. Seniors take a full year of portfolio and professional practice in preparation for career entry. The Pratt Show is an annual showcase celebration for the next generation of Pratt designers. Pratt’s Industrial Design program, consistently ranked in the top ten in the U.S. by DesignIntelligence, also maintains strong ties to industry through corporate-supported programs and internships. Fortune 500 companies are regular sponsors of Pratt ID competitions and studios. It is an education that opens career possibilities that are as unique and as broad as our student body.