Masters of Industrial Design

Design has always been it for me. I was just a little too sheltered to realize it. I knew of art and engineering but never an in between. Thus, I studied Aerospace Engineering, thinking it would let me design cars. I learned it wasn’t the kind of designing I wanted. I needed something more visual and organic.

After I graduated, though, instead of getting a domestic job, I joined the Peace Corps. My time overseas taught me a lot about the environment’s role in people’s lives. I lived in a village with people that survived through their farming. I swam in a lake that feeds millions of people every day. I learned about good farming practices and saw a lot of bad ones. The first hand experience of the reliance and the challenge really brought home ideas so popular today of being environmentally conscience.

While serving I taught math and science and I really discovered how differently people can think about the same topic.  I may see and understand things clearly and completely from my perspective however that does not mean it is the only one or even the best. Which really showed me the value of research and personal interaction in trying to affect change.

Industrial design, to me, is the culmination of my endeavors blending my technical background, my life experiences and my artistic talents into one great problem solving capacity. It is what I had been looking for.

For me, design is perpetual and I see all of my experiences through it. So while I’ve out grown wanting to design cars specifically I have a lot of design interests and I think there are still a lot of questions that need better answers.