This studio applies human-centered design to a place under real pressure. Cultural tourism and heritage economies are reshaping small towns and craft regions worldwide, and designers are increasingly called on to respond at a distance: video calls, shared files, and surgical site visits to "capture data" rather than the immersive residencies that build real relationships with a place and its people. This studio challenges that default, anchoring in a real brief for a specific site: Luocheng Ancient Town, a still-inhabited Ming–Qing-era market town in Sichuan, China.

The course builds on the instructor's ongoing collaboration with Bibo Wu, Professor of the School of Fashion Design at China Academy of Art, who will be in residency at RISD for the initial weeks before joining by video from across a significant time difference. Hands-on workshops led by guest faculty from across RISD, in disciplines ID students seldom touch (applied pattern and surface design, embroidery and historical garment contruction, materials innovation, typography), ground the term in Luocheng's customs, foods, and craft traditions before students develop a proposal in one of three tracks: Documentation & Digital Archive, Contemporary Product Translation, or Visitor & Community Infrastructure. Students should come ready to work in direct, sustained dialog with faculty and community members, the project's real stakeholders, rather than from research alone.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

The majority of manufactured objects today rely on precision CNC machining in some form, either directly or indirectly. Many high-value, low-volume products are produced through direct machining, while high-volume, low-value products are typically made using molds, dies, and tooling that were themselves created through CNC processes. In either case, objects must be designed with machining in mind.

This studio explores the possibilities that emerge when subtractive fabrication is treated not simply as a method of production, but as a design framework. Working with CNC milling and routing processes, students will investigate how form emerges through material removal, and how considerations such as tool geometry, cutting strategy, fixturing, surface finish, and tolerances shape both the possibilities and limits of manufactured objects.

Through a series of projects, students will develop an understanding of machining as both a conceptual and practical tool for production, using its logic and constraints as a generative starting point. Projects will involve both direct machining and indirect production through molds, patterns, and tooling, examining what it means to design for machining, how machines, tools, and materials influence form, and how subtractive processes can be combined with other methods of fabrication to expand the range of object possibilities.

This course is designed for students interested in moving their work into production, whether independently or in collaboration with manufacturers, where communicating intent and navigating the transition from design to production are essential.

Autodesk Fusion will be the primary CAD/CAM application. Prior 3D modeling experience is recommended but not required.

This class builds upon the department’s metal curriculum and as such Metals II (ID 2452) is required to take this class.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Industrial Design bears the burden of planned obsolescence. The way our objects have been and continue to be made, distributed and marketed are embedded with consumerist ideas that in turn, have produced devastating environmental, social and cultural effects.

Electric fans cool, warm, dry, exhaust and circulate air in domestic, institutional and industrial settings. Spinning blades to move air are found everywhere from our living rooms to our laptops. As appliances and simple mechanisms, they are ubiquitous and require frequent repair and cleaning.

So, how do planned obsolescence and fans connect? In this Advanced Design Studio, we will work with the Electric Fan as a guide to analyze and intervene in arrangements of planned obsolescence, production and disposal, maintenance, domesticity and comfort, urgency and efficiency, energy and urbanism, beauty and function. We will learn about the use and development of electric fans in relation to the changing climate, locally and globally.

The first part of the semester’s projects are dedicated to disassembly, reassembly and experimentation introducing you to basic electronics, motor functions, physical computing, and applying strategies to design for repair in mind. We will disassemble products and systems, including manufacturing processes, industrial waste streams and learning about the people who work in these sectors. The second part of the semester is dedicated to self-driven research, prototyping and iteration of your ideas focusing on audience and impact.

We will analyze and practice methods of repair—the tangible and intangible alike— Right to Repair policies and engaging with contemporary and historical cultures of DIY and internet-based open source communities of practice. Our learning will happen through building our studio culture together and developing collaboration skills, making in shops, and field trips to apply concepts of reharvesting and repair at small and large systemic scales. Throughout the semester will be engaging with text, expressing reflections through writing, zines and discussions to develop a critical stance on sustainability and circularity and articulate how you see that applied in your own work and practice moving forward.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

This spring the Design for Extreme Environments Studio will consider how to design spacecraft and habitats suitable for extreme environments and long-duration missions, such as those to the Moon or Mars. Students will work in teams, with input from experts at NASA and elsewhere, to provide creative ideation and innovative concepts while helping create the future of space travel.

Designing for the physical, emotional and psychological needs of astronauts may seem like an esoteric challenge but putting people into unfamiliar or highly dangerous surroundings requires an extreme level of attention to design. It is not enough to design technologies, systems, or equipment that function according to basic technical specifications without incorporating the human needs of the users, the people that will interact with them.

Extreme environments create extraordinary challenges to human physiological and psychological existence where common expectations for safety, comfort and performance need to be radically redefined. It is in situations like these that common assumptions no longer hold true and every aspect of a design must be considered in a new context. This questioning of assumptions and awareness of context are crucial for innovation in a wide array of domains.

This studio uses extreme environments as a pedagogical approach to focus design on human needs and interactions, while emphasizing creativity and innovation in tightly constrained situations. The skills, methodologies and knowledge acquired in this studio are applicable in a broad range of domains of which aerospace is just one small subset.

NASA’s Artemis campaign will launch its’ third mission this year. The Artemis III mission will send humans to land on the Moon, to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, technology advancement, and to learn how to live and work on another world as we prepare for human missions to Mars.

This studio is funded by a grant from the RI Space Grant Consortium, so there are no lab fees and minimal out of pocket expenses. The grant will cover these costs.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

As we have moved past the 1.5 degree C target to limit the worst effects of climate change, public attention has shifted from avoiding climate change to adaptation and resilience. The studio asks in the face of challenges like eco-system degradation, longer “fire seasons,” resource scarcity, more frequent devastating storms and climate migration, what contribution can design make to creating a more sustainable future? Drawing on systems design and horizon scanning exercises, we will explore how anticipating the impacts of climate change can contribute to the design of more effective adaptation strategies.

The studio will be divided into three phases. In the first phase students will research changing environmental and societal conditions to understand how they are affecting communities in different places. In the second phase we will draw upon what activists, communities and designers are doing to address those challenges to inform our own systematic proposals. In the final phase, students will select their own direction and design objects and artifacts for those directions. Our hands-on making will be informed by guest lectures and discussions with subject matter experts from the fields of ecological development, climate adaptation, sustainable design and climate security. It is open to undergraduate and master's level students from across departments.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Entrepreneurship is an interdisciplinary advanced studio combining studio work in product design with lectures and significant project work in entrepreneurship. Combining design skills and entrepreneurial action, students will create products and test their market viability. Students will learn how to bring, and perhaps will bring, new product concepts to the market; learn how to investigate both user needs and market opportunities; understand manufacturability and costs; and create strategies for building sustainable value propositions and market positions.

Through this course, students will design and prototype a product family and create and present a viable, professional business plan. In order for students to achieve these end goals, they must come ready to develop tangible, manufacturable products and have access to a customer base so that iterative user testing is possible.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

This studio unifies two main areas of the design process, devoting approximately half of the semester to each. The first area focuses on “imagining, exploring, and finalizing a design concept.” The second area focuses on “transforming the concept into reality.”

The first area of focus begins with students working on a series of sketching exercises that provide low-fidelity methods for imagining and exploring form and structural systems. These exercises are intended to improve students’ hand-sketching abilities, but more importantly, they establish a framework and logic for exploring ideas related to form and physical structure. Form exploration is not an endless process of sketching. As students make decisions about form and develop structural ideas, these exercises introduce a method for sketching, exploring, evaluating, and narrowing down the best possibilities for a design need. The sketching exercises and methodologies lead students toward a final sketched design concept and geometric resolution, which is the focus and intended outcome of the first half of the semester.

The second area of focus is the engineering and fabrication of high-fidelity prototypes based on these concepts. During this phase, CAD simulation, design refinement, and engineering decision-making become significant components of the work. The decisions made during CAD development differ from those made during the earlier ideation phase, which required students to finalize decisions related to geometry, materials, manufacturing processes, and assembly. This second phase provides an opportunity for students to iterate and develop sophisticated forms in CAD, as well as conduct physical model-making, testing, and fabrication work with faculty guidance in the department’s shops and labs. Through faculty consultation and supporting research, students refine their final design solutions to reflect and simulate contemporary manufacturing processes, such as injection molding, sheet-metal fabrication, or other relevant production methods. The final prototypes should communicate the appearance, construction, and level of refinement expected of an off-the-shelf manufactured consumer product. Students may develop working prototypes, appearance models, or a combination of both, depending on the goals and design intent of their individual projects.

With faculty guidance, each student defines their design inspiration and the product category around which their design thesis will be focused early in the semester. These decisions establish the conceptual direction for student projects and provide a foundation for research, subsequent design development, engineering, and fabrication of final prototypes.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

This class teaches modern tools and methods for product design and development. The cornerstone is a project in which teams consisting of MIT Sloan MBA students, MIT Engineering students, and RISD Industrial Design students conceive, design, and prototype a physical product.

Project ideas come from the students in the class and are rated for potential. The most promising opportunities will be used to form project teams (on the basis of student interest) for the remainder of the semester. Each team will be allocated a budget for product development. The course is occasionally supported by sponsors, who may suggest one or more project opportunities for your consideration.

The class is jointly taught by MIT and RISD faculty. The first half of each class session will generally be in lecture and discussion format, and the second half will be used for project team meetings and consultation with faculty. Students registering for this class should be prepared to travel at least once a week to the MIT campus in Cambridge, MA.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Climate Studio is a collaborative advanced design studio in which we engage designers and experts from multiple fields to develop innovative climate solutions that can scale.

In Spring 2027, we will focus on water insecurity, a global challenge that’s driven by climate change, population growth, conflict, pollution, resource depletion, and environmental degradation. Working in creative teams, we will design, prototype, and demonstrate a range of atmospheric water generators that use plant-derived biomaterials to capture moisture from low-humidity air and convert it into liquid water. Water insecurity currently affects 2.2 billion people, and meaningful solutions require more than individual designers working in isolation.

Addressing the needs of water-stressed communities requires knowledge and collaboration across many fields, so Climate Studio is also an interdisciplinary studio by design. Architecture students enrolled in a parallel climate studio taught by Jonathan Knowles will work with us throughout the semester. Together, we will explore how atmospheric water generators might be integrated into a variety of constructed environments, including parks, buildings, and infrastructure.

While our studio will meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the architecture studio will meet on Mondays and Thursdays. Although the two studios will maintain their separate meeting times on Mondays and Tuesdays, we will share a large studio space and will come together on Thursday afternoons. Material costs should be covered by funding, as in the past, so that out-of-pocket expenses are minimized for students.

Major Requirement | BFA Industrial Design, MID (2.5yr): Industrial Design

Graduate Thesis Communications II is a studio course run in parallel with our sibling studio course which focuses on completing your thesis. Together, we will spend the spring semester finishing the thesis and thesis book that you proposed at the end of Graduate Thesis Communications I. We continue to think about writing as a design tool and as a communication tool. For this course, we put more emphasis on the communication aspect. Together, we will continue to refine and strengthen the manner by which you explain your thesis to yourself and others. We will think about audience, voice, structure, and form. We will explore different ways of communicating the same idea in different contexts and mediums (visual, oral, written). We will examine how to share our work and with whom. At the end of the course, you will have a complete thesis.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | MID Industrial Design

Graduate Thesis Communications II is a studio course run in parallel with our sibling studio course which focuses on completing your thesis. Together, we will spend the spring semester finishing the thesis and thesis book that you proposed at the end of Graduate Thesis Communications I. We continue to think about writing as a design tool and as a communication tool. For this course, we put more emphasis on the communication aspect. Together, we will continue to refine and strengthen the manner by which you explain your thesis to yourself and others. We will think about audience, voice, structure, and form. We will explore different ways of communicating the same idea in different contexts and mediums (visual, oral, written). We will examine how to share our work and with whom. At the end of the course, you will have a complete thesis.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | MID Industrial Design

Graduate Thesis Communications I is a studio course run in parallel with our sibling studio course which focuses on design research methods. Together, we will spend the fall semester casting about, planning and prototyping towards some kind of design proposal or product for execution in the spring. We think about writing in two ways. First as a design tool and second as a communication tool. On the tool for design side, we think about the many ways that writing can help clarify and quickly test out ideas. We think about writing as a form of rapid prototyping alongside sketching, model making, etc. We talk about what writing is good at, when other methods might be more useful, and when to combine methods. We use writing to help clarify and crystalize the thesis plan. On the communication side, we think about the many ways that writing surrounds a designed object (as a proposal, as sales copy, as instructions to users, as specs for manufacture, as criticism, etc.). We think about the audiences for those various kinds of writing and how to think about what they want and need. We talk about the thesis as a tool for explaining the design but also as a tool for helping you advance your career goals. At the end of the course, you will have a partially complete draft of your thesis. which will set you up for an excellent spring.

Enrollment in this course is limited to Graduate Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | MID Industrial Design

Graduate Thesis Communications I is a studio course run in parallel with our sibling studio course which focuses on design research methods. Together, we will spend the fall semester casting about, planning and prototyping towards some kind of design proposal or product for execution in the spring. We think about writing in two ways. First as a design tool and second as a communication tool. On the tool for design side, we think about the many ways that writing can help clarify and quickly test out ideas. We think about writing as a form of rapid prototyping alongside sketching, model making, etc. We talk about what writing is good at, when other methods might be more useful, and when to combine methods. We use writing to help clarify and crystalize the thesis plan. On the communication side, we think about the many ways that writing surrounds a designed object (as a proposal, as sales copy, as instructions to users, as specs for manufacture, as criticism, etc.). We think about the audiences for those various kinds of writing and how to think about what they want and need. We talk about the thesis as a tool for explaining the design but also as a tool for helping you advance your career goals. At the end of the course, you will have a partially complete draft of your thesis. which will set you up for an excellent spring.

Enrollment in this course is limited to Graduate Industrial Design Students.

Major Requirement | MID Industrial Design

With little or no prior 3D computer modeling experience, this course teaches students SolidWorks, a parametric, feature-based 3D modeling software used extensively in industrial design, engineering, and product development. SolidWorks shares many fundamental functions and interface conventions with other parametric modeling platforms, including Fusion 360 and Onshape. The parametric modeling environment enables designers to develop precise, editable digital models suitable for applications including 3D printing and CNC machining. SolidWorks is the most widely used parametric 3D modeling platform, with more than 8 million users worldwide. The winter-session course will approach teaching the software through an industrial design context, students may evolve three dimensional projects that have a focus within other design disciplines or fine art.

The course introduces a design workflow that begins with the exploration and development of ideas through hand sketching and progresses toward the construction and refinement of detailed SolidWorks models. Through in-class exercises, software demos, workshops, and two major projects, students develop a professional understanding of parametric modeling and the benefits it provides.

The first project focuses on the design of a set of 3D-printed components that connect and separate through the controlled use of friction and tension. Drawing from mechanisms found in consumer products, students investigate how plastic components can be designed to flex, engage, and release. Consideration of the material behavior of plastic in both its relaxed and tensioned states will be an important aspect of the design process. The resulting physical prototypes will be evaluated through their fit, function, spring action, and overall quality of interaction between components.

For the second project, each student selects an existing product and develops a redesigned version as a detailed SolidWorks model. Students investigate strategies for constructing effective parametric models, with particular attention to the organization and logic of the model history tree. Students will receive a $60 3D printing credit through their RISD Bucks account, as well as a SolidWorks license that last two years. Advanced CAD credit for Industrial Design students.

Estimated Cost of Materials: $20.00 - $80.00

Elective

This course introduces graduate industrial design students to computational language and practices necessary for prototyping designed objects. Focus is placed on developing iterative workflows for physical making. Initial projects focus on functionality (Can you get a circuit to work? Can you receive data from a sensor? Can you make an actuator do something?) and eventually focus on integrating functionality, formal refinement, and conceptual rigor.

This course is structured through a series of lectures, prototyping workshops, group hackathons, and independent projects using ESP32 microcontrollers and Raspberry Pi computers. After initial workshops and group hackathons, coursework will become increasingly independent, culminating in a self proposed final project.

This course is open to all Graduate Students.

Composites play an integral role in contemporary life, enabling strong, lightweight products and structures difficult to achieve with traditional materials. Familiarity with composite materials and fabrication techniques provides designers with an expanded set of tools for developing functional prototypes and production parts. Through demonstrations, technical exercises, and self-directed projects, this studio will explore accessible approaches to composite fabrication, with an emphasis on 3D-printed molds and tooling.

Techniques will include wet layup, compression molding, roll wrapping, vacuum lamination, bladder molding, dissolvable cores, resin infusion, bonding, joint reinforcement, and repair. Students will work with both traditional and emerging materials, including carbon fiber, flax fiber, epoxy, and bio-based resins, while learning best practices for maintaining a safe workspace and handling materials responsibly.

The semester will progress from focused technical exercises to increasingly self-directed projects, culminating in a final project that applies one or more of these processes to an object of the student’s own design.

Familiarity with CAD and FDM 3D printing is an advantage in this class but is not required.

Elective

This course provides a focused investigation into descriptive sketching as a tool for visual communication across disciplines. Students will examine a range of effective techniques for translating complex concepts into clear, accessible hand-drawn visuals. Emphasis will be placed on rapid ideation, visual problem-solving, and the capacity of sketching to function as a shared language across cultural and professional contexts. Through structured exercises and iterative practice, students will develop strategies for determining appropriate levels of detail and clarity in response to a variety of scenarios. The course aims to cultivate sketching as a transferable skill, relevant to a broad spectrum of 21st-century career paths.

Coursework will include regular group critiques, during which students will analyze the clarity, execution, and communicative effectiveness of peer work. In addition, students will be encouraged to explore innovative approaches to visual storytelling, with a focus on refining their ability to convey narrative and information predominantly through visual means.

Elective

During this course, we will explore mobility design through the examination of natural environments, systems, processes, and organisms, with the intent to design a more circular and less harmful human-planet relationship. Students will embark on a creative and rigorous exploration of various biodesign methodologies, including the biomimicry design tools put forth by the RISD Nature Lab, as pathways toward innovative materials, products, manufacturing methods, services, and experiences. These materials and methods will be placed in context to support the Hyundai Motor Group’s research on the future of mobility, creating design solutions that demonstrate our discoveries’ real-world applications and potential impacts.

Particular focus will be placed on advanced research techniques, such as microscopy imaging, 3D scanning, material & process development, quantitative experimentation & testing, consultation with scientific experts, and referencing scientific research.

The advanced studio curriculum and assignments will provide structured support for a deep dive into student-directed biodesign research. Bi-weekly demos build the technical skill set students need, including a further exploration of biomaterials, generative modeling, AI workflows & ethics, additive manufacturing, life cycle analysis, experiment design, public speaking, and product photography. Guest lecturers and reviews will provide bi-weekly feedback and guidance in addition to that of the teaching team. Frequent check-ins support students in their larger research arc, including a focus on broader design frameworks of Design Justice and user interviews. Throughout the semester, students will have the opportunity to have their work reviewed and critiqued by designers and engineers at Hyundai Motor Group (Hyundai, Kia, & Genesis). The final outcome of the semester will be students’ documentation and write-up of their research process and outcomes, which will remain in the Regeneration Studio online archive, as well as an advanced and functional prototype. The final review for this course will also include student presentations to design leadership at Hyundai Motor Group.

A close partnership with the RISD Nature Lab and the ID Department will provide access to the expertise and equipment necessary to complete student-driven research topics. This course features a series of guest lectures, field trips, and demonstrations throughout the semester to provide insight into the quickly expanding field of biodesign and regenerative design.

Elective

During this course, we will explore mobility design through the examination of natural environments, systems, processes, and organisms, with the intent to design a more circular and less harmful human-planet relationship. Students will embark on a creative and rigorous exploration of various biodesign methodologies, including the biomimicry design tools put forth by the RISD Nature Lab, as pathways toward innovative materials, products, manufacturing methods, services, and experiences. These materials and methods will be placed in context to support the Hyundai Motor Group’s research on the future of mobility, creating design solutions that demonstrate our discoveries’ real-world applications and potential impacts.

Particular focus will be placed on advanced research techniques, such as microscopy imaging, 3D scanning, material & process development, quantitative experimentation & testing, consultation with scientific experts, and referencing scientific research.

The advanced studio curriculum and assignments will provide structured support for a deep dive into student-directed biodesign research. Bi-weekly demos build the technical skill set students need, including a further exploration of biomaterials, generative modeling, AI workflows & ethics, additive manufacturing, life cycle analysis, experiment design, public speaking, and product photography. Guest lecturers and reviews will provide bi-weekly feedback and guidance in addition to that of the teaching team. Frequent check-ins support students in their larger research arc, including a focus on broader design frameworks of Design Justice and user interviews. Throughout the semester, students will have the opportunity to have their work reviewed and critiqued by designers and engineers at Hyundai Motor Group (Hyundai, Kia, & Genesis). The final outcome of the semester will be students’ documentation and write-up of their research process and outcomes, which will remain in the Regeneration Studio online archive, as well as an advanced and functional prototype. The final review for this course will also include student presentations to design leadership at Hyundai Motor Group.

A close partnership with the RISD Nature Lab and the ID Department will provide access to the expertise and equipment necessary to complete student-driven research topics. This course features a series of guest lectures, field trips, and demonstrations throughout the semester to provide insight into the quickly expanding field of biodesign and regenerative design.

Elective

During this course, we will examine natural environments, systems, processes, and organisms with the intent to design a more circular and less harmful human-planet relationship. Students will embark on a creative and rigorous exploration of the deep biomimicry and biodesign methodology put forth by the RISD Nature Lab as a pathway toward innovative materials, products, manufacturing methods, services, and experiences. These materials and methods will be placed in context to support the Hyundai Motor Group’s research on the future of mobility, creating design solutions that demonstrate our discoveries’ real-world applications and potential impacts.

Particular focus will be placed on advanced Biodesign research techniques such as microscopy imaging, 3D scanning, material & process development & testing, consultation with scientific experts, and referencing scientific research.

The curriculum and assignments will provide structured support for a deep dive into student-directed biodesign research. Bi-weekly demos build the technical skills that students need, including a further exploration of biomaterials, generative modeling, additive manufacturing, public speaking, and product photography. Guest lecturers and reviews will provide bi-weekly feedback and guidance in addition to the teaching team. Frequent check-ins support students in their larger research arc, including a focus on broader design frameworks of Design Justice and user interviews. The final outcome of the semester will be students’ documentation and write-up of their research process that will remain in the Regeneration Studio online archive, as well as an advanced and functional prototype.

A close partnership with the RISD Nature Lab and the ID Department will provide access to the expertise and equipment necessary to complete student-driven research topics. This course features a series of guest lectures, field trips, and demonstrations throughout the semester to provide insight into the quickly expanding field of biodesign and regenerative design.

Note: The activities and work in this course are sponsored by Hyundai Motor Group, and should be credited as such in accordance with the participation agreement (which is a requirement).

This course is open to non-major students through an application process. Interested students should contact the instructors for more information.