On was an interdisciplinary graduate periodical established by RISD graduate students in 2006. It featured essays and student work that related to a general issue theme. On was intended as a quarterly publication, but it is unclear if further issues beyond the first were ever published.
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The Elks Memorial Monument
Rhode Island News Company, Providence, RI: publisher; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Convocation 2024
RISD President and RISD Provost
RISD's 147th Convocation ceremony welcoming the Class of 2028 at RISD Auditorium, September 3, 2024.
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One of One of a Kind
Dominic Rishe
This thesis probes the discourse around the increasing use of advanced digital tools in art and design, and articulates a paradoxical stance that these tools are re-illuminating a set of old ideas - ideas that have been preserved in a lineage of craft movements, historically perceived as anti-technological, nostalgic, or backwards-looking.
Over the last two decades, the use of generative and computational tools in art and design has evolved from a niche, experimental activity to a fully-fledged epochal movement, rising across all disciplines from architecture and graphic design to film and illustration.
Craft, which has always found its definition unstable in the wake of technological change, will once again be measured in relation to our newest tools. In this case, however, we find a deep congeniality with ideas which have been understood as central to craft: the importance of creative agency, the nature of skill, the cultural implications of variety and beauty, and the social relationships between a craftsperson and their community.
Through a series of experimental everyday domestic objects, each a unique output from a generative system, or one of one of a kind, I suggest that this technification of the creative process is an evolution of craft, and highlight the ongoing and increasing relevance of these old ideas to the contemporary landscape of artists, designers, craftspeople, and creatives of all types. In an accompanying collection of essays, I explore this point of view and speculate on the social and cultural possibilities and tensions it manifests.
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Rody the Lioness on exhibition at the Museum at Roger Williams Park, Providence, RI
Norman B. Robbins, publisher; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Colonial tea, Betsy Williams Cottage, Roger Williams Park
Robbins, publisher; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Dining Hall, Sakonnet, RI
Sakonnet Transportation Co., Sakonnet, RI; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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The Harbor, Sakonnet, RI
Sakonnet Transportation Co., Sakonnet, RI; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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The Lyman (Hotel), Sakonnet, RI
Sakonnet Transportation Co., Sakonnet, RI; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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The Wharf, Sakonnet, RI
Sakonnet Transportation Co., Sakonnet, RI; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Creative Connections: Building Empathy to Foster Ecoliteracy Through Art Education
Jocelyn Salim
This thesis investigates the potential positive impact of fostering empathy and understanding for the natural world through art education. Through action research, this study examines various teaching approaches, such as incorporating scientific knowledge, employing literature to discuss ecological themes, and engaging in participatory storytelling activities to cultivate empathy among elementary school children. The objective of this thesis is to explore empathy as a potential pathway to encourage children to foster connections with the natural world and develop compassionate traits, attitudes, and behaviors towards nature as they grow. The findings of this study reveal that children exhibit high levels of enthusiasm and interest in discussing ecology and environmental issues, and they possess the capacity to develop nuanced thoughts and opinions about their relationship with the natural world. Additionally, it is observed that this process is more effective when children are provided with the opportunity and space to engage with these topics through age-appropriate activities that facilitate choice, agency, and creative expression.
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Design(ing) Disruptions: Towards Intimacies between Feminist Situated Knowledge, Gossip and Design
Senjuti Sangia
This project highlights and problematizes the knowledge traditions and politics foundational to problem-solving paradigms in design education and practice. By emphasising the ontological nature and turn in design (Willis, 2006, Fry, 2012) , this thesis critically appraises the aforesaid formulations by extending intersectional feminist theories to dominant design epistemology. Drawing on the sociological framing of the matrix of domination, I investigate the dichotomy of the designer and user- as designers, users, and communities find themselves at different junctions in the matrix of domination. Further, I critique design frameworks from the analytical lenses of feminist situated knowledge, In so doing, I highlight the central and irreplaceable role of community knowledge and the culpability of empathy, an ethical mainstay in design ideology, in the field. The last section of the project takes a speculative turn in arguing for a specific form of situated knowledge, gossip, and its multifaceted potentiality for re-tooling design. The research argues for gossip’s transient and speculative promise— offering provocations for doing, theorizing, and historicizing design through gossip’s whisper network. Drawing from the my embodied experiences and anecdotes with gossip as a design student and practitioner, as well as an experimental workshop on gossip as knowledge framework, the research presents the potentiality of gossip to recover and rewrite design history as well as reorient design methodologies.
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Icons of Solitude: Peace, Quiet, and the Urban Condition
Jack Schildge
The urban environment lacks sufficient public places to be alone, where individuals can feel free to seek respite from the intensity of city life. While solitude is easily achievable in the vast landscape of the natural world, it is something that must be carefully and deliberately carved out within the confines of the city and remains inaccessible to many. We’ve all heard of follies in the landscape, both sitting in remote places and dispersed throughout public parks in either case taking advantage of open space, but why couldn’t we carve room for follies in denser environments? What can be extracted from existing follies and learned from to create spaces of solitude? This thesis identifies essential spatial and architectural qualities present in expressly remote, man-made structures, to determine what architectural motifs add to feelings of solitude. Analysis of these architectural motifs highlights two important conditions. Firstly these manifest primarily as transitional spaces. Secondly, there are a number of associated dualities striking a precarious balance within them; disconnection and reconnection, reorientation and disorientation, views in and views out, visual weight and apparent lightness, and removal from the ground plane and puncture into the ground plane. Through remixing and reapplying the catalog of spatial conditions extracted from follies in the landscape a proposal for an urban follie is developed which questions the role of solitude within the city.
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Corner Revolution: Beyond “skynet”, Brightening Grey space and Building Security
Caimin Shen
The existence of surveillance areas restricts many bad behaviors, but why do we still feel vague anxiety and uneasiness when walking through street corners and promenades in a city protected by a network of cameras? As China has implemented grid management of cities through the establishment of the “Skynet”—— a system that uses facial recognition and surveillance cameras to strengthen public safety, the crime rate has dropped significantly. But public safety doesn’t just mean fewer criminal activities. Reducing people’s perceived insecurity and anxiety has become a new challenge in China today. “Corner Revolution” explores the transformative power of architectural design to enhance urban safety and tranquility. The thesis focuses on gray spaces in between public and Private space - corners, alleys, dead ends, etc. - aiming to alleviate the anxiety and insecurity existing in daily spaces through spatial intervention methods, and to have a positive impact on human behavior, thereby transcending the limitations of “China Skynet”. Using virtual reality (VR) technology, users are immersed in a 1:1 virtual environment and experience the profound impact of thoughtful design elements such as layout, lighting, materials and landscaping to evaluate the feasibility of different design interventions. This immersive and dynamic and flexible approach bridges the gap between theoretical concepts and real-world applications, is more adaptable to the fast-paced and updated urban life, and provides new guidelines for creating tranquil and safe urban spaces. The “Corner Revolution“ ultimately champions the role of architecture in promoting social well-being and redefining the boundaries of urban design.
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Spirit of Place: examining chinese principles of place-making in a contemporary urban context
Junyi Shi
Cities are carriers of both spiritual civilization and physical space. The concept of Chinese cities has existed for about four thousand years, embodying China’s extensive cultural and philosophical heritage. Feng Shui is a specialized theory in Chinese urban planning. Therefore, discussing Chinese cities inevitably involves examining the role of Feng Shui in urban construction.
However, contemporary Chinese urban planning development has almost abandoned traditional Feng Shui. As a result, Chinese cities have become homogenized by Western models, losing their distinctiveness and cultural expression.
Given this issue, this thesis project will use traditional Chinese philosophy as a foundation to study the principles and logic of Feng Shui in Chinese urban construction. It will analyze why contemporary Chinese cities have lost traditional Feng Shui and the necessity of reviving Feng Shui in urban planning. By designing a test city, the project aims to establish a new Feng Shui urban design system and explore the potential future development of this new system. The goal is to identify a development direction that suits the unique characteristics of Chinese cities.
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SWING! Active Play Motivation
DONG YOON SHIN
The thesis “Active Play Motivation” investigates gentle physical play as a method to encourage body movement among older adults aged 80 to 90, who typically show less motivation for physical activity due to aging. Highlighting the impact of injury fears and physical limitations, this study underscores the importance of creating tailored gentle exercise solutions to make physical activity more accessible and enjoyable for this demographic. In this project, the design process uses a Senior- Centric Design approach, involving iterative prototyping and user testing with seniors, to develop indoor recreational equipment tailored to their needs. Incorporating elements from retro games familiar to this age group, the design seeks to boost interaction and physical activity. This strategy aims to produce indoor Abstract recreation equipment that not only meets the physical and safety needs of older adults but also leverages the enjoyment of play to motivate body movement, ultimately enhancing their well-being. My project demonstrates the effectiveness of incorporating playful elements to boost physical activity motivation among older adults. Positive feedback provided valuable insights, guiding the iterative refinement of the design towards senior-friendly exercise solutions. This work emphasizes the importance of engaging and accessible exercise in enhancing senior’s health and happiness, offering promising directions for future elder care and wellness research and product development.
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Soldiers and Sailors Monument, Warren, RI
W. H. Smith, Warren, RI; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Breaking High at Sakonnet, RI
The Albertype Co., Brooklyn, NY; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Canoe Carnival, Omega Pond, Ten Mile River, Rhode Island
The Rhode Island News Co., Providence, RI: publisher; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Car Station, Swan Point, Providence, RI
The Rhode Island News Co., Providence, RI: publisher; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Main Street, Apponaug
The Rhode Island News Co., Providence, RI: publisher; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
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Union Station and Capitol Hill, Providence, RI
The Rhode Island News Co., Providence, RI: publisher; Visual + Material Resources; and Fleet Library
