Over a long weekend at the end of February, the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) played host to LAUNCH: the ASID National Student Summit. Nearly 250 interior design students from around the globe made their way to Savannah for the three-day proceedings. ASID planners loaded each day with a lively combination of speeches, breakout sessions, tours and free time to keep the students energized and engaged.
For those students who arrived early, the event kicked off at 11:00a.m. on Friday, February 26, with a tour of the newly opened factory of engineered quartz counter tops, Caesarstone, located just outside Savannah in Richmond Hill, GA. For many, this was the first of what I suspect will be many factory tours over the course of their careers in interior design!
Those arriving a bit later could join a guided walking tour of Savannah with its lovely Spanish-moss laden, tree lined streets and antebellum architecture – certainly an inspiration to the design minded. Then, the proceedings got officially underway at 4:30p.m. with a keynote address by SCAD alumna Brooke Traeger-Tumsaroch, ASID, design director at AvroKO in Bangkok, Thailand.
Ms. Traeger-Tumsaroch spoke of the important role her education and leadership opportunities within ASID have played in her career as it developed. She holds a B.A. in Fine Arts from the University of Iowa and an MFA in Interior Design from SCAD, and she has been an enthusiastic ASID volunteer, including as president of the Washington Metro Chapter, throughout her career. She used her willingness to accept new challenges as she moved from hospitality design to academia and back to urge the students in the audience to be open to opportunities as they are presented.
For those interested in sketching, Saturday morning started early. Christian Sottile and Ivan Chow, two of the SCAD School of Building Arts’ finest sketching professors, held a sketching session in the picturesque courtyard of the SCAD Art Museum at 8:00a.m.
The sketchers and everyone else then migrated to the Museum auditorium to hear about the state of the industry and the outlook for employment when this year’s students graduate. Randy Fiser, ASID CEO, reported that based upon the total number of design firms, the total number of designers employed and total billings by design firms, the outlook is very good. He stated that the interior design industry is now at or above pre-recession levels and that a healthy number of design firms reported having a hard time finding and retaining the talent they need to meet their project commitments; all are good signs for emerging designers.
Mr. Fiser also spoke of the evolving trends in the practice of interior design and the importance of staying abreast of them in order to compete. Among trends he discussed are health & wellbeing, technology, sustainability, urbanization, globalization and resiliency. He said firms that don’t stay current risk being left behind. And of course, maintaining an active membership in ASID is a great way to stay up to date. [Ed. Note: along with regular reading of officeinsight!]
Interspersed throughout the event were myriad breakout sessions that put students together with the keynote speakers and interior design professionals from across the country in smaller less formal groups. The breakout session topics were organized into major categories, such as “Business of Design,” “Impact of Design,” “Leadership,” “Practice of Design,” and “Technology.” And one or more presenters drawn from academia, professional practice, the media, or participating industry sponsors hosted each session. It is very gratifying to see the willingness of all the presenters to share their experiences and advice with the students, and it seems a very fitting way to “give back.”
Primo Orpilla, ASID, principal and co-founder at Studio O+A of San Francisco, CA, delivered the Saturday keynote address. His firm has, in many ways, set the standard for the way offices are being designed today. Speaking from his position as a designer for many of the giants in the tech world, Mr. Orpilla delivered an energetic and inspiring review of how his firm’s work has been at the forefront of many of the trends emerging in workplace design. He told the students, “There’s no reason why your workspace can’t look like your favorite bar as long as it has the functionality you need to work.” He presented his “Ten Typologies” as a summary of how those trends can converge into a cohesive and functional workplace that supports corporate innovation.
The third keynote address was presented by Metropolis Publisher and Editor in Chief, Susan S. Szenasy. She spoke to attendees on design ethics and how her career as an educator, mentor, journalist and editor led to her advocacy for a high standard of ethics in design. In addition, she interviewed Primo Orpilla in a breakout session, leading him to discuss his career more personally and in more depth than allowed in his keynote.
Leading up to “LAUNCH”, ASID held a “Student Portfolio Competition” that had been adjudicated with 10 finalists announced in January. In addition to receiving a free pass to LAUNCH, finalists were given an opportunity to role-play and present their work to design professionals, receiving feedback before making their final presentations to the jury. From this process, Leigh Ann Soistmann of Virginia Tech was chosen as the Grand Prize winner. As such, she earned the “opportunity” to present her portfolio from the big stage to the entire group assembled.
All the finalists were awarded certificates and recognized on stage, while two finalists from Indiana University received an internships: Zi Jian Wang with Gensler and Zhao Qi Su with HKS. Rebecca Thompson of Florida State received the Honorable Mention for verbal skill, and Yi Yun Luo of Drexel received the Honorable Mention for visual excellence.
The planning team from ASID national along with the host team from SCAD are to be commended for producing an exemplary conference that will surely be of great benefit to the students who attended – the design professionals of the future.