Related Research Areas

Product Design in Architecture

This field of study focuses on the reciprocal relationship between product design and architecture: exploring the notion of "products" within architecture. Emphasis is on bringing together the historical, technical and aesthetic lineages of both professions. New developments in technology and processes (see CAD/CAM, Smart Materials, Mobile Information Unit) are discussed. New products and the relationship of the designer to the client are also explored as part of an effort to affect design strategically from the onset of a project.

Primary Faculty Contact: Prof. Marco Steinberg

The Master of Design Studies program deals with Product Design in its Technology concentration area: see Advanced Studies Program

Design Computation and Digital Media

This area of study focuses on modeling, visualization and production of virtual architectures, as well as experimental web environments, online communities and emerging hybrid typologies. Particular emphasis is placed on the computer connecting distant users in the design process through integrated project models, creating seamless information linkages between designers and manufacturers (CAD/CAM), and blurring the boundaries between people, machines and architectural environments. A recent focus have been interactive environments that employ sensors and actuators to create a dynamic relationship between the phyiscal and the virtual world.

Primary Faculty Contact: Prof. Kostas Terzidis

The Master of Design Studies program has a concentration in Design Computation: see Advanced Studies Program. A conference was organized by Critical Digital at Harvard in April 2008. Critical Digital is an ongoing initiative that fosters a dialogue about digital media, digital technology, and design to challenge the basis of contemporary digital media arguments. The Mobile Information Unit is a current project relating to digital media and interactivity.