Bio-Inspired Design

Student-facing design project connecting research to social practice through information design

In their recent report, “Beyond Net Zero: A Systemic Approach to Design” the Design Council emphasise the vital role that designers play across all disciplines in building ‘a bridge between technological research and innovation and their application to social practice (p6).’ In design education, it important to be actively designing creative ways to engage with current research knowledge within the curriculum. As an educator I was interested in how the ‘live industry project’ might be re-worked to provide this.

For the past two years I have been working with colleagues in research teams at UAL to develop live projects within the Graduate Diploma Graphic Design. Focussed on information design, they use the Future Signs Research Methods developed within the course. Over one week, students develop and propose visual languages that translate new and often complex ideas in research to the non-expert audience.

Design

For the pilot project in 2021/22, I worked with Prof. Kate Goldsworthy at the Centre for Circular on alternative versions of the Piñatex lifecycle. This year I built on the learnings from the pilot to design two similar projects with Prof. Verokina Kapsali and Dr Cathryn Hall at Bio-Inspired Textiles.

The brief

The Bio-Inspired Textiles (BIT) is creating resources that translate and apply the knowledge found in nature to enable designers to create textiles that combat resource efficiency, longevity, and recovery.  

In both of the briefs, the students were asked to translate the eight structures of the BIT framework into different forms of visual communication.

Brief #1 Biotype

Students worked in pairs over fives weeks to translate one the eight structures of the BIT framework into typography.

Outcomes

Students developed 15 group proposals which were presented to colleagues from Bio-Inspired Textiles at prototype and finals stages. The graphics are now being used by BIT as part of a communication campaign around their research across their various social media channels.

Brief #2 Framework

Designed as a sprint, over the course of a week, students translated the three pillars and eight structures of the Bio-Inspired Framework into marks, symbols, icons and data patterns. Students then developed their most effective experiments into a proposal for a visual system that could be used to label a material and would communicate to an non-expert audience.

Outcomes

Students developed 29 individual proposals which colleagues from Bio-Inspired Textiles narrowed down to 4 finalists and 1 overall winner. The winning concept will be deployed across Bio-Inspired Textiles website and brand. All work from the project will be on display at the UAL Graduate Showcase at Chelsea College of Arts from 17-24 June 2022. You can also find the project in the online Graduate Showcase from 17 June.