HSOC-326: Design Ecologies

Design does not unfold in a vacuum. Increasingly, the discipline is called to examine its connections to larger material, economic, and cultural networks. This class offers a window onto crucial domains hidden from the usual view from the studio to see how this broader world lives within the work of design. In dialogue with ideas from anthropology, history, economics and elsewhere and engaging in a series of collaborative projects surrounding the Los Angeles design ecology, the class will examine where design's materials come from; how these resources are transformed through varied forms of skill; and the diverse economies in which design circulates and is made meaningful. Throughout the course, students will work in close collaboration with the instructor and selected designers in the creation of original research and projects.