Abstract

Informed by Edward Wilson’s (1984) concept of biophilia, this paper describes a biophilic approach to teaching an introductory visual communication design course built specifically around the theme of tree stories. Drawing upon various subject matter experts and disciplinary perspectives, this course demonstrates high-impact teaching practices, including collaboration, experiential learning, and developing long-term projects. This paper describes the course design, includes a selection of student work produced in the course, and highlights student reflections. End-of-course reflections show that students developed an awareness of the impact trees have on humanity, and vice versa. Students grew to better understand their role and identity as designers in relation to sustainability concerns. Students tied these lessons to greater insights into the mentally restorative effects of nature, especially against the backdrop of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Future plans include revisions in the course design to more effectively address similar themes in future iterations of the course.

Keywords

biophilia; wellbeing; photo-graphic design; education

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

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Oct 9th, 9:00 AM

Taller than the trees: Growing a biophilic sensibility in a photo-graphic design studio course

Informed by Edward Wilson’s (1984) concept of biophilia, this paper describes a biophilic approach to teaching an introductory visual communication design course built specifically around the theme of tree stories. Drawing upon various subject matter experts and disciplinary perspectives, this course demonstrates high-impact teaching practices, including collaboration, experiential learning, and developing long-term projects. This paper describes the course design, includes a selection of student work produced in the course, and highlights student reflections. End-of-course reflections show that students developed an awareness of the impact trees have on humanity, and vice versa. Students grew to better understand their role and identity as designers in relation to sustainability concerns. Students tied these lessons to greater insights into the mentally restorative effects of nature, especially against the backdrop of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Future plans include revisions in the course design to more effectively address similar themes in future iterations of the course.

 

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