Abstract

This paper describes a teaching method used at both First and Third Authors’ University, Department of Design and the Second Author’s University, College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. In these teaching methods, students learn about furniture and product design by prototyping a full-size working prototype in tandem and integrated with other design methods, in order to better see and learn - underscoring the Gestalt idea: The Whole is Greater than the Sum of its Parts. Different kinds of prototypes are used along the design process to verify, as touchstones, every step of the product’s development, providing feedback and suggestion according to shape, function, and usability. The paper intends to underline the importance of the prototype in the process of creating artifacts as a practical feasibility of the concept along with a palette of designer’ tools including, sketching, drawing and 3d modeling and 3D printing.

Keywords

learning by prototyping, furniture design, product design, design method, making

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

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Jul 9th, 12:00 AM

A Gestalt Approach to Teaching and Learning by Prototyping

This paper describes a teaching method used at both First and Third Authors’ University, Department of Design and the Second Author’s University, College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. In these teaching methods, students learn about furniture and product design by prototyping a full-size working prototype in tandem and integrated with other design methods, in order to better see and learn - underscoring the Gestalt idea: The Whole is Greater than the Sum of its Parts. Different kinds of prototypes are used along the design process to verify, as touchstones, every step of the product’s development, providing feedback and suggestion according to shape, function, and usability. The paper intends to underline the importance of the prototype in the process of creating artifacts as a practical feasibility of the concept along with a palette of designer’ tools including, sketching, drawing and 3d modeling and 3D printing.

 

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