Issue 016 - ArtCenter College of Design
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016 Issue DOT Magazine 16 1700 Lida Street Pasadena, CA 91103 artcenter.edu Return Service Requested
Table of Contents
Publisher’s Note: Guest Editor’s Letter
DOT magazine has gone digital! 2 Creative and Education Institutions Bring Real Benefits to Cities
We’re happy to announce a new Architectural historian and guest editor Dana Hutt offers perspective
online presence for DOT, offering on this crucial interrelationship.
exclusive features and providing
access to articles in past issues.
Spotlight
Visit http://www.artcenter.edu/dot
4 Public Art Accents Civic Identity
to read “Theory of the Creative
Public art makes a bold statement about a city’s cultural, economic
Class,” an online exclusive about
and environmental destiny.
creativity as the driving force be-
A New Charter School Embraces Design
hind economics as discussed with
Art Center joins efforts to create the first public Design High School
Jack Kyser, chief economist for
in Los Angeles.
the Los Angeles County Economic
Development Corporation. The Art Center Summit Returns
The second Art Center Summit focuses on the intersection of urban
environments and mobility.
Barcelona: A Unique European Partnership
Art Center launches a new model for design and business education
through global collaboration.
Features
6 Mutual Gains: How Higher Education Can Transform the American City
Four major universities build lasting connections with their
communities.
12 Influencing the World City by City
Design provides a platform for international engagement and impacts
cities around the world.
Issue 16, February 2008
DOT magazine is published by the Department of 18 Radically Sensible: John Thackara Recasts Our Sustainable Future
Marketing and Communications
Art Center College of Design Visionary author John Thackara reengineers sustainability by
1700 Lida Street, Pasadena CA 91103
artcenter.edu reevaluating how we live every day.
Chairman of the Board: John Puerner
President: Richard Koshalek
Senior Vice President, Marketing and 24 Portfolio The latest in student work.
Communications: Iris Gelt
Creative Direction and Design:
Takaaki Matsumoto, Amy Wilkins, Hisami Aoki
(Matsumoto Incorporated, New York) 33 The Last Word Can design save the city of the future? Members of the Art Center
Project Manager: Jered Gold
Contributors: page 5: “Barcelona: A Unique European community think so.
Partnership,” Erica Clark; pages 12–17: Elisa Ruffino;
page 17: “Designers Extend the Reach of Urban
Advantages to Remote Areas of the World,”
Mariana Amatullo Found Dot Art Center’s orange dot is an artist’s first choice (opposite page).
Photographers: Steven A. Heller, Vahé Alaverdian
Photo credits: page 4: “A New Charter School
Embraces Design,” Stephanie Garcia; page 5:
Cover: Detail, “Nike UPRISING” Parkour Training Center. Grant Poznick,
“Barcelona: A Unique European Partnership,” ESADE;
pages 6, 8: Illinois Institute of Technology; page 9:
Environmental Design, third term. For full image, see page 30.
Dongik Lee/Courtesy of the Allston Development
Group, Harvard University; page 10: Majed/University
of California, San Francisco; page 11: Tom Story/
Arizona State University; pages 21, 22: John Thackara
Guest Editor’s Creative and Education Institutions Bring Real The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) annual report,
Letter Benefits to Cities State of World Population 2007: Unleashing the Potential of
Over 30 years ago, Art Center College of Design opened its Urban Growth, noted that in 2008, for the first time in history,
new home in Pasadena. Moving away from the urban center more than half of world population of 3.3 billion people will
made good sense at the time, since a major campus expan- be living in urban areas. This number is expected to swell to
sion called for open space and new construction. And as almost 5 billion by 2030. Although cities have many immedi-
then-Art Center President Don Kubly aptly pointed out, nearby ate concerns—poverty, housing, environment, governance—
freeways made the new site easily accessible. The look of the those concerns, the report suggests, pale in comparison
campus, however, suggested another story. Tucked away on with those raised by future growth. Pre-emptive action is
175 acres in the residential San Rafael Hills, the steel-and- thus needed: Cities must plan ahead.
glass building was a savvy blend of two typologies: the sleek, This issue of DOT spotlights the myriad ways that creative
suburban-based corporate headquarters and the idyllic aca- and education institutions can bring real benefits to cities and
demic retreat. The Craig Ellwood-designed campus thus could the urban landscape. First, we explore four extraordinary town
be seen to reflect the College’s connection to the city: civil yet and gown collaborations between cities and universities across
reserved, and tantalizingly hidden from view. the country, from Boston to San Francisco. We take a brief tour
Thirty years later, Art Center has radically revised its pres- around the world to see where Art Center students’ projects
ence both within the city and vis-à-vis the larger world. “We are making a creative impact. And we visit with internationally
strongly believe that cultural and educational institutions have renowned sustainability expert John Thackara, who shares
a significant role to play in the city,” current Art Center presi- down-to-earth urban strategies for living lightly on the planet.
dent Richard Koshalek said in conjunction with L.A. Now, the Cities matter to all of us, regardless of where we live, as
collaborative, multi-disciplinary design initiative organized in social experiments, as repositories of humanity’s greatest aspi-
2000 to focus creativity on downtown Los Angeles. He called rations, as places where our complex organizational systems
for the resources of creativity that are “often hidden behind and neuroses become visible. Sure, new technologies connect
the walls of cultural and educational institutions” to meet the more of us faster and farther than ever. Yet, they cannot fully
challenges that confront cities and benefit the greater society. replace our experience of cities, but in fact make the dense
Indeed, Art Center has since engaged in numerous “wall-less social interactions we enjoy within the urban context even
classroom” initiatives to bring new thinking to current issues more powerful and significant. Art Center may have left the
both outside of the classroom and now around the world. big city long ago, but Art Center faculty, students and alumni
Art Center furthered its commitment to the City of Pasadena return—to Los Angeles and cities around the world—again
by founding a new campus on South Raymond Avenue in and again to develop critical design solutions for the evolving
2004. As the headquarters of Art Center’s Public Programs, the challenges of today’s complex urban environment.
South Campus is the College’s ambassador to the city, raising
its public profile and providing a welcome mat to the commu-
nity. Its curriculum for kids to adults as well as free programs
and exhibitions allow Art Center to increase its offerings to a
larger audience. Art Center’s investment in the former industri-
al area of Pasadena has also sparked redevelopment and Dana Hutt
activity in the district around Raymond Avenue, now called an Director, Architectural
“Innovation Corridor.” Presently in the works are several future Documentation and Special
projects that will significantly contribute to the area’s vitality: Projects, Art Center College
new student housing and a graduate education complex. of Design
The transformation of Pasadena, of course, is but a micro-
cosm of the great urban densification taking place globally.
The pressing challenges of global urbanization eclipsed all
other issues at the most recent international architecture
exhibition at the Venice Biennale. “Cities, Architecture and
Society,” the eminent institution’s first-ever exhibition to focus
on the urban condition, analyzed the impact of massive growth
on 16 cities around the world. Most important, the exhibition
urged us to radically reconsider how and what we design. As
exhibition organizer Richard Burdett noted, “How we choose
to shape our cities, buildings and public spaces—as architects,
urbanists and city makers—will determine how we respond to
the challenges of climate change as well as addressing human
rights, justice and dignity for the billions of people who move
to cities in search of work and opportunity.”
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Spotlight
Public Art Accents Civic Identity A New Charter School Embraces Design The Art Center Summit Returns Barcelona: A Unique European Partnership
Commissioned by the City of Pasadena, a series of PowerPLANTS along the city’s Over 30 ninth- and tenth-graders immediately enrolled in the Design High School’s The Art Center Summit brings together experts from education, industry, government Renowned international business school ESADE is Art Center’s executive education
Innovation Corridor are depicted in this conceptual image. inaugural session. and design to discuss and explore issues of sustainability. partner in the Barcelona project.
Increasingly, cities are looking to public art to do more than As urban school districts find themselves increasingly over- In February 2007, Art Center launched the first in a series of Art Center is linking its name with a great European city through
simply enhance the appearance of public spaces. Today, public crowded, under-funded and regulated by federal and state Sustainable Mobility Summits—annual forums focusing on a groundbreaking partnership with Barcelona, Spain. This not
art can make a bold statement about the city’s cultural, eco- agencies, charter schools have emerged to give students an various aspects of the issue and demonstrating the critical only reestablishes Art Center’s presence in Europe, but creates
nomic and even environmental destiny. Pasadena has placed edge by expanding the range of their educational experiences. role of designers to the future of mobility and urban planning. a new model of how institutions of higher learning can both
its civic support behind two separate projects that exemplify Unconstrained by conventional measurements that apply “Because Art Center is committed to the integration of sus- contribute to and benefit from the cities in which they reside.
this trend: PowerPLANTs and the Arroyo Parkway Redesign. to publicly funded elementary and secondary schools, charter tainability-related education into our programs and research Art Center’s belief that the relationship between cities and
PowerPLANTs, designed by Art Center’s Dean of Commu- schools can experiment with a variety of learning strategies, activities, we wanted to do something different and proactive educational institutions is mutually beneficial inspired the
nications Design Nik Hafermaas, is a grove of towering, as long as they fulfill an agreed-upon charter of expectations. that would have a real-world impact,” said David Muyres, vice College to accept the invitation from city and regional govern-
solar-powered light structures that will line the city’s Glenarm In a groundbreaking effort to provide design-based leadership president, Educational Initiatives at Art Center and one of the ment to establish a presence in Barcelona. Going beyond
Innovation Corridor, a former industrial area and now an emerg- to public schools in its community, Art Center College of originators of the Summit concept. “In that spirit, we decided conventional brick and mortar facilities, this will be a content-
ing high-tech business district. Anchored at one end by Art Design is the driving force behind the development of Los to take a leading role in bringing together experts from indus- based presence that delivers Art Center’s unique approach to
Center’s South Campus and extending north for two miles, the Angeles’ first-ever Design High School. try, government, education and design to form a bridge advanced, post-graduate design education.
PowerPLANTs reflect the area’s new identity. When completed, “No high school I know of is integrating design in support between great ideas and the potential to implement them.” After conducting an intensive study—involving a wide variety
the PowerPLANTs will comprise two dozen programmable of its general curriculum,” said David Walker, Art Center’s for- The second Art Center Summit, to be held in February 2008, of professionals, from designers and creative practitioners to
structures delivering multiple lighting effects, complemented mer Dean of Public Programs and the administrator who guided will examine the way that transportation, design and sustain- government, education and civic leaders—Art Center recognized
by PowerSEEDs, lighting elements embedded in the sidewalk. the proposal through the two-year approval process. “Designers ability intersect. “Systems, Cities and Sustainable Mobility” a natural synergy with Barcelona. Voted one of the most livable
“Our mission was to provide a visual representation of the and instructors from Art Center will participate in all aspects of will redefine expectations about moving people around during cities in Europe, Barcelona is ideally situated and maintains
change that the city imagines for its future, while being mindful Design High’s course development and class activities, helping the coming decades. The Summit will investigate the interwo- strong business, commercial and cultural ties to Europe, Africa
of communal aspects for aesthetic and environmental teachers develop a wide range of design-based strategies that ven networks that contribute to functional mobility, while also and Latin America. A longtime leader in the design professions,
impacts,” said Hafermaas. will enable them to meet California’s standards.” examining how these systems will work in different environ- Barcelona is deeply interested in such critical issues as mobility,
The Arroyo Parkway Redesign—developed by landscape The Design High development team sought teachers whose ments, from urban skyscrapers to deserts and everywhere sustainability and interactive technologies—which are already
design firm Field Operations, which is also currently working expertise spanned more than a single subject area and demon- in between. embedded in Art Center’s curricula.
on another prominent reclamation effort, the High Line project strated significant real-world experience. “Schools have not Inspiring the Summit’s participants to partner with Art Currently, the Art Center-Barcelona Project includes three com-
in New York City—is redefining Pasadena’s image through moved fast enough to meet the needs of the global environment, Center in designing potential solutions is vitally important to ponents: advanced, research-based collaborations with industry;
environmentally sensitive design. The Arroyo Parkway is an so at Design High we’ll be teaching students the methodologies the Summit’s goals. “Designers can move people in the right executive education in partnership with ESADE, the renowned
important thoroughfare that is often referred to as the “Gate- to consider problems beyond their immediate experience,” said direction,” said Muyres. “Changes that might normally require global business school; and the first in a series of Art Center
way to Pasadena.” The redesign project, which was selected Susan Mas, executive director of the new school. 50 years could take far fewer if designers could contribute to Global Dialogues, public forums featuring leaders from many
through an international competition jointly sponsored by Art “This is a great opportunity for us to walk the talk,” said the development process at the earliest stages. The Summits fields in conversations with top media figures in March 2008.
Center, the City of Pasadena and the NEA, involves resurfacing Walker. But he was quick to point out that the school is not will be conversation starters, increasing awareness of sustain- According to Art Center President Richard Koshalek, “This
portions of the roadway, landscaping the medians, replacing intended to train students to become designers. “Our goal is ability issues and spurring the community to action.” intercontinental partnership illustrates the potential of education
tree grates and, most importantly, providing lighting and public to leverage the power of design thinking to provide educational Heidrun Mumper-Drumm, an Art Center faculty member and design innovation to transcend geographic boundaries. It
seating along the way. research and development of ways to teach traditional sub- and Summit organizer, echoed Muyres. “The 2008 Summit’s provides an unprecedented opportunity to broaden perspectives,
These projects exemplify how a city can reimagine its future jects, like math and science. Through design, we want to infuse goal is to take design out of its very discrete, object-oriented elevate the contributions of design and creative leaders, and cre-
through public art, urban development and sustainable design. the school with creativity.” realm and move it into a process-oriented place.” ate a new model for design education through global
collaboration.”
4 D OT 1 6 5 D OT 1 6
American cities have often looked to universities universities and their neighborhoods. Columbia
and colleges as anchors for urban vitality. Today, University, for example, is preparing to expand
amid the turbulence of rapid global change and onto 18 acres in Morningside Heights and faces
economic uncertainty, this role is of even greater challenges to retain the feeling of a campus com-
importance. Institutions of higher education cre- munity and still be a good neighbor. Discussing
ate considerable financial returns for cities through his expansion plans for Columbia, architect Renzo
job creation, capital investment, tax revenue and Piano said, “The idea is not to make a citadel. One
local business activity. century ago, the only
Less tangible benefits way to design a campus
accrue as well—such as was monumental archi-
the school’s active role tecture, giving a sense
in the community as an
advocate and model for
Mutual Gains: of security. . . . Today,
the university is in com-
sustainability, empow- munication with life, so
erment and positive the story to tell today
change. But now the re-
lationship is increasing-
How Higher is completely different.
It’s more about per-
ly reciprocal. No longer meability, more about
focused solely inward, participation.”
educational institutions
understand the need to
Education Can How can academic
institutions build lasting
connect to the larger connections with the
world and are launching community and increase
new city- and commu-
nity-based initiatives.
Transform the public communication
and participation? (Hint:
Campuses are opening Consider the publisher
up, virtually and figu- of this magazine.) And
ratively, to heighten a
sense of connectivity,
American City what are cities getting
in return for substantial
to further public aware- investments to attract or
ness and to bring in keep those institutions?
new audiences. As one by Dana Hutt In this brief overview of
vice chancellor puts it, the state of the town
the university “recog- and gown today, we will
nizes that its success look at how four major
depends upon the com- universities—Illinois In-
munity’s success and . . . the reverse can be true stitute of Technology (IIT) in Chicago; Harvard Uni-
as well.” Indeed, the traditional divisions between versity in Cambridge; University of California, San
“town and gown” have evolved and, in some Francisco (UCSF); and Arizona State University
cases, entirely dissolved. (ASU) in Tempe—are growing their campuses and
Education’s continuous drive for growth over what the Art Center community can learn from
the past decade has in part brought about a need these efforts to enhance town and gown through
for closer, more cooperative relations between architecture and public interaction.
The McCormick Tribune Campus Center (MTCC) at Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), designed by Dutch architect and Pritzker
Prize laureate Rem Koolhaas, opened in 2003. It includes a 530-foot-long stainless steel-clad tube that sits directly above the build-
ing’s roof, designed to significantly muffle the noise and vibration generated by passing Chicago Transit Authority commuter trains.
7 D OT 1 6
Revitalize the Urban Campus through Innovative center arranges its functions—dining areas, student orga- community zones, Harvard seeks to create an open relation- during community meetings: How can the university’s plan
Architecture and Housing nization offices, bookstore, recreational facilities, coffee bar, ship that integrates academic development with a range of benefit its Allston neighbors? The team answered with a civic,
An archetype of the urban university, the Illinois Institute of faculty club and auditorium—around diagonal extensions civic, neighborhood and public functions,” according to the cultural and retail center at Barry’s Corner (a prominent All-
Technology recognized a critical need to address its growth of the paths students use to cross the campus. A second vision statement of Harvard’s Allston Initiative. “This devel- ston intersection) and new facilities with opportunities for
needs and conditions in its neighborhood on the South Side significant addition to the urban corridor is State Street opment approach will ensure that in the future the university shared use. One example, the proposed visual arts center
of Chicago. In the mid-1990s, IIT undertook a master plan- Village, a state-of-the-art residential complex designed by will remain an integral part of the Allston community.” Land- designed by Santa Monica-based Daly Genik (the architects
ning process for its campus, renowned for a 1940 master Helmut Jahn. Comprising three separate five-story build- locked on its Cambridge site, the university quietly began ac- of Art Center’s South Campus), will offer teaching and re-
plan and landmark buildings ings, the residential complex quiring large parcels of land search facilities for students,
by Ludwig Mies van der provides on-campus hous- across the Charles River in public gallery space, and op-
Rohe, with architect Dirk Lo- ing for over 300 undergradu- the late 1980s, already home portunities for arts program-
han, Mies’ grandson. The re- ate and graduate students in to Harvard’s business school ming and education, and
sulting master plan proposed apartment-style and suite- and athletics facilities. The is considered the first step
to reconnect the existing IIT style units. university now owns over in establishing a vital univer-
buildings, create areas of These new buildings, 200 acres in Allston, where sity arts and culture presence
campus vitality and revital- along with the off-campus it proposes nothing less than in Allston.
ize the main urban corridor Michigan Place condomini- total transformation. All- But Harvard’s most
through new facilities. Fur- ums and townhomes—the ston’s industrial landscape convincing argument for its
thermore, the master plan university’s first effort to cre- of warehouses, parking lots, Allston plans are the project-
suggested new residential ate a residential community and truck and rail yards will ed economic and lifestyle
construction both on and for faculty and staff adjacent become a wholly “green” benefits for the community.
off campus and traffic and to the main campus—dem- academic precinct of 10 According to the proposed
landscaping improvements onstrate IIT’s investment in million square feet over the master plan filed in 2007,
to make the area pedestrian- the South Side’s ongoing re- next 50 years. Along with the construction of up to 5
friendly. “Our main campus is vitalization. The City of Chi- new academic facilities and million square feet in phase
not an island. We have never cago has reciprocated with university housing, Harvard one is expected to cre-
lost sight that IIT is part of an investment in a new po- proposes publicly accessible ate approximately 4,000 to
a larger neighborhood,” IIT lice department headquar- open spaces and transporta- 5,000 new permanent jobs,
President Lew Collens said. ters at the southern edge tion solutions, such as shuttle in addition to 700 to 800
“One of our challenges has of campus. Discussing the systems, improved bridges, construction-related jobs per
been to ensure that the revi- importance of housing pro- dedicated bicycle lanes, and year. Over the next 50 years,
talization we bring to IIT has grams for its students and a network of open spaces Harvard’s Allston develop-
an equally positive impact on employees in relation to the and sidewalks. Harvard’s ment is expected to generate
the overall neighborhood.” community, IIT President plan also offers to cover a 11,000 to 12,000 new jobs,
Crucial to the success Collens said, “It’s more than road adjacent to the Charles in addition to thousands of
of IIT’s master plan are two just coming to work here River, thereby giving the pub- construction-related jobs.
innovative buildings, which everyday. It’s about calling it lic a new piece of landscaped Furthermore, the university
both opened in 2003. The home, too.” riverfront to enjoy. has committed to enhance
McCormick Tribune Campus Recognizing the extraor- the area through an envi-
Center, designed by Pritzker Prize-winner Rem Koolhaas, Create a New Campus as Public Space, not Enclave dinary opportunity to develop over 200 acres within a city, the ronmentally sustainable campus, with landscaping, open
unifies the campus both literally and figuratively. Situated It would seem that Harvard University—among the country’s university has sought to engage the community in the plan- space and new transportation modes. As the 2007 Plan for
at the heart of the campus, the center links residential and oldest, most prestigious and wealthiest educational institu- ning process. Harvard and its design team—the planning and Harvard in Allston puts it, “Harvard’s future in Allston will
academic areas and transforms previously unusable land tions—could build virtually anything it chooses. But Harvard design firm Cooper Robertson & Partners, with architect Frank therefore also be for Allston, and by extension for Boston,
under an elevated train by enclosing the tracks in a 530-foot understands the necessity of reconciling town with gown in Gehry and landscape architect Laurie Olin—have worked to intertwining campus and community and enabling both to
concrete and stainless steel tube that muffles the sound. its ambitious expansion plans: “Unlike more traditional col- alleviate the community’s concerns and mistrust generated respond to the prospects of the coming century in an urban
Now a hub of student activity, the 110,000-square-foot legiate settings that clearly delineate between campus and by the clandestine land acquisitions. A key question emerged and urbane setting.”
Top: State Street Village, designed by renowned architect Helmut Jahn, opened in 2003. Jahn studied architecture at IIT under Top: An artist’s rendering of Barry’s Corner, currently an unremarkable crossroads, is envisioned as a new hub for Allston, with a
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in the late 1960s. It is the first new residence hall built for IIT students in almost 40 years. Bottom: civic, cultural and retail center. Bottom: Artist’s rendering of John W. Weeks Bridge—the only pedestrian bridge across the Charles
S.R. Crown Hall, which houses IIT’s College of Architecture, is one of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s greatest masterworks. Mies River—that connects the main campus on Harvard Yard in Cambridge with Allston, where Harvard Business School and Harvard
considered Crown Hall the clearest statement of his philosophy of a universal space building. It was renovated in 2005. Stadium are located.
9 D OT 1 6
The New Campus Anchors Major Development 15 years and at completion will have 20 buildings. Currently, State University (ASU) is developing a new kind of urban ven- ASU and its research programs. Occupying 80,000 square
and New Biotech District five buildings are complete, including three research build- ture with the City of Scottsdale. The ASU Scottsdale Center feet, the university is SkySong’s largest tenant in the first
No doubt the most impressive of recent town and gown col- ings, a campus community center designed by Ricardo and for New Technology and Innovation, or simply “SkySong,” phase, which opened in fall 2007. Eventually, ASU’s pro-
laborations is the creation of the new Mission Bay campus Victor Legorreta, and a university housing development. As is touted as “the new model for this century’s workplace grams in technology transfer, entrepreneurial training, inter-
for the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). The the second-largest employer in San Francisco, UCSF is the environment.” SkySong (named for its shade structure) is disciplinary research and globally focused initiatives will be
new campus is the anchor of the 300-plus-acre Mission first campus in the entire 10-campus UC system to build and part research park, global-technology business park and based there. With its new urban hybrid, ASU has already
Bay redevelopment—the city’s largest urban development rent affordable housing for UC staff who qualify based on university research lab. Appropriately enough, the idea for attracted, in addition to American companies, a roster of
since the building of Golden income criteria. SkySong came from an ASU global tenants, including
Gate Park in the 1870s. Once UCSF’s presence in Mis- public-policy report that cited technology companies from
the site of dilapidated ware- sion Bay brings substantial the city’s deficiency in lead- Turkey, Germany, China and
houses and rail yards, Mis- benefits to the development ing-edge, technology-based Mexico, several of which will
sion Bay has been reimag- and to the community. The industries and proposed the be entering the U.S. market
ined as a city within a city, University has already made site of an abandoned Scotts- for the first time.
a mix of health-science re- significant investments in dale mall for such an en-
search campus, office park, its revitalization, spending deavor. In 2004, the City of Conclusion: Look to
housing, retail and open about $675 million on proj- Scottsdale agreed to acquire the Future
space. According to current ects completed or underway the 42-acre site and lease As these examples confirm,
projections, the site’s popu- on the Mission Bay campus back 37 acres to the ASU opening up the divisions be-
lation in 2020 will be 14,000, site. It plans to invest another Foundation for 99 years. The tween town and gown—and
with 6,000 new housing $225 million on projects in city also committed to invest even forging joint ventures of
units, and 6 million square design, according to Bruce more than $40 million in in- varying kinds—has myriad
feet of commercial space. Spaulding, vice chancellor frastructure upgrades for the advantages for educational
Community amenities will for University Advancement project, for an overall com- institutions and cities alike.
include open space and and Planning. Furthermore, mitment of roughly $80 mil- Like other colleges across the
new parkland, a new branch the UC campus offers em- lion. Describing how higher country, Art Center has rec-
library, children’s hospital, ployment and business op- education can prepare for ognized the need to deepen
fire and police stations, and portunities for residents the future, ASU President its connections to its commu-
a walking path that links of nearby neighborhoods Michael M. Crow wrote in nity and strengthen its public
AT&T Park and Candlestick and provides free, low-cost Newsweek, “This will require accessibility by opening its
Park. But perhaps more and subsidized healthcare that policymakers, business South Campus in downtown
important to the city is the through student- and fac- leaders and universities re- Pasadena in 2004. The build-
idea that Mission Bay will ulty-run homeless clinics, dedicate themselves to creat- ing has made possible the
stimulate future growth and community clinics and San ing comprehensive learning expansion of the College’s
attract other research orga- Francisco General Hospital. and discovery environments; public-education initiatives,
nizations and biotech firms The university is also attract- design entirely new models as well as a variety of exhibi-
to San Francisco. ing private development to and methods for teaching; tions, events and programs
Remarkably, UCSF ac- the area, particularly life sci- and then take action to im- that are open to the general
quired the land—43 acres of ence and biotech companies plement them.” public. In addition, the Col-
prime San Francisco real estate adjacent to the Bay—at no like FibroGen. Finally, Mission Bay gives the San Francisco SkySong is one such model. It is planned as a 1.2 lege is in the process of developing student housing at the
cost through a landmark deal between the City of San Fran- neighborhood open space and a public arts program, which million-square-foot, mixed-use project with office, research South Campus, a now-customary component of commu-
cisco, Catellus Development Corporation and the university. will include commissioned works by Jim Isermann, Roy Mc- and retail space; a hotel and conference center; and com- nity building, and working with the City on an adaptive-reuse
The donation of the land—a gift of over $170 million—kept Makin, Stephan Balkenhol and Richard Serra. mercial space and residential units. But above all, SkySong project at the nearby Glenarm Power Plant. As these and
the university from expanding outside the city and gave a promotes itself through design and education. Central to other education-based urban projects show, cities and edu-
considerable boost to the development. The campus, which Pioneering a New Urban Hybrid Paradigm the SkySong brand is the iconic shade structure, the archi- cation institutions are finding novel ways to build productive
broke ground in 1999, will continue being built over the next Situated in the fastest growing region of the country, Arizona tecture of Pei Cobb Freed, and the educational presence of relationships. Now it’s not a matter of if, but how.
Top: The new community center has become UCSF’s colorful anchor. Bottom: Aerial view of UCSF’s Mission Bay campus that Top: Artist’s rendering of the Arizona State University Scottsdale Innovation Center’s iconic SkySong shade structure, scheduled
shows the completed Genentech Hall in the foreground and a second building, Gentics, Development and Behavioral Sciences, to be completed in spring 2008. Bottom: Artist’s rendering of SkySong’s first building viewed from beneath the shade structure.
nearing completion.
11 D OT 1 6
Influencing
the
World
City
by
City
As the world continues to flatten and the creative economy expands globally, one
of the primary requisites for success is international engagement. This is espe-
cially true for institutions of higher education, which are charged with cultivating
the leaders of tomorrow. And it is particularly true for Art Center College of
Design, whose educational philosophy is founded on the belief that art and design
are of intrinsic value to the larger world, and that design is a global practice.
In that light, Art Center has taken a leadership position in redefining the nature
of true globalism—by extending beyond mere physical facilities in a limited num-
ber of cities, and establishing active connections that create an even more perva-
sive, content-based presence. These interchanges occur at many levels—ranging
from strategic collaborations with a wide range of partner institutions (including
other international design and business schools such as INSEAD and ESADE) to
focused exchanges and interactions with renowned thought leaders, influencers,
business and civic leaders, and educators.
An even deeper level of international relevance has been achieved through the
College’s Designmatters initiative, the focus of which has resulted in Art Center
being designated as the only design school to receive the United Nations’ non-
governmental organization (NGO) status. As an NGO, Art Center participates in A Better Tomorrow, directed by Robert Harris, is one of several UNIFEM PSAs broadcast on TV
and cable stations across Latin America, the Caribbean and the United States.
An innovative taxi master plan developed by transportation design students was showcased at
the New York International Auto Show by the Design Trust for Public Space.
numerous educational partnerships with other nonprofit institutions worldwide to
Barcelona with local students, faculty, city officials, creative leaders and architects.
provide creative suggestions and solutions to the pressing challenges of contem- Art Center is launching a unique European partnership with Barcelona. The collaboration will produce a book that captures Chicago’s unique
porary life—including disaster preparedness, women’s rights, AIDS education See Spotlight on page 5. qualities and anticipates new trends in global vertical development.
and prevention, global warming, mobility, sustainability and many more. Berlin Latin America
Re-brand an entire city of 3.4 million people? That was the modest In fall 2006, the United Nations Development Fund for Women
With all of these international engagement opportunities in mind, the following goal that an Art Center “wall-less classroom,” made up of 13 students (UNIFEM) commissioned Art Center film students to create public service
story highlights just some of Art Center’s many contributions to international design from six countries, pursued in the German capital. Berlin has long announcements to address HIV/AIDS prevention and violence against
been one of the world’s leading centers for art and culture, but since women. The PSAs included A Better Tomorrow, directed by Robert
education and advocacy during the last few years. Some are “wall-less class- the reunification of Germany in 1990, it has struggled to attract invest- Harris; Protection, directed by John Sangjoon Park; and She Wishes,
ment. At the invitation of Governing Mayor Klaus Wowereit, Art Center directed by James Mann. Distributed by UNIFEM in collaboration with
room” projects, where students traveled abroad to set up studios and participate students set up a design studio in Berlin and began to look at the city the Pan American Health Organization, the PSAs were broadcast on
directly in the environments being studied; other projects reflect the results of rigor- with “Fresh Eyes.” Ultimately, they developed a model of an ideal TV and cable stations across Latin America, the Caribbean and the
investor—a wundervestor—who would be attracted to Berlin because United States in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
ous design research and development that were undertaken at Art Center and of its abundant opportunities for entrepreneurship.
presented to clients or partners for their consideration in other locations around Chicago
London
As part of a continuing partnership with the United Nations Population
the world. In fall 2006, Art Center launched NewZone Chicago at the sugges- Fund (UNFPA), Art Center students developed an integrated multimedia
tion of Mayor Richard M. Daley. Like L.A. Now, an earlier cross-disci- campaign in support of the 2007 Safe Motherhood Initiative. Students
Either way, these projects reflect how Art Center is broadening the role of plinary project, NewZone Chicago is a wall-less classroom collabora- led by faculty members Elena Salij (Advertising), Louis Danzinger
design and creating unconventional new models of international art and design tion between Art Center and UCLA that applies creativity to real-world (Graphic Design) and Helen Sanematsu (Graphic Design) created pro-
issues. This ongoing research initiative focuses on high-rise building vocative campaigns consisting of public service announcements, print
education. Even more, these projects illustrate that while building new and lasting morphologies and future urban growth in the birthplace of the modern ads and giveaway items in an effort to effectively communicate to the
skyscraper. Participants include students in Art Center’s Photography global public. In addition to being broadcast worldwide, the campaign
relationships in other parts of the world, Art Center has itself become an interna- and Imaging Department and UCLA’s Department of Architecture and was showcased at the Women Deliver international conference held in
tional destination. Urban Design, under the direction of architect Neil M. Denari, together London this past fall.
15 D OT 1 6
Designers Extend the Reach of Urban
Advantages to Remote Areas of the World
Designers often consider the question of how to harness
the power of design to engage with the four billion
people around the world living at the bottom of the
economic pyramid without the advantages of urban
centers. A current project led by Designmatters at Art
Center is looking into this question. Through a partner-
ship with a prominent mobile health clinic in northern
Kenya (Mpala Community Trust/MCT) and Princeton
University’s Institute of Science and Technology of
Materials, a multidisciplinary team is focusing on a
creative entrepreneurial plan to improve the welfare
of nomadic African communities lacking access to
healthcare and health education materials.
The premise of the Mpala Project is to improve upon
the healthcare delivery system and social innovations
established by MCT, which has been piloting camel
convoys and the training of local community leaders
as counselors to reach these highly isolated popula-
tions. The project’s significance to both design research
and application has earned it recognition as a
finalist in the May 2007 World Bank Development
Transportation Design students teamed up with students from the USC School of Architecture to propose (Clockwise from upper left) The photography of Bettina Chavez, Jonas Lara and Christian Suarez Designmatters fellow Jana Freiling created the visual brand identity for the Pan American Health
Marketplace Competition.
a series of sustainable mobility solutions for Futian, Shenzhen’s central business district. The results were documented the lives of women in Veracruz for Cihuame, an NGO with the United Nations. Organization campaign Faces, Voices and Places of the Millennium Development Goals.
exhibited at the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Biennale.
Art Center’s innovative contributions to the project
New York City Shenzhen (China) Veracruz (Mexico) include: a breakthrough mobility system that improves
In conjunction with the 100th anniversary of the gas-powered taxi in The pace of growth and resulting congestion makes Shenzhen the In summer 2007, film students from Centro, a higher-education institu- the efficiency of the loads carried by the camel
New York in 2007, the Design Trust for Public Space (DTPS)—with the ideal place to study the challenges of mobility and urbanism today. tion in Mexico, and photography students from Art Center, collaborated convoys; the design and engineering of unique solar
support of Mayor Michael Bloomberg—created Taxi 07, a project to Named in 1979 the first of China’s Special Economic Zones, the on a project whose goal was to communicate and promote the work of powered refrigeration units which allow the clinic
foster innovation and develop a “taxi master plan” with the NYC Taxi now-boomtown just outside of Hong Kong has become one of the Cihuame, an NGO that supports the advancement of women in Veracruz.
to deliver crucial vaccines and medicines that are
and Limousine Commission. Recognizing that design is at the core of country’s fastest developing cities and boasts its second busiest port. The objective was to positively impact the community and its social devel-
currently inaccessible to the community; and a culturally
such innovation, the DTPS invited Art Center to create a new prototype Art Center’s Transportation Design students joined with USC School opment. As students were confronted with realities that are usually margin-
relevant, visually based health education campaign on
for display at the Taxi 07 exhibit at the New York International Auto of Architecture students to research and propose a series of sustain- alized and sought to understand the problems and needs of the villagers,
Show. Five upper-level Transportation Design students (from four different able mobility solutions for Futian, the city’s central business district. they documented the historical consciousness of the Cihuame community, HIV/AIDS and family planning that is accessible to the
countries and three continents) were selected to develop a new iconic The students exhibited the dynamic results of the collaboration in along with its processes of growth and development. nonliterate population of the region.
vehicle combining functionality with aesthetic appeal. The result was a December 2007 at the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Biennale on Urbanism
thoughtful new design that preserved the essence of the popular yellow and Architecture, curated by Qingyun Ma, dean of the USC School Washington, D.C. According to Mariana Amatullo, director of
cab while providing wheelchair and stroller access; improved safety, of Architecture. Under the auspices of the College’s Designmatters initiative, Art Center Designmatters, “The Mpala project is allowing us to
security and durability; and zero-emission engines. student Jana Freiling began an independent study project for the Pan apply the ingenuity of design thinking to a challeng-
Tokyo American Health Organization (PAHO) to create a visual brand identity ing situation in quite an extreme geographical and
Paris In Summer 2006, Art Center and Tama Art University launched a for the Faces, Voices and Places of the Millennium Development Goals socio-cultural context. The potential high impact of the
Graduate media design student Jackson Wang, one of the first Design- new long-term collaboration involving students from various disci- campaign, which promotes sustainable improvements in public health
outcomes achieved cannot be overestimated.”
matters fellows, spent the summer of 2007 working for the United plines, including environmental design, graphic design, product and the reduction of inequalities in the Americas by targeting a select
Nations Educational, Scientific and Culture Organization (UNESCO) design, information design, and textile design. The first project, number of the most vulnerable and poorest communities. As a result of
in Paris. He was based in the Crafts and Design section of UNESCO which focused on a study of earthquakes, pioneered a disaster- her work, Jana was appointed to a summer fellowship position at PAHO
and worked on a variety of programs emphasizing economic growth preparedness protocol that can be a model for cities around the to further develop a coordinated and effective communication strategy,
and cultural diversity around the world. He contributed his talents to world. Since then, the Art Center-Tama partnership has expanded channeling the critical exchange of information required, document-
several UNESCO networks, including Design 21, inspiring social activ- to take on other issues, such as sustainability and mobility, using the ing results and best practices, and also maximizing the visibility of the
ism through design; Creative Cities, promoting the economic and cultural design process to bridge cultures, share experiences and find work- campaign to promote engagement and participation from all targeted
development of cities; and DigiArts, researching and disseminating able solutions. stakeholders.
knowledge of art, design, multimedia and music.
17 D OT 1 6Radically
Sensible.
John Thackara Recasts Our Sustainable Future
19 D OT 1 6John Thackara is a self-described “symposiarch” or “connector,” who brings Since the publication of In the Bubble in 2005, sustainability and global
together designers, grassroots innovators and citizens to develop new services for warming have not only captured the public’s attention, but also gained
mainstream credibility. What are the challenges that accompany this
daily life through his Doors of Perception knowledge network, conference and
critical moment?
website. The British-born author visited Art Center last spring in conjunction with
I don’t think we’ve even begun to internalize the consequences of what it means
the exhibition “Open House: Architecture and Technology for Intelligent Living” at to deal with global warming. At the moment, it’s all about consumers being told
the Wind Tunnel at Art Center’s South Campus. His book In the Bubble: Designing to consume green things rather than non-green things. But that to me is really
in a Complex World (2003) served as an important reference for Open House’s not the point at all. All that does is to make the problem seem
curatorial team. Open House co-curator and guest editor Dana Hutt met with him to be one of individual responsibility rather than the way that
at that time to explore his radically sensible approach to sustainability. we organize our daily lives, which is a matter of tax policy,
government, urban planning, spatial planning—all these big
things that constrain and shape how we live. They are the things
John Thackara in person is much like his writing: energetic, engaging and
that make our lives unsustainable, not the fact that we choose
brimming with design ideas, case studies and examples from around the world.
as individuals to buy a big car or something. Those kinds
If he does not have a ready response to a question, he can tell you exactly of personal choices are very constrained by the way that life
why. Our discussion focused on a definition of of sustainability that can be truly is organized. And that’s why I really do not think that this
transformational. He proposes nothing short of reevaluating how we live every discussion for designers is about designing green products. It’s about how we
day. For Thackara, the benefits of a technology or product can only be determined figure out ways to reengineer daily lives in terms of time, space, flows of matter
by analyzing its entire lifecycle and unexpected consequences, not just its and energy, and that’s more difficult but more interesting.
intended use. For example, a modern light-rail system may not be better for the
environment than an old-fashioned train line when you consider the enormous What are some examples of how these changes in our daily lives
may come about?
amount of resources—tons of steel, concrete and energy—needed to build it. By
A year ago, a report commissioned by the British Treasury asked what are
looking at the whole lifecycle of products and processes, we can evaluate what
the consequences for the financial systems if climate change is true. And for
are better systems in order to thrive within a one-planet economy. the first time, an economist named [Nicolas] Stern who used to be head of the
World Bank, wrote this 800-page report saying if we don’t do anything it’ll cost
Many of these dilemmas—along with potential ways out—appear in Thackara’s us $85 per ton of emissions, which by the way we cannot afford. So you now
recent book In the Bubble: Designing in a Complex World. As the director of have an economist saying that it’s serious and that we have to do something
Doors of Perception, a design futures network that involves visionary designers, about it rather than some environmentalist or a few scientists. This is why
businesses, the public sector and grassroots innovators in collaborative projects, the atmosphere is changed in a huge way—because it’s taken
he fosters activities that may develop solutions. Doors of Perception began as a seriously by the money people and not just by the citizens. And
conference, but has since involved into “camps” or workshop events, which bring the only thing that the policymakers can do once they’ve decided
that it’s serious is to change the way the tax works so that all
together people from different backgrounds to explore a situation. The most recent
these things for the last hundred years that were external costs—
Doors activity was the biennial Designs of the Time 07 (DOTT O7)—a year-long
such as nature—are now internal costs. So that if you’re running
festival of community projects, exhibitions and events in northeast England. an airline or making soap or building a building, then you have
to put all the costs of your activity into the projects, not leave
What’s particularly intriguing to Thackara are the small-scale solutions that involve half of them out. And it isn’t about whether the scientists are
people working together, such as the walking bus, an organized system of adult right or not. In the corporate sectors, the changes are much bigger and much faster.
supervision for children walking to school. He writes, “DOTT is about a less-stuff- So everybody from Unilever to Wal Mart—[which] hired this guy [Andy] Ruben to
more-people world in which new services will help us share the load of everyday be a vice president of sustainability—are talking about total transformation of their
activities: washing clothes, looking after children, obtaining decent food, caring business. Marks & Spencer has committed themselves to being carbon neutral in
for sick people. Many of these new services will involve the use of products, or
2012. It’s just amazing. All that is much more radical than anything any politician
in the world is doing. That’s actually quite a big design opportunity, and now
equipment, to carry them out. . . But objects and technology will play a supporting
what do we do?
role in DOTT. And new principles—above all, sustainability—will inform the
ways products and systems are designed, made, used and looked after.” Why do you favor the term “one-planet economy” over “sustainability”?
I think the word “sustainability” is (a) long, and (b) nobody really knows what
Thackara visited Art Center on the occasion of the exhibition “Open House: it means. And thirdly, most people think it’s about having less and living worse.
Architecture and Technology for Intelligent Living,” for which In the Bubble We have to have less fun, less products, less food, less travel; a kind of hair-
served as an important reference, and shared his latest projects and insights. shirt life. And I think that’s just not the way we’re going to make any progress.
21 D OT 1 6So the people who talk about one-planet economy are saying we can live and added to that, the cost of upgrading sewers to deal with fat deposits. This
better using less resources, but we have to do so in a very is not something on the radar of the urban planners or designers, or anybody
conscious way. One planet’s life or one-planet economy, means else. We’re beginning to look at the ways that this understanding can help us
that you consume the resources that the planet is able to make cities sustainable. And so we’re doing the project called Urban Farming,
sustain in our lives. The global situation is we have one which is an experiment in how does one put food-growing back into an
biosphere, which can support x amount of emissions, full-stop. industrial, post-industrial city. What are the practical and design
Nobody disputes that we are consuming several multiples of steps that need to be taken? What do you do with the food
what the biosphere can support. Therefore, we have to live our when it’s grown?
lives in a much more efficient, lighter way. How the hell we do My interest is always about the kind of social and cultural
that is the next story. services and activities that one could put back into cities to
make them livable. We have 1,000 people growing food in
In the Bubble includes a fascinating range of examples. How do you different parts of Middlesbrough, from window boxes to the
find new sources of information? roofs of their apartments, and inside garages, mental hospitals,
I go to trade fairs. Last week I went to a trade fair on sewage and sewage everything. A very extraordinary mix of people is growing food
systems because this is a good example of things that are under the radar. I’m for the first time. And there will be a meal for Middlesbrough where the citizens
certain there were no other design people there, but all these engineers were, of the city, all the people who’ve grown it, the cooks and the media will all say,
and I found 500 stands on everything to do with compacting “okay, we can do it, it’s not such a complicated thing to put growing back into
solid waste as well as radical, new-waste people who use plants cities.” There’s a huge amount of space that can be used for growing food. So
and horticulture and various kinds of cultural traditions to think this gets people to start thinking critically about food. It’s saying, let’s do a fun
about how we should organize water and waste. The main thing project and see what we can learn from this.
is that we shouldn’t throw it away, if waste is valuable. Nature
doesn’t throw it away; it recycles it. An expert on plants and How can educational institutions contribute to the life of a vital city?
waste says [he’s] never been busier; [he’s] got cities all over I think there are two things that a design school or an art school should do.
the world using [his] knowledge—another example of where Fifty percent is to give people technical and craft skills to do things very well
everything is changing but completely invisibly to the rest of us. that they can’t do just by kind of reading magazines. But the other 50 percent is
That’s why I’m in general an optimist because everywhere you go are examples to get out of school and into the world, and go and be part of the changes that
of new ways of doing things that are being tried in rather practical ways—not have to be made by all of us. The actual subject of the projects I think should
just dreamt about—and that’s true for any subject that one could imagine. be 95 percent real-world projects, because we don’t have the time or the luxury
of fiddling around on hypothetical things anymore. It’s a great
What issues do we need to rethink before we can achieve sustainable liberation to everybody to get them connected to real-world
mobility? situations, because it has meaning to them and to the people
Sustainability is not about designing green cars. It’s about designing the kind they’re working for.
of way that space, facilities and things are located. So that if they’re located a We’ve done this project called EMUDE (Emerging User
long way from where you live, then you have to drive or move Demands for Sustainable Solutions), in which 12 design schools
around in vehicles. And however green the vehicles are, if in different parts of Europe were given the explicit task of
economic growth and transport intensity are regarded as they going out into their community, whether it’s a town or a place
are by 90 percent of economists as the same thing—more where they were, and look for examples of people doing social
vehicles equal more economic activity—then we have a innovation, not per se environmental, but the things I’ve been talking about—
problem. The notion that you can have prosperity without more walking buses, gardens, bicycle shops, whatever—and find ways in which some
vehicles and more vehicle movements is something that very few kind of design intervention could improve that activity. It was fantastic. They
urban planners or politicians or economists can understand at found hundreds and hundreds of examples, for which there’s a book called
all. However, we are beginning to see examples of cities around Creative Communities. And then they started to propose ways in which they
the world, which appear to be rather prosperous, but don’t have growing could use their design skills to help these created communities do their thing
numbers of vehicle movements in them, like Curitiba in Brazil or Amsterdam. in a more effective way.
How can we “retrofit” our cities to make them more sustainable? How best can the designer make a difference in our cities?
Over the last two years, the particular angle that I’ve been working on is The basic principle is that we do not have to invent many things in
the relationship between food systems and cities. A study on the ecological sustainability, most of it is out there somewhere. It’s just not terribly obvious
footprint of Toronto found that 25 percent of it is attributable to food systems, or it’s not working as well as it could. Go out and find something and improve
when you add up everything from trucks taking food backwards and forwards, it a bit. And then you, by the way, will have already started making your
warehouses, refrigeration units and shops, packaging, eating, disposal, etc., contribution.
23 D OT 1 6You can also read
