New Master Major Industrial Design

Interview with Lukas Franciszkiewicz

Foto: David Jäggi. © ZHdK.

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Author Léa Ermuth

Lukas Franciszkiewicz is the new head of the Master Industrial Design. He launches the new programme with the exhibition «Expanding Design» in December. In this interview, he explains how he understands Industrial Design and what innovative elements he is integrating into the Master's programme.

Can you tell us about your professional background and experience in (industrial) design?

I studied Industrial Design in Kiel before going to the Royal College of Art in London to do a Masters in Design Interactions. The title 'Design Interactions' is often confusing because in today's context it is quickly assumed to refer to the interaction design of user experiences and digital interfaces or UX/UI. In contrast, in the Design Interactions programme I have worked quite intensively on how design can incorporate a critical and speculative way of thinking beyond purely solution-oriented approaches. Ultimately, this is a theme that runs through my entire professional and academic career.

We are looking for designers with different creative backgrounds.

Lukas Franciszkiewicz
What professional experiences have shaped you?

I have spent most of my professional career between London and Tokyo. During this time I worked on independent, critically speculative design projects and exhibitions - including with my tutors Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby. Secondly, as co-founder and co-director of the international design studio Takram London, I was responsible for a wide range of innovation projects for clients/institutions such as Sony, Toyota, Google and the MIT Media Lab. My practical experience at the interface between critical engagement with new technologies and innovative product concepts has shaped my understanding of design. I try to address both potential applications and consequences in my design process.

Who is the programme for?

In the Master's programme we do not necessarily see the professional field of industrial design as a goal, but rather as a starting point for an expanded understanding of design. The programme is aimed at designers from a variety of design backgrounds. Industrial and product designers are just as welcome as creatives with a strong interest in design from fields such as architecture, engineering, art, fashion or media communication. Our ethos is one of diversity, collaboration and interdisciplinarity, and this should be reflected in the backgrounds of our students.

Designers are all too often taught to see even the most complex issues as problems that need to be solved.

Lukas Franciszkiewicz
What is the vision and strategic direction for the Masters in Industrial Design and how does it differ from other universities?

With the reorientation of the programme, we are questioning not only the current, but also the future requirements of the design discipline. One of the key strategic principles we have been working towards is that as designers gain experience they concentrate on a specific type of work - work that focuses on particular problems, sectors, methods or themes. These specialisms evolve, as do the tools used in them. Our aim is to create an education that encourages focused engagement, while helping students develop the skills they need to continue developing after graduation. For this reason, the redesign of the programme has focused on the delicate balance between promoting implementation-oriented and aesthetic skills (Design Innovations) and critical and creative thinking (Design Speculations). We hope that students will achieve a balance between these two aspects by working in parallel or alternating between a practical and a conceptual approach.

Is this a unique selling point of the ZHdK?

The hybrid understanding of design between different forms of knowledge - imagining and enabling, the conceptual and the material, prototypes and thought experiments - is often not what students are taught at other universities. Designers are too often taught to see even the most complex issues as problems to be solved. Mark Twain put it well when he wrote: "He who has only a hammer for a tool sees a nail in every problem. " This statement goes beyond the scope of a single discipline such as design, and consequently creates an incredible sense of responsibility in design students. In addition, this solution fetishism leaves very little room for training creative imagination. In order to develop new approaches to tackling the complex problems of our time in a truly meaningful and sustainable way, the course offers practice-oriented formats that expand both imagination and implementation skills. These methods play a central role in your own Master's thesis, whether the design intentions are 'innovation' or 'speculation'.

The curriculum focuses on interdisciplinary and collaborative exchange formats.

Lukas Franciszkiewicz
What are the innovative elements of the curriculum?

The curriculum is based on interdisciplinary and collaborative exchange formats. Within the university, we offer practical and theoretical modules together with the Master Majors Interaction Design and Trends & Identity. We also seek external dialogue with partners from academia and industry. Cultural exchange, for example through study trips, also plays a central role in integrating the global design discourse. However, a curriculum is only as good as the people who participate in it - teachers, researchers and students. Ideally, the Master's programme is a platform for testing new ideas that develop not only specific topics but also the discipline of industrial design. For this reason, the curriculum will constantly adapt to the ever-changing demands of design.

How does the programme encourage collaboration between students and industry partners?

Collaboration with industry plays an important role in industrial design. However, the Master's programme is not the place to simulate working in industry. We see it as our responsibility to educate students who have the skills to stimulate the industry of tomorrow, not to prepare them for the industry of today. Above all, this requires open partnerships, asking the right questions and getting involved early in the process. Many companies have already realised that transformation and innovation do not come from a single discipline or aspect, but require an interdisciplinary, system-oriented perspective - skills that industrial design in particular brings to the table.

The relationships you form during your studies and the things you learn from each other will stay with you for a lifetime - whether in Switzerland or in the international market.

Lukas Franciszkiewicz
How does the Masters ensure that diversity and inclusion in design is promoted so that students are prepared for global challenges?

In the programme itself, we try to create an open, collaborative and safe studio culture. I firmly believe that this is one of the most important factors in creating an ideal learning environment. It's almost impossible to develop creatively if you don't trust your environment, and a studio culture requires students to support each other and work together. In our Design Masters programmes, students from all disciplines spend two years together in a studio, getting to know each other and their teachers. The relationships you form during your studies and the things you learn from each other will stay with you for a lifetime - whether in Switzerland or in the international market.