vertical design week.
Nottingham Trent University | Product Design
2022
In December 2022, I developed and hosted the annual Vertical Design Week (VDW) at Nottingham Trent University's Product Design department. VDW brought together first and second-year students to explore the intersection of design and artificial intelligence. Throughout this week-long workshop, students engaged in interactive sessions using AI-based text-to-image diffusion models like MidJourney, Stable Diffusion, and DALL-E 2.
I designed a series of hands-on workshops that encouraged creativity outside the traditional curriculum. Industry experts delivered guest lectures, enhancing the learning environment and introducing students to the latest AI technologies in design. The primary goals were to build student confidence in using AI tools and to foster creativity and independence in their design practices.
Student feedback highlighted the benefits of AI in generating diverse and innovative ideas quickly, significantly enhancing their creative process and portfolio quality. VDW also promoted inclusivity and collaboration through group projects, supported by the MIRO "VDW HUB World," an online workspace that facilitated group collaboration and provided essential resources.
The positive outcomes of VDW were evident, with a significant majority of students finding the week intellectually stimulating and beneficial for their professional development. This experience underscored the transformative impact of incorporating emerging technologies into design education.
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