Digital Age: A New Type of Presentation

Portfolios are constantly evolving. The Morpholio Project was founded in 2011, by a group of architects and academics.They came together to research ways in which the proliferation of the device culture, the  development of the cloud, and the ubiquity of social networking, which shape the creative process.

Morpholio now seeks to create a new platform for presentation, dialogue, and collaboration relevant to all designers, artists and members of any image driven culture. Our interest is in advancing the ways that we discuss, debate, and critique our work with a global community. The mission is to explore ways of harnessing thoughtful feedback about a set of ideas, and to enable members to easily convene meaningful discussion around their work in new kinds of public and private forums. 

The project has an Advisory Council of 200 design professionals and artists from various disciplines. It draws representation from a wide range of studios, and universities worldwide including both students and professors from Columbia, Harvard, London’s Architectural Association, MIT, Princeton, and the School of Visual Arts. 

Check out their website here and these videos:

Let's Talk Website Building

Times are changing. Having your own website and online portfolio is becoming a necessity for design students entering the industry. You may be asking yourself were to I begin? There are various website building companies out there. 

It may seeming overwhelming to start designing your website. The easy out would be to have someone else design it for you. If you are extremely busy, having someone else design your website may be the best choice. However, we strongly recommend designing your website yourself. Our society is fulled with many do it yourselfers. So why not build your website yourself? It will expand your skills and a great experience. 

Here are a few companies that help you design your own website. 

Squarespace

Wix

Flavors

Mooonfruit

Cargo Collective

Carbonmade

Happy designing!

Let's Talk Portfolios

A portfolio is a great way to showcase your work to a potential employer. There are a few questions you need to ask yourself before you design your portfolio. Who is your audience? Are you interviewing with a large or small firm? Commercial or residential? What is the size of your portfolio? How will your portfolio be bound?

First, come up with a concept or a design for your portfolio. You can come up with ideas by cartooning, or sketching, them out on paper. When you are cartooning, make sure you are using some kind of scale. You want your cartoon, or sketch, to be as accurate as possible. It is better to lay out the design on paper, then  go straight to the computer. Work out the kinks on paper. It will save you a lot of time and headache.

Another important part of a portfolio is editing. As a student you may love all the past projects, however, do not put them all in your portfolio. Go through your past projects and find 3-4 that are your best work. You want to be able to showcase yourself when you are in the interview. Don't underwhelm a potential employer with mediocre work.

It is important to consider the overall design of your portfolio. Make sure the background image or color is neutral. You do not want to detract from your work.

If you need to find inspiration, don't be afraid to look through books of browse the internet. Here is a simple yet effective portfolio design, found here.

Have fun designing your portfolio!

Graduate Portfolio Day

Hey students,

Are you thinking of furthering your education? The National Portfolio Day Association was created in 1978, solely for the planning and organization of portfolio days. The National Portfolio Day Association is hosting Graduate Portfolio Day.  

You may be wondering what is Graduate Portfolio Day. It is an opportunity for students who have completed their Bachelor's degree and are looking to further their education. This even provides prospective MFA, MArch, and MA students immediate feedback on their portfolios. It also gives students a chance to learn about  the curriculum, faculty, application process, and other information from a  number of colleges.

Graduate Portfolio Day is not an examination, nor a competition. Students should not expect to gain admission or scholarship to colleges visited during the event. It is gives students a chance to get specific information about the quality, depth and consistency of portfolio requirements required at the graduate level.

Check out the Graduate Portfolio Day schedule for 2011-2012.

Back to School

It's the being of September and most students have already started back to school. It's time to buckle down and get back into the groove of researching, building models, sketching, giving presentations, and much more. As interior design students we try to make to most of our time in and out of the classroom. Sometimes it can feel like a balancing act when it comes to school work and extracurricular activities. Here are some suggestions to make the most out of your time studying interior design in school.

Join RDI and become apart of nextGEN or join other professional organizations at the student level. It can never be said enough how important it is to join a professional organization. Being a student member of a professional does not only expand your knowledge of the design field but it also allows you meet and network with professionals in the industry. There are many avenues within the interior design field, it is helpful you navigate towards your future!

Calling all interior design students, enter design competitions. Entering a design competition can seem a little intimidating. However, when you participate there is an opportunity for your work to be seen by professionals in the industry. Plus it is something you can add to you resume and it a great addition to your portfolio! Many interior design professional organizations, manufacturers, and design magazines sponsor many of the design competitions out there. Therefore, get your work out there and show the design industry how talented you are! 

Start to build your design vocabulary. The interior design field has been given many occupational stereotypes. Be an intelligent and articulate when it comes to speaking about the design industry.

Find yourself a mentor. Don't be afraid to ask a design professional or even your teacher to be your mentor. Many professionals are happy to look at your portfolio. They can give you valuable feedback to better your portfolio or resume. This will be helpful because you can find out what professionals are looking for when it comes to potential employees.

Intern, intern, intern. Internships are such an important aspect for developing what design service or market you would like to enter. Paid or not, you will gain valuable experience. Some internships can lead to job opportunities. Finding a internship in today's economy can be a little discouraging, however, that is why developing a portfolio is so important.

Start building your portfolio, resume, and/ website. The interior design industry is gravitating towards the "digital-age." Therefore, carrying full size drawings and cumbersome portfolios is becoming more uncommon. It is becoming easier to create your own website or digital portfolio. There are many different resources you can use to start building your digital footprint like Blogger, Wix, WordPress, Tumblr, and Posterous.

Learn how to market yourself. As student and emerging professional it is important to market yourself. The job market is becoming more competitive. You want to be the one that employers remember. In a sense you are your own brand, make it a go one! Read more about marketing yourself here.

We how that these suggestions will help you have the more reward experience as an interior design student. Remember once you have graduated and are a young professional don't stop educating yourself! The interior design industry is ever changing, therefore, there is always something new to learn.