Hasta La Ideas

In Bangkok I have visited the Raffles Design Institute – an international design school offering various design and design related (business and management) disciplines. I have met Jett Virangkabutra, the program director of the product design department. The broad-based, diagnostic curriculum grasps from investigational and analytical to problem-solving skills through a project based, modular system, which is supposed to encourage the investigation and understanding of various specializations in product design. “Our philosophy for product design is to use design in particular consideration of local cultural strength to enhance people’s lives. Especially in a country like Thailand I think design can really help people do their jobs better and thus enhance the quality of life,” says Jett. Students work a lot on ‘real-life’ client projects in order to relate their design skills not only to the ‘real world’ but in particular to comply with the socio-economic conventions that exist in Thailand.

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Doing currently a combined work and travel trip through Asia for four weeks, I thought it would be a good opportunity to share some of my design based insights and experiences with the Core77 readers. So, in the next days I will post my “Postcards from Asia” which will be followed by a complete gallery about my “design adventures” in Asia. I started off in Bangkok where on my first day I was invited to visit TCDC, the Thailand Creative & Design Center. It was established in 2005 by the Thai government as one of the 8 divisions under the Office of Knowledge Management and Development (OKMD), the office of the Prime Minister.

“TCDC’s key focus is to create an opportunity for Thai people to access source of knowledge for their new inspirations by providing them with an opportunity to experience and learn from famous artists and designers worldwide. In cooperation with private sectors, SME entrepreneurs and designers it aims to raise public awareness of using design to add value to Thai products along with helping Thai designers gain visibility in the local and global marketplace.”

Placed in the centre of Bangkok (Sukhumvit) on the top floor of the Emporium Shopping Mall, it consists of a huge library (resource centre) with thousands of design and socio-cultural relevant books, magazines and DVDs, hosts the Material Connexion Bangkok (a material library with a particular focus on Thai materials), various show rooms with a permanent exhibition about design as well as changing ones, the Kiosk (a social hangout place combining cinema, live music and a classical cafe), a shop that sells mainly products designed by Thai designers supported by the centre as well as some international “design icons”, various lecture theaters with talks from many international design industry people, and – for those who need to feel a bit superior sometimes while doing research – a posh member’s lounge.

Click to see more pictures of the current exhibition!

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Danish architects Bjarke Ingels Group and Faroe Islands architects Fuglark have won a commission to design an education centre at Torshavn on the Faroe Islands. (more…)

Enhance your resume and your Thanksgiving photos with the Mediabistro mothership’s two-day crash course in Adobe Photoshop, back by popular demand. This very weekend (December 5 and 6) in NYC, you can get up and running on the program of programs—the subject of many an ethical debate—under the guidance of professional photo retoucher Mara Sachs, who has a blackbelt in Photoshop (or at least is an Adobe Certified Expert in the program). Learn more here.

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

French architects Air have completed a raw yellow concrete extension to an apprenticeship college in Saint Maur des Fossés near Paris in France. (more…)