SDSU Design Week 2020 Moves to a Virtual Platform

When SDSU made the difficult decision to cease all on-campus events this past March, it brought all student programs and activities to a standstill. SDSU administration, faculty, students, and staff had some big decisions to make - either cancel events entirely or adapt and transition to a virtual platform.

Several School of Art and Design students and faculty chose the latter when deciding to move its upcoming SDSU Design Week to a virtual platform. Funded by student success fees, SDSU Design Week, will take place via the online application Zoom, APRIL 6-10, 2020. The goal of Design week is to inspire students, the campus community, and the general public through showcasing contemporary practices and new technologies in the field of design. Given the current situation, there is no more relevant tool to design than telecommuting.

According to Alexander Zimmerman, an MFA candidate at the School of Art + Design and one of the student event organizers, when his team first learned of the pending campus move to virtual learning, they reached out to Student Success Fee Grant administrators and to their invited speakers and told them of their intention to move the event to a virtual platform. “I feel fortunate that our event is well suited to a virtual platform, said Zimmerman. “Design does not stop, it adapts, it responds.”

SDSU Design Week will feature presentations by top designers from across the country who will explore the unique intersection of ideas, design, traditional methods, and innovative technologies. Speakers include Tricia Treacy, associate professor of graphic design at Appalachian State University, Keith Skretch, award-winning film director and video designer, Elliott Earls, head of graduate graphic design at Cranbrook Academy of Art, and Chris Lee, assistant professor at the Pratt Institute. In addition, Design Week speakers will participate in virtual studio visits with the School of Art + Design graduate students.

To learn more about SDSU Design Week including speaker bios, schedule of events, and RSVP links, please visit the SDSU Design Week Website.

The content within this article has been edited by Lizbeth Persons.