3D Design
The UI 3D design program has a very distinct curriculum that prepares students to work with a variety of design problems and project scales. Classes in product, furniture and interior design provide exposure to different technologies and crafts that lead to successful portfolios and job market preparedness.
Objects and furniture are always perceived and used in context with their environment. Understanding this relationship is crucial to effectively navigate the challenges imposed by the constant changes in technologies and society.
Participation in national and international exhibitions strengthen students’ ability to present their work and grant exposure to major design companies. Since 2013, 3D design has exhibited at: International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF), New York; Sculpture Objects Functional Art and Design (SOFA) CONNECT, Chicago; Salone del Mobile SaloneSatellite and Ventura Future, Milan, Italy.
3D design faculty encourage students to experiment, using a wide range of materials and approaches, integrating theory and conceptual thinking with hands-on making. The program values conceptual dexterity, sophisticated design, craftsmanship, the aesthetic quality of studio work and the meaning of social value. Intermediate and advanced courses involve intensive inquiry in furniture, bicycles, objects, fabrication, modeling and materials.
The problems-based curriculum enables students to both investigate the critical questions facing designers and makers today, and develop the sophisticated skills required by changing technologies and new materials. Our studio labs, some of the finest in North America, include Computer Modeling, Virtual Reality (VR) and Computer Numerical Control (CNC) equipment including router, plasma-cutter, water jet, laser-cutter, thermoforming and Rapid Prototyping (RP).
The "Iowa Idea" permeates the study of 3D design, wherein studio art, art history, and more broadly science and the humanities, are woven.
3D Design BFA Track
- ARTS:1510, Basic Drawing
- ARTS:1520, Design Fundamentals
- TDSN:2210, Introduction to 3D Design: Objects + Furniture + Spaces
- TDSN:2240, Digital Drafting with AutoCAD
- TDSN:2250, Digital Prototyping
- TDSN:3200, Product Design
- TDSN:3220, Interior Design
- TDSN:3230, Color for Interior Design
- TDSN:3260, Design for Production
- TDSN:3280, Forms & Textiles
- TDSN:4010, Furniture Design I
- TDSN:4020, Furniture Design II
- TDSN:4190, Honors in Studio Art (this course has specific requirements)
- TDSN:4050, Site Specific Design (special permission required)
3D design student work
Form + Function + Furniture
3D design faculty
Suzanne Bradley
Monica Correia
Vakhtangi "Vako" Darjania
3D design studio specialists
Kate Allen