ZEIT2301- Design Studios and Design Critiques

1. ZEIT2301- Design Studios and Design Critiques School of Engineering and Information Technology UNSW@ADFA Dr Kathryn Merrick Bldg 16, Rm 212 (Thursdays and Fridays only) k.merrick@adfa.edu.au

2. Overview • Introduction to design studios • Format • Role in Assignment 1 • Introduction to design critiques • What is a critique? • How to give a constructive critique References: http://www.scottberkun.com/essays/23-how-to-run-a-design-critique/ http://www.uie.com/articles/critique/

3. Design Studios • Aim to help you develop your collaborative design skills, including how to critique a design • Format: • See http://seit.unsw.adfa.edu.au/coursework/ZEIT2301/Lectures/03_DesignStudio.pdf

4. What is a Critique? • In the early and middle phases of a project, teams need a way to understand and explore the current direction of the design. • The challenge is to create the openness needed for good ideas to surface, while simultaneously cultivating the feedback and criticism necessary to resolve open issues.

5. What is a Critique not? • Not brainstorming • In brainstorming the goal is to come up with new ideas • A critique is focused on evaluating a set of existing ideas, and possibly identify future directions or changes. • Not heuristic evaluation, cognitive walkthrough, inspection, usability test etc • These tools look at design from the perspective of the user • A critique looks at a design from the perspective and experience of another designer

6. Different Types of Critiques • Early in the project • Emphasise high level user, customer and business goals • Minimise focus on specific engineering constraints • Later in the project • Increasing pressure to have definite answers to criticisms • Scope should decrease (don’t want new ideas now)

7. Typical Goals of a Critique • Obtain specific feedback on different approaches to one area or feature of a design • Compare how different components of a system are designed (are they consistent) • Explore competing products • Allow team members with different roles to give feedback from their perspective and expertise

8. Secondary Goals • Provide structure to the creative process • Improve team’s ability to think about and discuss design ideas • Improve team’s problem solving ability

9. Who Should Attend? • A critique should allow a small number of people to review and discuss ideas quickly and informally • Focus on people who are most likely to • Understand the creative process • Give useful and meaningful feedback, both positive and negative

10. The Venue and Materials • Use a small conference room with lots of whiteboard space • A projector may be useful for presentations or prototype demonstrations • Handouts and sketches may be useful, depending on audience • Hold critiques regularly in the same venue

11. Elements of an Effective Critique • Respectful • Dispassionate • Lacking authority • Justified impressions and concerns

12. 1. Respect • Acknowledge that hard work has been done • Be aware that receiving a critique can be difficult • Be polite and sensitive • Don’t ambush, • Give critique when the designer is ready to receive it

13. 2. Be Dispassionate • A critique should be a learning opportunity to spread expertise, vision and skills • The designer isn’t being judged • Their designs are being explored

14. 3. Lacking Authority • A good critique knows that they themselves can’t change the design • They need to inspire the designer to change the design • Comments and questions that trigger the designer to explore their own design will be more effective than orders to change the design in some way

15. 4. Justified Impressions and Concerns • Go beyond a statement of concern • Give reasons for concerns • Give alternative solutions • Team can then discuss merits of justifications rather than having critique degenerate into a battle of opinions

16. Giving Effective Criticism • Positive impressions and concerns need to be balanced • Can help to give them in parallel • Avoid hollow statements • “I’m loving your work” • Avoid half-compliments • “I like this, but…” • Give the designer a chance to explain • “Have you considered X?”

17. Preparing a Critique • What did you enjoy about the design and why? • What concerns me about the design and why? • What does this design remind me of and why? • Deliver at least a positive for every negative • Sandwich approach positive-negative-positive • Rank criticisms and bring up the most important points first

18. Receiving Criticism • The designer should step away from the design (this can be hard!) • The designer isn’t being judged, rather their design is being explored • View a critique as a chance to learn and improve your design skills

19. Responding to Criticism • Pause • Turn of emotion and turn on brain • Listen carefully • Ask questions • Acknowledge errors (if they exist) • Take corrective action (if necessary) • Acknowledge the other person’s motive in giving criticism • Say thank you

20. Summary • After today’s lecture you should: • Understand the design studio component of this course and its role in Assignment 1 • Be able to give an effective criticism of a design • Be able to receive criticism