Overview

This project acts as a communicative bridge where Interior Design students will work closely yet remotely between Coventry and Groningen. It will enhance your professional practice, understanding of live briefs and deadlines and will mean great attention to detail. In groups, you will closely map and investigate a site at each location and come up with innovative, playful yet practical proposals for a Pavilion Folly.

OIL Outcomes

• Use creative and critical thinking skills through exploration, experimentation, analysis and presentation working in collaboration with students from Hanze University in Groningen, Holland
• Use self-directed time appropriately and work as part of a team, developing interpersonal skills and intercultural awareness
• Communicate and present design research findings and solutions to peers and instructors at both HEIs through a variety of techniques and media and

OIL Activities

Interaction 1 / Stage 1 

11th January 2016: intro to project Lecture: The Folly Pavilion HS / groups assigned / studio project / planning

Interaction 2 / Stage 2

18th January 2016: lecture / tutorials / initial sketch development / decision making / communicating with peers

Interaction 3 / Stage 2

25th January: lecture  / project work

Interaction 4 / Stage 2

1st February: project work / skype meetings

Interaction 4 / Stage 3

08/02 Remote Presentation/showcase Skype/Online Submission (critical reflection, discussion, review)

OIL Outputs

Digital Posters; large-scale drawings & models, sketch book

By exchanging news and design process development, students discussed, ‘socialised’ via Skype and Facebook, for example. Through the interaction, the students gained understanding not only of the different design references, topographic conditions and geographic locations – but social aspects and cultural references too; for example, food, what students in Holland do after classes, where they socialise, play sport etc, discussing designers relating to UK/Holland, language skills (hearing another language being spoken and translated, seeing a different language being written etc; learning a few words).

Evidence of students developing intercultural awareness was seen in class discussions, blog posts, at the Skype Salon meeting and the outcome of the group projects. Each student evaluated the experience and the intercultural richness gained can be seen in the reflections/evaluations.

Overall the students had a very positive experience and we will continue working with OIL. The evaluations also showed that working in groups can be challenging and not everyone was interacting as much as the group would have hoped, but these are very useful and immediate team working challenges that they had the opportunity to [put to the test already in their first year.

 

Picture: https://pixabay.com/