Haley Smolenski – Graduate Profile

Haley is a recent graduate of RMIT Universities Industrial Design program (Melbourne, Australia). Her final project is based around reducing the amount of bottled water being used and encouraging the use of drinking fountains. Enjoy and please take the time to leave your feedback and thoughts.

Highlights

• “The driving force behind my final project was a campaign to reduce the amount of people using bottled water”

• “Knowing what your most desirable outcome is and working backwards helps to put a realistic vision in place.”

• “Don’t always take design to seriously, at times you need to fail to learn. There is no better place to do this than while studying. I am not talking about failing subjects, but having an idea fail or turn out completely different from you thought it would originally.”

1. Haley, Welcome to Design Droplets. Thank you for taking the time to talk with me, could you please give me a quick introduction on yourself.

Thanks for having me here on Design Droplets. I have always been known for my day dreaming and creativity, as a child and stuck as a middle child in the outer suburbs of Melbourne there wasn’t all that much to do so I would amuse myself making things out of any thing that I could find. Working with my hands has always felt natural and is something I never tire of. I finished high school knowing that I needed a place that was diverse and creative where I could branch out and develop my skills.

I have never really been one to follow the pack, and see myself as more of a quite observer collecting information and ideas. Last week I finished and submitted my final project so my time as an Industrial Design student at RMIT has come to an end, I wish to pursue my studies in the Chinese (Mandarin) language which I have been studying alongside my final year. After studying abroad in China for a year I developed a deep interest and think it may also be beneficial to later on.

2. Can you tell me a bit about your final year project?

The driving force behind my final project was a campaign to reduce the amount of people using bottled water, as not only as its unsustainable environmentally and putting additional stresses on drought stricken areas, but its costs people a lot of money. Researching into why people don’t use tap water proved a need for the redesign of current drinking fountains and the system surrounding drinking fountains. People can’t refill bottles with the current designs, addressing issues of hygiene from how clean the water is to how clean the drinking fountain can be kept was also a major part.

The innovation in my final design comes from using a modular system so it can be easily upgraded and modified over time to suit different user and council needs. There are 3 main parts to the design, with an additional 2 depending on its location and user needs.

Part A is the basic design, just the mechanics of how it works with a faucet and a handle strapped to a pole secured into the ground.

Part B contains a covering for part A to protect it from the elements outside and to encase a water filter, as this helps to address peoples concerns about clean water.

Part C is a sculptural sink which provides information about the filtered water, and is something that can easily be recognised.

The other additional parts include a drain as this is needed when out in the streets and in park areas that lack good drainage design and a sculptural dog bowl that can be placed at the bottom and collect water to be placed in parks that are dog friendly. Please visit my blog to find out more about this project (I will shortly be uploading my thesis document).

3. Which part of the design industry do you hope to venture into?

That’s a hard one as my interests are quite diverse. I have recently found a passion for writing about design, but I would have to say social and sustainable design are two of my core interests. Sustainable design sets a certain criteria for my work and I find it to be more flexible as everyone can clearly see this from the start. I like to design products or systems that lead to change no matter how big or small this may be.

It is important to not loose focus as lots of people can come out and start comparing the real sustainability of objects and you just see what you are doing as entirely flawed, but some projects have to work in stages especially if you are changing peoples behaviour. Knowing what your most desirable outcome is and working backwards helps to put a realistic vision in place.

4. What would your dream project be, if you could design for anyone or design anything and put it into production?

My dream project sounds really nerdy, but I would love to create a design museum for other passionate creative people and children to ‘come and play’. I guess it comes from a strong passion for learning and the desire for a place where I could go and always gain inspiration.

I find that a really good exhibition at a museum has the right balance of observing, reading and interaction, where you walk away having had a good time and subconsciously learning at the same time. I imagine there to be a workshop in the middle that you could just play with any material you desire somewhere that can just fuel your creativity, make and create.

Reading random facts and interacting with exhibitions has always been something I loved. It would be less of a museum filled with history and more fuelled with play and experimentation, just a place to go when you get stuck and need to re-open up your mind. It would be a great project to work on as I love all stages of the design process from start of the idea, through the research, design concepts, refinement, prototypes and the final outcome that everyone sees and holds. I seem to be drawn towards larger time consuming projects, as with a smaller one it’s finished before I can really get stuck into it.

Maybe this could be done on some kind of small scale where it’s a design game aimed to help re-open your mind. I guess I feel that designers can do a lot when they start to get creative. I think we all need a tool or place to go to get re-motivated and fall back in love with design. I love to mixed hand crafted objects and pieces with larger scale productions. I guess a little bit of customisation can help to make something feel like you own.

5. Haley, thanks for taking the time to talk with us here at Design Droplets. Do you have any final thoughts to share with Design Droplets readers?

Thanks again for having me. My final thoughts, and some advice to other students, are engage in as many design competitions as you can, there as so many out there that its easy to find one that will suit your projects and interests. Don’t always take design to seriously, at times you need to fail to learn and there is no better place to do this than while studying. I am not talking about failing subjects, but having an idea fail or turn out completely different than you thought it would originally. Design can also use a bit more humour.

Lastly when undertaking a big project, follow leads and directions that  you are really passionate about, as it will give you the motivation and drive to overcome the hurdles along the way. Research is vital to any project, it can really shape and guide what we do as designers. Sometimes we all get caught up in our assumptions and just know why something is without fully understanding it, taking a few steps back and pretending we know nothing can reveal what is hidden. Try and engage as many like minded people in your project as you can, you will be amazed how many there really are when you start looking. Design for me is a social thing so getting feedback and enthusiastic people can only open up your mind and bring out creative ideas.

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November 30, 2009