News

  • January 23, 2023

    logo for Lazzoni.

    Metaproject 13 heads to New York City Design Week 2023

    Students who took part in Metaproject 13 will have their designs showcased as part of the 2023 New York City Design Week courtesy of their client, Lazzoni. In the fall, students spent the semester working to design seating solutions for the alumnus-owned international furniture company. All of the designs presented will be prototyped by Lazzoni, a first in Metaproject’s history.

  • August 26, 2022

    several students sitting around a rectangular table taking notes on a presentation.

    RIT’s Metaproject 13 will collaborate with alumnus’ furniture company

    Students in RIT’s Metaproject course will design and create seating solutions for international furniture company Lazzoni. Metaproject pairs RIT student designers with a client partner in what has become a seminal experience for the College of Art and Design’s nationally ranked industrial design bachelor’s program.

  • May 11, 2022

    view of New York City at dusk.

    RIT students, faculty, and alumni ready to descend on Manhattan for Design Week

    After a three-year pause because of the pandemic, students, faculty, staff, and alumni from the College of Art and Design will descend on Manhattan this week for NYCxDesign—New York City’s annual celebration of design that attracts hundreds of thousands from around the globe—which is marking its 10th year.

  • June 17, 2021

    Tiree Walker shows sketches of his The New Statue design to archivist Ella von Holtum.

    Student design added to RIT Archives

    Tiree Walker '21 (Industrial Design) created a pedestal that collects suggestions from the community that drive informed discussion and decisions on monument construction. His process work will be preserved and studied by future generations.

  • May 12, 2021

    two presenters standing on either side of a TV screen that says: metaproject 11.

    Podcast: Metaproject 11 with Staach 

    Intersections: The RIT Podcast, Ep. 48: Design must play a critical role as society faces difficult discussions and works to create a new balance in a troubled world. Josh Owen, director of the Vignelli Center for Design Studies, and Seth Eshelman '06, founder of sustainable design firm Staach, discuss their Metaproject collaboration.

  • April 23, 2021

    Eric Avar speaking at a podium.

    RIT alumnus, Nike VP Eric Avar appointed second 2021 commencement speaker

    Eric Avar ’90 (industrial design), Nike’s vice president and creative guide of innovation design, has been selected as a 2021 commencement speaker on May 14 and 15. Avar, who was honored with the College of Art and Design Distinguished Alumni Award in 2016, joins Andrea Ghez—a 2020 Nobel Prize winner in physics—as the university’s first-ever dual commencement speakers during a two-day celebration of the Class of 2021.

  • August 26, 2020

    presenters standing at front of class with students in person and viewing from a laptop.

    RIT’s Metaproject will collaborate with alumnus’ sustainable design firm

    For Metaproject 11, senior industrial design students will spend the semester designing products for Staach, which focuses on functional sustainable design. Founded by Seth Eshelman '06 (industrial design/graphic design), the company designs and domestically manufactures sustainable products including furniture, interiors, and built structures.

  • July 9, 2020

    Professor Josh Owens sitting on sofa.

    Josh Owen named director of RIT’s Vignelli Center for Design Studies

    Josh Owen, an internationally renowned designer, author and faculty-researcher who has led RIT’s industrial design program to national prominence since coming to the university a decade ago, has been named the new director of the Vignelli Center for Design Studies and the Massimo and Lella Vignelli Distinguished Professor of Design.