class of 2017
thesis work :
Who we are :
Adi Azulay
My work focuses on the crossover between interaction design and the physical world. I think inclusively with all users in mind, especially those in the extremes, I believe they can teach us the most. Experimentation plays a big part in my work, whether it's testing a concept or learning how to send smoke signals, there are always new ways to learn.
aazulay@risd.edu
Kate Brandy
I have a genuine curiosity about peoples thoughts and behaviors and how to best design for them in different contexts.
kbrandy@risd.edu
Atulya Chaganty
Outside of design, I am a tutu wearing tennis player, fruit joke enthusiast, and a nail polish aficionado that loves to spend time with other humans.
achagant@risd.edu
Christina Chen
Jerry Ding
Jerry is fascinated with observing interactive relationships and connecting the dots between people, products and the environment by creating tangible products. Believing that designers should think sustainably, design humanly, he uses design as a tool to understand users' thoughts, convey his perspectives and explore a sustainable future. Outside design, he loves animals, jogging, reading novels, and doodling on the scrap paper.
jding@risd.edu
Ryan Ferguson
With the mark of a craftsman, tinkerer, and roboticist, Ryan plays with objects that bridge the analog and digital realms. Obsessed with a romantic notion of old-world techniques colliding with emerging technology, his recent work explores the digital augmentation of traditional hand tools. Formally trained as an architect, Ryans passion for design stems from the ease with which he can transform into a temporary expert to continuously fill his brain with new things. Outside of design, Ryan enjoys spending time with his camera, cast iron skillet and dogs.
rferguso@risd.edu
Dan Gioia
Wudi Hong
Shao Hsuan
Xiaoxiao Jin
Xiaoxiao is passionate about bringing new ideas and unique perspectives to the team. Xiaoxiao's work includes graphic design, photography, and installations expanding beyond traditional user experience and product design. She believes everything in life can inspire you when you know it, feel it and digest it. She has experience working on a variety of projects ranging from user experience design to design strategy. Xiaoxiao believes a good design should be based on abundant knowledge of the field and insights of consumers' needs. Every design challenge is an opportunity to think deeper about people.
xiaoxiaojin0502@gmail.com
Jiaxuan Li
Kasia Matlak
I enjoy getting to know people that I design for, and I emphasize including the user in the design process. I put research first - I use ethnography, quantitative, and qualitative research - I don't only interview people but I also talk with them to get to know them. I like to understand how they feel and how I can help. I let research dictate the medium of the end product. I am passionate about challenging myself, learning new things, and meeting new people. I am learning so I can design accessible assistive technologies for people of all abilities.
kmatlak@risd.edu
Alyssa Mayo
Alyssa is a product designer who is in love with traditional craft as much as new technology. This tension led to her graduate work around the human emotional attachment to physical things in this era of digital efficiency and dematerialization. Her professional background in design strategy and consumer research accounts for her human-centered process and seemingly random knowledge in a variety of industries.
alyssarachelmayo@gmail.com
Hanna McLaughlin
I am driven to understand the core of people's emotional and behavioral motivations to inspire simple and empowering design solutions.
hanna.l.mclaughlin@gmail.com
Namrata Phirke
Namrata developed her passion for user-centered design while traveling to healthcare centers across India during her undergraduate study in Product Design. She enjoys solving problems to make people's lives better. Her growing interest in consumer products and healthcare has led her to design a system that encourages young adults to adopt healthy eating habits. In addition to work, Namrata spends ample time experimenting in her kitchen and cooking for her friends.
nphirke@myportfolio.com
nphirke@risd.edu
Court Skabelund
Growing up in the mountains of Utah, Court has incorporated the outdoors and athletics into his designs as much as possible. His current work explores the future of sport outside the gender-binary. It is here where the next wave of athletes will shape how our greatest pastimes are played. Outside of design, he will be found traveling the world to pursue his love of climbing.
cskabelu@risd.edu
Tim Stoelting
Working at the busy intersection of art, design, and narrative, Tim Stoelting explores concepts and materials by questioning our perception of reality using deception and satire. One such project proposes home furniture with added functions to help people better prepare for and survive an impending apocalypse. Since 2013, he has been acting as NASAs artist-in-residence -- a program long cancelled by a skeptical US Congress.
Ala Tannir
Creama Wang
Creama Wong is an industrial designer who loves to work with physical products to create enjoyable and meaningful interactions that bridge rationality and fantasy.
She values thoughtful, humorous, and functional simplicity, while aiming to create interactions that celebrate not only objects but a unique experience that bring objects to life.
creamawhat@gmail.com
Lokesh Zope
I am an industrial designer and a mechanical engineer with an extreme penchant for and curiosity about our emotional relationships with things. Design, for me, is a process of transformation and creation of ideas that results into something meaningful. I like to approach all my ventures with a zest and passion for excelling and to create something consequential. I believe that the world we live in is the one we create for ourselves and we have the strength to change it for the better.
lzope@risd.edu
lokesh.zope@gmail.com
Zixin Xiong
Zixin has tried many times to get into the wonderland of design philosophy. She will send you a message if she succeeds. When you receive it, please reply to her as soon as possible. Thank you.
zxiong@risd.edu