The interior design practicum establishes an awareness of the vastly decreasing population in Canada’s rural regions, specifically within the Prairie Provinces, due to a socially increased concentration on the development of urban centers. The project also brings attention to a progressive focus on privatization, isolation and segregation in today’s society. Through the research, analysis and design conducted, the practicum demonstrates one possible alternative to seclusion issues fostered in detached living found throughout rural Canadian regions today that better cater to their demographics and may entice populace to remain or move to these rural areas. With a focus on continuity, the consistent existence of historical and cultural preservation over time while progressing and evolving with contemporary innovations and ideas, the practicum’s underlying basis is to acknowledge the importance of rural, cultural and historical continuity through an alternative intergenerational cohousing model. By following ideas in the development of a suitable ‘home’ environment, integrated living strategies, critical regionalist design and adaptive reuse techniques, the rural cohousing project develops a solution that combines all three continuity components mentioned and promotes regional identity, community-oriented living and cross-age learning and networking.

The interior design practicum establishes an awareness of the vastly decreasing population in Canada’s rural regions, specifically within the Prairie Provinces, due to a socially increased concentration on the development of urban centers. The project also brings attention to a progressive focus on privatization, isolation and segregation in today’s society. Through the research, analysis and design conducted, the practicum demonstrates one possible alternative to seclusion issues fostered in detached living found throughout rural Canadian regions today that better cater to their demographics and may entice populace to remain or move to these rural areas. With a focus on continuity, the consistent existence of historical and cultural preservation over time while progressing and evolving with contemporary innovations and ideas, the practicum’s underlying basis is to acknowledge the importance of rural, cultural and historical continuity through an alternative intergenerational cohousing model. By following ideas in the development of a suitable ‘home’ environment, integrated living strategies, critical regionalist design and adaptive reuse techniques, the rural cohousing project develops a solution that combines all three continuity components mentioned and promotes regional identity, community-oriented living and cross-age learning and networking.

Decoration holds a contested position in built environment scholarship. Largely marginalised by Modernist claims of material and structural integrity, decoration is often sidelined as the most temporal and superficial of built environment practices. A common misunderstanding is that decoration and interior design merely make built space fashionable. The thesis challenges the misconception of interior design as gratuitous embellishment, and demonstrates how a reconsideration of the term ‘decoration’ makes new insights available for both contemporary practice and scholarship in interior design. I contend that if decoration can be considered a vehicle through which ideas, such as the cultural veneration of appearances and the social motivations of fashion are explored, it can be understood as representative of contemporary cultural concerns.

I started this project with a mindset that I want to design something for younger generations living in the future megacities. After a while, trying to figure out their urban mobility needs, I came to this conclusion: Already today we have so many different options for urban com- muting as well as several different car sharing services. I couldn’t find a way to create some- thing new. I changed my approach and I started thinking; what is it that they don’t have? I pret- ty soon understood it. They have no nature. By the year 2040, 70% of world’s population is expected to live in urban areas. This, in turn, is diminishing the natural environments around the globe. Needless to say, that people are becoming more and more disconnected from nature. In my research I quoted George Monbiot from The Guardian: “If Children lose contact with nature, they won’t fight for it.” This de- scribes the problem to the core. Coming gen- erations need to know where all that we have comes from. This is why I decided to create a way, people in megacities can connect to nature instantly. Volkswagen V-Trek offers an instant escape to nature from megacities to conservation areas around the world. With an immersive full-body experience, V-Trek engages people with nature, as well as with Volkswagen as a brand. The concept is demonstrated in a visual story. The scenario of the events was created based on predictions and possible events in the future. Most of the time in my process I used for research about VR and other technologies related to the topic. As the physical movement is an important part of the concept, and because I wanted to enhance it on the platform, I spent time trying to figure it out. When things started to get together, I began to shape quick mockups in 3D for development of the form and archi- tecture. Later on in the process, it was easy to transform those mockups into sketch models and for testing in VR. The most important part of the project was the story and scenario, which justifies and ex- plains the whole concept. I started planning the scenario and the details early on which made it easier for me to visualize it in finalization phase. This project also raises a question: What comes next in the field of transportation and mobil- ity? For years’ cars and transportation have remained the same. We move from place A to B, this is what I call: Physical transportation. Right now we are living times of change as autono- mous technology is finally breaking through. However, cars have always been about the driv- ing experience and in autonomous future; trav- eling experience. Because of the changing atti- tudes towards cars amongst youth, cars are not seen as a pleasant experience anymore. Rather as a necessity. Experiences engage users with brands, whether it is a smartphone or a car, and this is what young users appreciate. When Physical transportation is no longer delivering that experience, car brands need to figure out a way to engage the users. This is where Mental Transportation changes the game. Mental Transportation is a term I came up with along the process and as the name suggests, it enables users to travel in their mind. With the idea of mental transportation, I want to chal- lenge everyone to think differently and with an open mind about the future of mobility and transportation.

This dissertation is an exploration of the realm of cultural production associated with graphic design. Graphic design is a ubiquitous, yet largely invisible, professional practice that nevertheless contributes substantially to the make-up of our visual culture. Drawing on emergent strands of enquiry associated with the critical cultural studies and especially with ethnographic approaches to the study of cultural production, Graphic Design/Graphic Dissent investigates the ideological limits to agency of graphic designers by focusing on calls for greater social responsibility emanating from within this milieu. It begins by drawing on Richard Johnson's model of the circuit of culture (Johnson 1986/87), a conceptual schema intended to represent the production and reproduction of meanings and values within culture. A modification of this model—called the “short circuit”—is proposed as a way to account more fully for the rarefied habitus (Bourdieu 1984) associated with the cultural intermediaries. Graphic designers, then, like ad creatives (Soar 1996; 2000a), fashion designers (McRobbie 1998), and radio (Henderson 1999) and television (Dornfeld 1998) producers, embody a series of contradictory impulses, which are both institutional and subjective. Graphic Design/Graphic Dissent also reviews the body of critical, historical, and journalistic writing emanating from within graphic design culture, evaluating it for both its advancements and limitations; a key strand of debate within this discourse relates to the politics of feminism and professional practice. Chief among the graphic design interventions explored here are: culture jamming and Adbusters magazine; and, the First Things First Manifesto 2000 (a formal call for greater social and professional responsibility among designers). Also discussed are the following groups and individuals: Gran Fury, Queer Nation, RTMark, Women's Design and Research Unit (WD+RU), We Interrupt the Programme, Jan van Toorn and Sheila Levrant de Bretteville. It is ultimately argued that a formal distinction must be made between the notions of “politics” associated with high-profile, even spectacular, interventions, and those relating to more modest, local, and marginal initiatives.

The dissertation sits within the theoretical context of social cohesion theory; aspects of space that fosters social cohesion as well as the manipulation of the public market typology are investigated as research questions. The Sunnyside area in Tshwane is the physical context within which the design project is located and is observed as being in a state of social divergence. The design issue to be addressed is outlined in the following statement: The adaptive reuse of the Sunnyside Galleries building by introducing a public food market, restaurant and drinks bar to create opportunities for casual encounters and cultural exchange for the purpose of fostering social cohesion within space. / Dissertation (MInt(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2014. / Architecture / MInt(Prof) / Unrestricted

The shape of the lumbar and thoracic spinal curves in healthy subjects, when standing and when adopting a variety of working positions, was investigated using angular measures. The hypothesis that spinal and pelvic posture is determined by body position was supported. The mechanism by which body position influences spinal and pelvic posture was investigated using angular indices of the lengths of the hip flexors and extensors. The hypothesis that hamstring stretch determines postural adaptation to sitting positions was not supported. A multivariate analysis revealed that an index of iliopsoas length was the best predictor of posterior pelvic tilt in a variety of sitting positions. A supplementary investigation was carried out using data on the range of motion of the pelvis in the different body positions and its relationship to the muscle length indices. The role of the hamstring muscles in sitting posture was clarified. Some electromyographic data is presented to further illustrate the effect of body position on the role of the hip and trunk muscles in posture. A replication of the main findings and an investigation of some of the practical implications of the work were carried out drawing attention to some mechanisms of postural stress, potential problems of increased lumbar lordosis and their cost-effective alleviation through workspace design. The provision of a footrest, for example, was found to have significant effects on lumbar and pelvic angles in standing as well as in sitting. Further research into standing posture in the workplace is indicated by these findings. Some hypotheses for future investigation are presented.

No description available.

The nature of this essay explores the implementation of research-based design to the senior living concept and showcases how design can improve and empower the lives of our seniors as they hit retirement age. Over the course of the essay, the project will begin as a concept and navigate its way through the design processes until the concept is fully developed as a stand-alone package that speaks for itself. Maidstone Estates is built upon the guidelines of the Green House Project and outlines the mixed-use nature of design involving branding, building code, ADA compliance, universal design, and the three acuity levels of senior living: Independent Living, Assisted Living, and Memory Care. As of now, there are over 371 Green House homes across the country. This essay is designed to utilize the research-based design and implement it into the aesthetic of East Hampton, an area where there is a set standard for architecture and lifestyle, and to show that this model can be used anywhere and transform eldercare across the country and around the world.

Computer simulations have developed as communication tools in interior design. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of two types of computer simulation: passive walk-through animation of an interior design on the PC monitor and immersive walk- through of the same interior design in the CAVETM. This effectiveness was decided in terms of communicating basic visual information, such as visual forms, spatial relationships, colors, and textures. Sixty voluntary subjects chosen from faculty, staff, and graduate students at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University were tested experimentally and interviewed. The interior design of the Visualization and Animation Laboratory in the Advanced Communications and Information Center, which is under construction on the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, was simulated by the two types of computer simulation and shown to the participants. This study found that the simulation in the CAVETM was more effective than that on the PC in terms of communicating information about visual forms and spatial relationships in interior design. However, the PC was more effective in communicating information about colors. In terms of textures, no difference was shown. The simulation in the CAVETM appears to have more of a three-dimensional perception and makes people feel as if they were actually present in the space. Both technologies can have a role for general introduction to interior spaces. However, people gain more information in the CAVETM simulation. / Ph. D.