Furniture Design Commons^™

For Now, Eriq Wities

Masters Theses

…For Now follows a body of furniture made as the culmination of four years of intense transition. Through personal narratives, I reflect back on my work, investigating and recognizing the value of impermanence in relation to hand handcrafted heirloom furniture, using beautiful, functional, livable pieces as tools able to register time rather than resist it.

This thesis considers what it means to make heirloom objects for lives that are never fixed. The pieces are meant to be touched, used, altered, and continued. They are finished only for now.

Function Follows Material, Pablo Ejarque González

Masters Theses

Dear Designer,

How often do we find ourselves lost in the design process, unsure of the next steps? It’s tempting to view every aspect of design as a problem needing a solution. However, function is not a problem. For a long time, I approached design from a problem-solving perspective, treating material as a secondary consideration after the idea had already formed. This approach needed to change.

This book is a journey—a map of material exploration. It is an embrace of experimentation and innate curiosity. Many of the experiments conducted did not culminate in finished furniture pieces, yet this does not …

Utopian Fantasy, Yue Zhuo

Masters Theses

I design furniture and objects to express my utopian fantasy to people. I hope users can imagine the fantasy through the interaction with my furniture and objects. While people are interacting with my works, they become part of the fantasy. My works are the NPCs (nonplayer characters) of a game created by myself, called Utopian Fantasy.

My works are creature-istic, anthropomorphic, and always interactive. They are inspired by nature and everyday life. This series of works I created during my time at RISD express my appreciation for the underwater world and the Internet. My designs beg for interaction and play. …

Erik Degiorgi, Erik Degiorgi

Masters Theses

Where I started two years ago is a very different place from where I am today. At the outset of my time at RISD I knew very little about what it meant to be a designer. I lacked confidence, yet still entered this program with strict ideas about the nature and outcome of my work.

Over the course of four traditional semesters and two winter sessions, I gradually moved away from my original, self-imposed fears and constraints. Not coincidentally, my work expanded into areas I had not conceived of previously. It has been an illuminating journey, and while I am …