Students 'Leave Their Mark' on Path to International Competition

Last year, two interior design students at Utah State University were among the top five student teams at the Tasmeen Doha, an international design conference hosted by Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar. This year, two more USU students, Natalie Ellis and Rebecca Bentley, have set their sights on the same competition, and signs of that effort were seen on campus during the week Oct. 8-12. The project grew out the senior design studio for interior design, where all students participated. Ellis and Bentley have taken the assignment on step farther.

For the past five years, the Tasmeen Doha competition has gathered scholars and practitioners in the fields of graphic, interior and fashion design to discuss current issues in design, while engaging with the school’s students and community members. The student project provides an opportunity to involve students from around the world in the conference and the issues it addresses. With a theme that changes every year, this year’s topic is “Design at the Crossroads: The Intersection of Change and the Future.”

 

The theme for the student project is “Give Me Shelter — Changing Lives, Changing Spaces,” and that’s where Ellis’s and Bentley’s efforts began. Looking at the broader theme of “shelter,” they identified a problem.

 

“Our focus is ‘shelter’ after a disaster,” Ellis said. “People need to get into better, and permanent, shelter after a disaster instead of temporary protection like tents and relocation. We need to solve the problem of permanent shelter quickly.”

 

Ellis and Bentley began their research, and a plan fell into place. They found that nearly eight million refugees around the world have spent five years or more living in refugee camps (figures from the World Refugee Survey, 2006).

 

“People are finding themselves displaced, living in tents and unfamiliar areas because of war and natural disasters,” Bentley said. “Their lives and spaces have changed. They are looking for something familiar.”

 

The pair found that speedy creation of transitional housing is imperative to return to normal activities and a livelihood.

 

“Refugees need to get out of camps and into their own shelter as they rebuild their lives near their communities, schools and families,” Ellis said.

 

The focus of their project is to raise awareness of this problem. To do that, Ellis and Bentley created a Web site that is full of information and ideas. Their mission is to help others learn more about the global housing issue and how it impacts millions of people. Their approach is to inspire others through educational efforts and on-site publicity through the project’s one-week timeframe. Their project provides information so others can use their ideas in cities everywhere.

 

On the USU campus, Ellis and Bentley installed a series of marks — graphic, artistic symbols — in the high traffic areas of the Quad and between Old Main and the Taggart Student Center. These marks on the sidewalk draw interest and direct people to the informative Web site. Others can incorporate this idea to place marks in cities everywhere. The eye-catching marks might be used on billboards, buildings, sidewalks and public transportation.

 

“Our mission is to help others learn more about the global housing issue and how it impacts millions of people,” Ellis said. “Our idea is to provide educational awareness and publicity through a one-week, city-wide art installation that demonstrates the lack of adequate housing around the world.”

 

Using an abstract approach through the use of the creative marks provides visual interest that links to intriguing statistics and facts that peak interest on an informative Web site. The information at the site can be tailored to specific cities, regions or countries.

 

Take a look at Ellis’s and Bentley’s Web site, and wish them well in the competition.

 

 

Contact: Natalie Ellis, natellis@cc.usu.edu
Contact: Rebecca Bentley, garrbent@gmail.com
Writer: Patrick Williams (435) 797-1354, patrick.williams@usu.edu