Thursday, November 29th, 7:00 – 9:30pm
Kinetic Design
In the Duncan Anderson Design Department Gallery at California State University, Long Beach
Ben Hopson presents the theory and practice of Kinetic Design, which involves the aesthetic design of physical movement. Numerous examples of student and professional work will be shown to help illustrate the relevance of Kinetic Design practice to the field of Industrial Design.
At this point in history, Industrial Design is poised to undergo major evolutionary changes. New technologies, new materials and increasingly sophisticated consumer tastes all demand colossal transformations. Perhaps most exciting among these is the development of Kinetic Design which entails the aesthetic design of physical movement. Through this practice, industrial designers will not just create forms, but choreograph those form’s movements through space. Kinetic Design will literally open a new dimension for the aesthetic development of physical objects and the world will be richer for it.
Ben Hopson is a designer, artist and educator working in Brooklyn, New York. After studying sculpture at Wesleyan University, he went on to receive his Master’s degree in Industrial Design from Pratt Institute in 2006. Along with his professional design work, Hopson has taught transportation design, kinetic product design, and 3D abstraction at Pratt Institute since 2008. He has also run design workshops at the Umea Institute of Design in Umea, Sweden.
Hopson is the creator of the discipline of Kinetic Design, which involves the aesthetic design of physical movement. Incorporating elements of Industrial Design, kinetic sculpture, engineering, Interaction Design, and puppetry, the field allows designers to animate products and spaces in new ways. Hopson’s recent work includes a toy, a line of moving jewelry, and a kinetic sculpture for a music video by the band Modest Mouse.
IDSA-LA 