Lifetime Opportunity
Study Abroad in Paris, France
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Study Abroad in Paris, France ***
I was fortunate enough to be accepted (press release) by the French Embassy into the Community College in France Bootcamp this summer.
I spent 14 days in Paris with a group of community college students from all over the US.
We had the privilege of creating at the prestigious L’École nationale supérieure des Arts Décoratifs (EnsAD) in Paris, France.
Over the course of two weeks, I experienced French food, art and culture. I also got to work with a talented group of French designers, SKIPT, who specialize in ecology and sustainability with their projects.
The team of three taught me a different way of thinking when it comes to design: instead of trying to solve all the problems at once, I should think about the main problem and the simplest solution.
There is always room to add on and make more involved changes to a project, but by beginning with the basics, you have the freedom to go anywhere with a design.
The project we, as small groups, were assigned to create was a shelter. It could be any kind of shelter, but we had to think how we could make it sustainably.
We thought collaboratively about what shelter and ecology meant to us. We were tasked to brainstorm words we associate with shelter and ecology and how the seemingly different subjects could then be combined to create an ecologically friendly structure.
By the end of the brainstorming session, we had a poster sized paper filled with ideas.
The group I was part of decided to create a protective shelter for hikers of the Sierra Nevadas in Olancha, California.
The first principle was to create a shelter to protect human life in the wilderness. We named our project the Stop & Go and wanted it to be a refuge for hikers to have a few minutes rest, or an overnight safe space.
During the planning process, one of our goals was to think about what resources would be available to us at the location of our shelter. This helped us decide what materials would work best to create a sustainable shelter.
The primary objective was to make sure our shelter was sturdy enough to withstand the elements and wild animals.
The outer structure was to be made of a mixture of wood chips and concrete.
(we found an example this at a Paris materials library, MateriO’).
Wood chips could be scavenged and mixed with concrete at the build site to make a strong structure with insulating capabilities and fire resistance.
The structure would have a bamboo frame with a wire mesh to hold the concrete mixture.
An internal layer of wool would add to the insulating properties, while also providing an additional layer of fire protection.
(Bamboo and wool are quickly replenished,
making these sustainable design choices)
For four days, we created iterations of our shelter. We added windows with protective screens, a stainless steel door, a roof escape hatch, GPS tracking unit, and a dual purpose reflective pole and alert mechanism.
By the end of the week, each group had a model of their shelter. As a surprise to us, we set up an exhibition at the Musée des Arts et Métiers (CNAM) and presented the shelters to our instructors and the administration of the study abroad program.
I feel honored to say I have presented a design project at a museum exhibition in PARIS, FRANCE!
This study abroad experience has opened my eyes to different ways of thinking about design.
My goal is to always continue learning to broaden my knowledge and realize I will never know everything. I can only hope to learn something new every day.
STAY CREATIVE MY FRIENDS!
