Capstone Design Studio
Rebekah Hilton
My design philosophy is to "refine the chaos". Design is the crossroads of numerous schools of thought. It understands the intricacies of politics, ethnography, psychology, and commerce. It uses the tools of technology, research, and creativity to produce elegant solutions to often convoluted problems. The "chaos" is the unknowns at the beginning of a project. In my process, I branch out, collecting every bit of information I can. One piece of information leads to another which leads to two or three more. Before I know it, I have created a diverse web of information. "Refining" is the act of going through this web and picking out the solution patterns I feel best match the project brief. Similar to the mathematical chaos theory, these patterns are not readily apparent until a full picture is visible of the entanglement. In short, my philosophy is to create a network of chaos throughout my design process that I refine down into a series of solutions that I discern are the best to address the problem at hand.
Project Process Book
For this project, I set out to create a product to counteract the negative effects quarantine/working from home has had on my friends and coworkers. Throughout the project, I consulted with young professionals who are working from home and struggling with productivity guilt, work-life balance, and burnout. The main problem I identified from my target user is that even though they are just as productive at home as they were in the office, they feel like they are accomplishing nothing because the results of their long hours of work are not visible to them from their homebound laptop. Unlike in the office environment, where projects get shown off to large groups of people in person or physical deliverables can be held, the home is limited to the professional and their personal belongings.
Vite Air aims to counteract this loss of tangibility by gamifying the workday. The vine grows taller with more work done. In real-time, the user can see the fruits of their labor. Vite Air has received great feedback from my target users, who think the solution elegant and fun. They also appreciate the considerations taken for desk airspace hygiene.
About Me
Rebekah Hilton
I am a designer driven by my passion for solving everyday problems with an evolving perspective. I love finding and researching unconventional technologies and envisioning ways to apply them in real-world scenarios. My strengths lie in coming up with out-of-the-box ideas actualized through sketching, low fidelity prototyping, CAD modeling, and final product visualization.
Most of all, I want my designs to make a positive impact. To accomplish this, I center my process around user needs and desires. My purpose as a designer is to listen, learn, and grow with every new challenge and project that comes my way.
Thanks for reading. Feel free to reach out. I hope you enjoy my work!