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DANIELLE MOU
THESIS 2017
CONTENTS
RESEARCH 5
PREFACE
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GLASSES
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FOOTWEAR
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MATERIALS
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SERVICE BLUEPRINT
BUILDING 16
SKETCHES
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3-D MODEL
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RENDERINGS
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PROCESS
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WEB PRESENCE
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THESIS SHOW
PREFACE Every design decision presents itself with an opportunity to either include or exclude.
My research last semester was mainly focused on design for disability through the usage of smart textiles. However, I realized that I was tackling too large of a scope and needed to narrow down on (1) what type of disability and (2) what kind of textile. Looking back, I was too focused on the material choice and not giving enough attention to the real problem: bridging the worlds between design and disability. After having done research between consumer products for those with and without disabilities, I realized that there was so much more opportunity for the two worlds to inspire and influence each other.
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SOCIAL
In the context of an environment or society that takes little or no account of impairment, people’s activities can be limited and their social participation restricted. People are therefore disabled by the society they live in. (Pullin, 2009, page 2)
As stated in my previous book, disability arises not within the individual, but within the society that fails to take into account the needs of all potential users. I soon began wondering what it would be like to design within the mainstream culture, and change how designers implement patronizing products that serve as assistive technology. The question soon became: how can mainstream culture adapt to the disability rather than how can disability adapt to mainstream.
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Pullin, Graham. Design Meets Disability. Cambridge, Mass. ;London: MIT, 2009. Print.
DISCRETION
Design for disability often prioritizes enablement, while attracting as little attention as possible from outside parties. This can be seen most evidently in skin colored medical devices that attempt to camouflage as skin. Rather than projecting a positive image, this approach is more about trying not to project any image at all. But this invisibility approach might send out the wrong message: that disability is something to be ashamed of. There has to be a happy medium between stigmatizing products that call out too much attention, and hidden properties that hide the individual. I had done a lot of research into mainstream products that attempted this but I was unaware of the most obvious product that is designed for disability that I use everyday: glasses.
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GLASSES
Glasses are frequently held up as an exemplar for design for disability due to the fact that mild vision impairment is not commonly considered to be a disability. However, glasses were not always designed as a fashion accessory. It has come a long way since spectacles were classified as medical appliances back in the 1930’s and were the cause of social humiliation. It was even dictated that glasses should not be ‘styled’, only ‘adequate’. Some sixty years later, the design press has declared that eyeglasses have become ‘stylish’ thanks to the few manufacturers who offered fashionable glasses. Today, up to 20 percent of glasses are purchased with clear nonprescription lenses. Compared to the 1930’s when wearing glasses was humiliating, consumers are now wearing them as a sign of style, class and self-expression. How does discretion come into play when analyzing the success of glasses? Not only are glasses placed on the body in the most optimal spot for public viewing, but they also come in different forms. You would never see someone wearing skin-toned glasses as a means to camouflage, but you do see people in contact lenses everyday. The versatility of glasses really stood out to me when I was researching. The fact that I never considered my glasses as a product for disability while I was researching the very topic, proves how successful it is. Glasses are not invisible, but they also do not hold any negative image within consumers’ minds.
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MEDICAL APPLIANCE
FASHION
A phenomenon happened: spectacles have now become eyewear. This came with a slew of changed perspectives - ones that were currently missing from design for disability. Users have now become wearers. People don’t use glasses now, they wear them. The relationship between designer and the person being designed for has changed and become more personal. This shifted the perspective of glasses from a medical model to a social model of prescription. What was before a device used for vision correctness, is a key fashion accessory. And so, I had come up with my design goal: to incorporate discreet design properties to move inclusive design into the forefront of the design process.
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FOOTWEAR
The idea of footwear first popped into my mind after an interview with someone with Cerebral Palsy. For personal privacy, I will refer to this person as Sam from here on out. Cerebral Palsy effected the way Sam walked and caused her to apply pressure to the tip of her shoe while walking. The force put onto the toe would cause immense wear in a particular area of the shoe. There were two choices Sam had when deciding on a new pair of shoes: durable and expensive or non-durable and cheap. Her favorite pairs of shoes would unfortunately be worn less to decrease wear - which misses the whole point of having a favorite pair! After our first meeting, I did research on how common this problem was and found forums, blogs and webpages that shared the same condition of wear in shoes. Most of the pictures posted online were also relatively similar in the areas that were worn down. So, if this is such a problem within the CP community, how has no one tackled it? Mainstream footwear is so evident in our culture today. Consumers crash online webpages and camp out in front of stores just to get the latest kicks. The material of high-end sneakers are not purposeful to the design and only serve to increase the sale price. A change in material choices to fit those with other capability needs could change how consumers view inclusive design...but it has to be done right.
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PRESSURE POINTS The tip of the shoe does not lift up from the group completely during step transitions. This constant pressure and force causes the front of the shoe to wear down in a matter of weeks with everyday wear. This forces people to have to constantly purchase new shoes daily.
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MATERIAL PART
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SERVICE BLUEPRINT
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SKETCHES
I took inspiration from laceless, layered sneaker designs. I wanted to utilize elastic for support and comfortability for the main body.
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BASIC DESIGN FORM
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3-D MODEL
Sole Based on user’s wear pattern, I wanted the sides and the bottom parts of the sole to be able to separate. The side parts would also serve as support to prevent rolling, and the treads on the bottom of the sole are for stability and traction.
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3-D MODEL
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3-D MODEL Upper
The ďŹ nal upper is composed of mainly elastic parts (tongue tag, body strap, back strap). I ďŹ rst worked on the sole and then worked my way up the body. There are two separate layers that make up the body. The outer layer does not wrap all the way around the upper and serves mainly an aesthetic effect.
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3-D MODEL
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RENDERINGS
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RENDERINGS
PROCESS | SOLE
The sole had to printed in three parts because the 3-D printer bed was not big enough. After printing, the parts were acetone welded together along the seams. After, the model was ďŹ lled, sanded, primed and ďŹ nished in white matte paint. I drilled into the side pieces and the sole to embed magnets.
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PROCESS | UPPER
I ďŹ rst taped up my 3-D printed last and drew out my pattern on the masking tape. I then cut it into a pattern with a half inch seam allowance. I repeated the same step for all my individual layers and glued it all together with contact cement.
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WEB PRESENCE
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WEB PRESENCE
Materials call out
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Resole page
Customization
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THESIS SHOW
END REMARKS The culmination of a year’s worth of research, sweat and tears on a poster. I am very happy with the end result of my footwear project. Although I was skeptical to go down this path in the beginning, I am glad I framed it the way I did and put more emphasis on inclusion rather than just another shoe project. I was pretty lost in the first semester and was struggling to narrow down my scope, but thanks to my peers and professors I was able to finally choose a path to focus on. It was a lot of hard work, but nonetheless a fun last deliverable.
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