Gabriel Maricich
Masters of Industrial Design The University of the Arts Philadelphia PA
Gabriel Maricich It is my belief that by bringing the blended background of musician, performer, researcher, field tester, developer and designer I can actively contribute to creating a more complete, dynamic and authentic experience. Some of the tools I employ frequently include: ethnographic analysis, interviewing, visualizing, prototyping, modeling, persona creation and storytelling to create a shared understanding. These tools and skills can be used to leverage insight to inform design concepts and strategies to make our world a better place, one person, experience and project at a time. Thank you, ~Gabe gabriel@maricich.org
0.5 design
Education
Masters of Industrial Design The University of the Arts, Philadelphia PA Sept. 2008 – May 2010 Bachelors of Music Benjamin T. Rome School of Music at Catholic University of America, Washington DC May 2005 Work experience
Sales and Product Expert Recreational Equipment Inc (REI) 2005-2008 Seattle, WA Freelance voice-over artist and musician 2000-present Worldwide
Design & Music
The strategic connection of design and music The creative process in design and music are incredibly complementary. Though the tools and methods are different, the process and strategies are very similar. Designers and musicians always imagine something better. We roughly and rapidly try new ideas, commit to one and perfect it until it gleams. Formally trained as a musician, I always focused on the audience experience. I found the musical creative process of learning (research), understanding (analyze), rehearsing (prototype), previewing for an audience (develop) and performing (produce) to be parallel to the design process.
1.0 design & music
REI experience
Product training. Field testing. Concept development. During the summer of 2007 I observed cyclists preparing for the Seattle to Portland ride. The weather was fairly sunny for Seattle. It struck me as odd after I noticed multiple riders doubling up on jerseys. “Why wear two jerseys when it’s easily hot enough to go without a shirt at all?” I engaged several riders in conversation and received some very surprising feedback. Multiple cyclists had been sunburned through their jersey! To solve the problem they wore two. There had to be a better solution. Along with our textile and material developers we found and tested a more protective material with a UPF factor of 40 and launched it throughout our cycling product line. 2.0 test & develop
Concept development.
User experience research.
Understanding your customer.
Sample testing.
Validating lab tests in the field.
What’s this strap for anyway? 2.5 test & develop
StudioNext
Tool and Concepts for Interdisciplinary Collaboration What tools and skills are necessary for interdisciplinary academic collaboration? Can we provide a framework that encourages and facilitates collaboration between students, faculty, departments, schools and industry? To this end we collected a representative group from all stakeholders; students, faculty and industry leaders. Together we developed a shared narrative to facilitate this collaborative effort. Once this framework and context was developed, I coauthored a collaboration guide. The StudioNext guide featured multiple case-studies which highlighted the necessity of industry collaboration and provided concepts and tools to encourage interdisciplinary work. Key Concepts: • multi-disciplinary collaboration • stakeholder presentation • design toolkit • focus groups
3.0 StudioNext
Multi-disciplinary focus groups discuss and visualize how they collaborate and what tools they use.
Small teams present struggles with collaboration and coping strategies.
Concepts and strategies are posted for further discussion, development and brainstorming.
Teams identify collaborative case-studies and further develop multi-disciplinary design toolkits.
Stakeholder presentation highlights findings, development and future plans.
Collaborative design guide book highlights case-studies and multi-disciplinary toolkit. 3.5 StudioNext
Team research project
The Philadelphia Green Kitchen What is the household kitchen? A space, a system, a portal or an organism? This year-long research project was devoted to understanding the effects and connection points of the kitchen as a complex physical and social system. Key concepts: ethnographic analysis interviewing user experience personas mapping research synthesis
4.0 PGK
Ethnographic analysis of the household kitchen experience.
Interviews develop shared understanding of flexible and varied use of kitchen.
Learning from the experts about their kitchen experience.
Creating personas and mapping kitchen workflow.
Visualizing and synthesizing first hand and analytical research findings.
Understanding hierarchy of user experience and desire. 4.5 PGK
Validating understanding through user feedback and critique.
Discussing common threads and concepts. 5.0 PGK
Trying to make sense.
Further refinement of concepts and analysis based on user feedback.
How does this all come together?
The Kitchen is not the problem rather, it is all the issues surrounding the kitchen.
The kitchen is inextricably connected to a myriad of external systems. In some ways it can be simpler to think of the kitchen as a portal through which resources and material pass through. By understanding how these complex systems interact and influence one another we have the opportunity to effect more fundamental and lasting change.
5.5 PGK
Finance Office Worker experience and spatial re-design
How much does a space influence your work? Can we help create a better experience by helping an office understand and redesign their space? For this project we embraced the constraint of having $0! Our question; how much effect can be had by only working with existing furniture and office equipment? 6.0 office
Key concepts: • interviews • mapping • personas • learning through play • modeling • work/desk flow • experience design
Understanding the existing condition.
Interviews to understand people and the nuance of their work.
More discovery and learning to do some of their tasks.
Mapping and observing where people go, what they do and how they do it.
Synthesizing qualitative and quantitative data.
Persona creation. 6.5 office
Learning through play. Simple game developed to further understand office dynamics.
Visualize and understand research results.
Mapping desk flow and work habits.
Physical modeling of office concepts.
Creating further dialogue through physical concepts and flexible models.
Validating research and analysis through ‘mirror’ presentations.
7.0 office
phone filing
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Conceptual office mapping highlights the effects of minimal layout change.
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check print
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3D model and rendering shows the ‘in office’ opportunity for further development. New Mapping open floorplan centralized universal tools Rose
Our client decided to invest $10,000 in this office based on our work and design research proposal. 7.5 office
Research and information mapping
Philadelphia Sound & Smog Map This map began as a concept to visually display and highlight information that is invisible or ignored. We measured sound and smog levels in the greater Philadelphia area. Some results were consistent with our expectations, high smog at the airport. Some were very unexpected (decibel levels at rush hour should require hearing protection for pedestrians). Key concepts: • information mapping • quantitative research • change management Functional application driven information mapping.
8.0 mapping
Gathering decibel readings throughout Philadelphia.