Head of Department:
Univ.-Prof. Stefan Diez
The study programme teaches students to engage with
design, which comprises a variety of analytical and creative processes and stages.
Our approach to design starts
with the human being. It is based on analysing human needs in specific contexts. We consider design as actively creating our
material environment while being aware of social, political, cultural, ecological and economic interdependencies. In doing
so we are particularly considerate of our dynamically changing coexistence and our responsibility for a valuable common future.
This approach aligns our department with the tradition and philosophy of design history at the University of Applied Arts
Vienna.
Throughout the course of studies, we put a wide range of theoretical knowledge in vivid interrelation with
skills gained regarding materials and manufacturing, as well as presentation and transfer methods. Various labs and workshops
encourage experiments and the creation of prototypes.
We consider the transfer of knowledge within small
groups, critical discussions and direct reasoning between teaching staff and students to be vital; this aspect both supports
and structures our design courses. The multitude of methods and the confrontation with various approaches and ways of thinking
enable students to develop and hone their distinctive creative profile. They learn to situate their designs within respective
contexts.
Subsequent vocational activities are freelance, in businesses or institutions, in areas of science, teaching
and research. The course of studies enables graduates to apply their individual design language and make it comprehensible
to others. It also qualifies them to influence the current design discourse by adding their own approach that is based on
the awareness of cultural, social, economic, ecological and political responsibility.
