Design at the Edge – Where Art and Design Meet!
Interior designers create the environments we live, work, and play in. Join us as we discuss the transformations impacting the design process. Design at the Edge invites conversations around cutting-edge innovation, the climate change precipice, inclusion, evidence-based design, and the intersection of the arts and design.
Hosted by the Department of Design of the College of Visual Arts and Design at the University of North Texas, Denton, Texas.
Conference Host: Hepi Wachter, Ph.D., professor and chair, CVAD Department of Design
Lunch + Parking: Dietary Needs for Lunch and Parking Pass Needs: Due by Oct. 24, CVAD.Design@unt.edu.
Conference Rate
$145 per person | $85 for students
Suggested Local Lodging Options
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Denton UNT-TWU
Rooms starting at $103/night
4485 North I-35, Denton, TX 76207
940-808-0600
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Denton South
Rooms starting at $109/night
3180 S Interstate 35E, Denton, TX 76210
940-205-5100
Hampton Inn & Suites, Denton
Rooms starting at $100/night
1513 Centre Place Dr., Denton, TX 76205
940-891-4900
Event Location
College of Visual Arts and Design, Art Building, Room 282
1201 W. Mulberry St., Denton, Texas 76201
We will have parking passes for each day to use the parking lot on Welch Street across from the Art Building. Important: Communicate your parking pass needs to CVAD.Design@unt.edu by Oct. 24 with the subject line IDEC SW Regional Conference.
Day 1: Thursday, Nov. 2
8:30–9 a.m.: Registration and check-in – Pastries and Coffee, Art Building, Room 282
9–9:15 a.m.: Welcome + Conference Overview, SW Region Chair
Presentation Block 1
9:15–9:35 a.m.: The Safety Convergence of Chemical Exposure & Flammability
Debra Harris, Baylor University, Waco, Texas
This study aims to determine a fire barrier solution for upholstered furniture that improves fire suppression and decreases chemical exposure risks for occupants during normal use.
10:40 –11 a.m.: Explore the Relationship Between Color, Crowding and Time Passage in Examination Rooms
Jahnia Wright, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Texas
Using Virtual Reality to explore the relationship between color, crowding and time passage in examination rooms.
11:05–11:25 a.m.: Design Attributes of Healthcare Environments: Preferences between Female and Male Veterans
Payton Losh, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Texas
Self-Evaluation of Anxiety Inventory for Design Attributes of Healthcare Environments: Differences in Emotions and Preferences between Female and Male Veterans.
11:25–11:45 a.m.: Discussion
11:45–12:30 p.m. Keynote: Cassini Nazir “Designing Curiosity: A Beginners Guide”
Curiosity is powerful. Research tells us it has the power to enhance intelligence and increase perseverance. Curiosity propels us to deeper engagement, superior performance, and more meaningful goals.
Curiosity is a necessary—although often tacit—element in the design process. In many design processes, empathy is the first step. To understand others, we must be curious about what life might be like outside our experiences. How can we be more curious? Is it possible to invite others to be curious as well? We will explore a framework for designing curiosity.
This talk will give you an orientation to the strange, fascinating, and fragile phenomenon of being curious. Together, we will tackle these three topics:
- Defining curiosity: What is curiosity, and how does it manifest? We will learn the five faces of curiosity and—more importantly—what kind of curious you are.
- Producing curiosity: Humans can naturally produce curiosity—the question is, how? We discover the emotions that yield the by-product of curiosity and learn how curiosity may germinate.
- Inviting curiosity: How might we design ways to invite curiosity? We’ll look at a framework for inviting curiosity in your next design effort.
12:30–1:30 p.m.: Lunch. Important: Please communicate your dietary needs by Oct. 24, 2023, to CVAD.Design@unt.edu with the subject line IDEC SW Regional Conference.
1:30–1:55 p.m.: Poster Presentations Block 1
Perspective Play: A Game of Empathy
Donald Orf, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Okla.
Improving empathy towards gender identities by gamifying an experience one can have as a non-binary individual.
Coding-free VR for interior design education Zoom meeting
Hong Shih, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisc.
Cutting-Edge Interior Design: Coding-free VR Development for Interior Design Education
The Relationship Between Natural Lighting and Biophilic Elements and Children's Behaviors
Naila Hasan, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Okla.
“This study compared children’s behaviors with lighting and biophilic design in children’s libraries with distinctive design attributes.”
Presentation Block 2
2–2:20 p.m.: Digital Humanities and Design: An Exploration of Frank Lloyd Wright's Residences
Elise King, Baylor University, Waco, Texas
This presentation explores the application of digital humanities methodologies as a potential approach and method of inquiry for interior design researchers; these concepts are explored through “Visualizing Frank Lloyd Wright,” a digital humanities dashboard that connects interrelated data into a single digital corpus.
2:25–14:45 p.m.: Design for Motion: The Role of Spatial Cognition and Perception in Design
Kristi Gaines, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
Understanding and applying design features to address all the senses is necessary for providing beneficial spaces for all users.
2:50–3:10 p.m.: The Use of Artificial Intelligence in Interior Design Classrooms: Observations & Analysis
Nathaniel Walker, Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, Texas
Observation and the analysis of the use of virtual reality (VR) technology and its influence in interior design students' critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
3:10–3:30 p.m.: Discussion
3:30 - 3:45 p.m.: Coffee Break
Presentation Block 3
3:45–4:05 p.m.
The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Creative Thinking in Early Design Studios
Zahrasadat Hosseini, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Okla.
This study explores how the use of Creative AI can affect the concept generation phase of the design process and impact creativity in early design studios. The study used a mixed-method design to examine the effects of AI on the design process and found that participants who used AI assistance displayed more creativity in their design works.
4:10–4:35 p.m.: Vision Training for Designers
Tiziana Proietti, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Okla.
The Vision Training for Designers method focuses on enhancing students' perceptual ability in discerning properties of tectonic elements, such as proportions, distances, and sizes, through targeted exercises and the use of specialized tools.
4:40–5 p.m.: Child-Friendly Space, CFS, and Children’s Well-being in the Refugee Camps: A Systemic Review CFS and its Physical Environment in Responding Well-being
Salma Akter Surma, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Okla.
The study aims to explore the variability or commonness of CFS in different theoretical and practical contexts for conceptualizing and designing CFS and the reasons behind those.
5–5:20 p.m.: Discussion
5:30–7 p.m.: Reception, finger food, and open bar
College of Visual Arts and Design Gallery, Art Building, Room 160
Exhibition "Cey Adams – Departure, 40 Years of Art and Design"
Suggested Restaurants in Denton
Thai Square 209 W Hickory St #104, Denton, TX 76201
Hannah’s 111 W Mulberry St, Denton, TX 76201
Barley & Board 100 W Oak St, Denton, TX 76201
Komodo Loco 109 Oakland St, Denton, TX 76201
Hoochies 214 E Hickory St, Denton, TX 76201
Giuseppe’s 821 N Locust St, Denton, TX 76201
Queenies 115 E Hickory St, Denton, TX 76201
940’s Kitchen 219 W Oak St, Denton, TX 76201
Houlihan’s 3100 Town Center in the Embassy Suites Hotel, Denton, TX 76201
El Matador 720 W University Dr., Denton, TX 76201
Day 2: Friday, Nov. 3
9–9:30 a.m. Coffee and Pastries
Presentation Block 4
9:30–9:50 a.m.
Positive Leadership to Support the Health and Well-Being of Design Students and Faculty
Kristi Gaines, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas
The purpose of this investigation was to utilize a scientific approach to the identification of the general principles of happiness and determine ways to promote an environment of well-being and satisfaction in students, faculty, administration, and staff
9:55–10:15 a.m.
Towards Therapeutic Learning Environment: Investigating Public Library's Role in Refugee Children's Inclusion and Well-being
Salma Akter Surma, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Okla.
The study explores how public library design and facilities can ensure physiological, cognitive and social inclusion and well-being by applying therapeutic design strategies.
10:15–10:35 a.m.: Discussion
10:40–11:25 a.m.
Design at the Edge: What is inclusive design?
Natalie Ellis, Ph.D., University of North Texas, Denton, Texas
Panelists: Yeji Yi, Ph.D., and Ammara Faisal, Ph.D.
How have ADA and Universal Design created a path for creating Inclusive Design for the built environment and its understanding for 21st-century designers?
11:30–1 p.m.: Lunch, Awards, SW Region Business Meeting