Design Week, idUS and 200Columbus
As part of idUS, the 200Columbus signature event showcasing innovation and design, staff of planning NEXT were engaged in supporting Columbus’ inaugural Design Week. Design Week 2012, organized by the Center for Architecture and Design, in collaboration with the Columbus Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, is a festival about design and about all the ways that design appears in our lives. It consists of a series of programs meant to educate and inspire, reveling in the unique role that design plays in Columbus. Design Week’s mission is three-part: to foster an appreciation for the power of creative “design thinking”, to elevate expectations for what good design is, and to raise awareness of the importance of design industries to our local economy.
Ideabooks
Sarah Bongiorno of planning NEXT and her husband Michael Bongiorno, principal at Design Group, are Design Week’s Co-Directors. Among the various projects and events they’ve coordinated into Design Week, one getting a lot of attention is the Ideabook. The Ideabook project invites individuals and groups to share their ideas, dreams, visions and goals for Columbus’ future. 500 20-page books measuring 4.25”x5.5” were distributed to architects, landscape architects, artists, entrepreneurial innovators, civic and business leaders, educators, community organizers, and those in the culinary, fashion, and other design arts throughout Columbus. Within those 20 blank pages, participants were asked to share their ideas for Columbus’ future – either tomorrow, or in the next 200 years using any visual media. Staff of planning NEXT are among the 500 design book authors. The completed books were showcased at an exhibition during Design Week.
Check out this great press about Design Week:
Design Week Columbus (video) – Nasdaq
Columbus Inaugurates Design Week – Metropolis Magazine online
Ideas to benefit city suggested as part of design week – Columbus Dispatch
