UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — José Duarte, Stuckeman Chair in Design Innovation and director of the Stuckeman Center for Design Computing, has coedited a new book about the effect that nondesigners, who have access to mass customization tools — such as parametric modelers, digital fabrication tools and 3D printers — have on the design process, particularly in the field of architecture.
Branko Kolarevic, a professor in environmental design at the University of Calgary, is the co-editor of the book, titled "Mass Customization and Design Democratization."
Duarte and Kolarevic served as co-chairs of an international symposium of the same name that Penn State hosted in May 2017 in Philadelphia. The book, which was published by Routledge, is a summary of the discussions and key takeaways from the symposium.
According to the book’s description, “Parametric design and digital fabrication are enabling non-designers to mass produce non-standard, highly differentiated products — from shoes and tableware to furniture and even houses. The result of these newly available mass customization tools has been a ‘democratization’ of design.”
The book, which is the first to tackle this phenomenon, “examines what mass customization means for architecture and the building industry and investigates its impact on the sector’s most commoditized enterprise — suburban housing.”
More information on "Mass Customization and Design Democratization" can be found on the Routledge website.
The Stuckeman School is hosting a book launch event at 6 p.m. on March 26 in the Jury Space of the Stuckeman Family Building. Duarte and Kolarevic will give a brief lecture and will be on hand to sign copies of the book, which will be available for purchase at the event.