GRASSROOTS PRODUCT DESIGN:
(program launch date: winter/spring 2008)
GOALS: To provide creative and physical outlets for youth ages 14-21
in East-Detroit. To provide opportunities for youth to gain survival and
commercially viable skills.
Community youth will design and produce functional objects, such as
furniture. These objects will either be used by the maker, the community
or sold. The production of these objects will require little or no up-front
cost as the materials will be salvaged or reclaimed.
survival: This program will teach design and construction through grassroots
community product design. �Industrial� or �product� design have
not always been so centralized and detached from most people. Abilities
to form material into utilitarian objects are part of a set of basic survival
skills. These skills are transferable to other areas of life such as home
repair and construction.
environment: �Folk Art� is known for the use of salvaged, re-cycled or
re-used materials or objects. Chosen primarily due to poverty, this is
also an environmentally conscious attitude. In Detroit, where many
residents live below the poverty line, purchasing expensive furnishings
or other quality commercially produced objects is not an option.
cultural expression/creativity: to process of creating utilitarian objects
invites the opportunity for artistic cultural expression to emerge from
a sector of the population that is not represented in the design fields.