Conferences

On September 14-15, 2019, Design Observer held the second The Design of Business | The Business of Design conference in Cambridge, MA at the Massachussets Institute of Technology. The themes for the conference were equity, enterprise, ethics, and engineering, and our mix of speakers spoke to these topics. Read more.

On November 2-3, 2018, Design Observer held its first two day conference centered around the program Jessica Helfand and Michael Bierut ran at the Yale School of Management, and the podcast of the same name. We invited CEOs and their designers, as well as new thinkers in community design, structural design, and information design. Participants were invited to chose one of four intimate symposium to attend addressing the topics of access, apparatus, audience, and agility. Read more.

On February 12, 2016, Design Observer hosted a symposium on the relationship between design and food. Held in the Los Angeles Theater Center in downtown LA, Taste featured speakers from across the United States and Europe: we discussed the visual evolution of artificial flavor; the historical artistry of mid-century menus; the future of permaculture, the promises of packaging, and the vicissitudes of waste. We looked at marketing tactics and distribution platforms; climate change and culinary excess; new economies of scale, old expressions of culture—and everything in between. Read more.

On February 21, 2015, Design Observer hosted the first design-centered event of its kind: a free one-day symposium that explored “What Design Sounds Like.” Held at the at the SVA Theatre in New York City, WDSL featured speakers from across the United States and Europe. From live interviews to musical performances, dynamic discussions to spirited debate, we explored together what design sounds like. Read more.