Pilot Projects - Internship Experience

Scott Francisco Pilot Projects Design Collective LLC Professor and Mentor Fall 2013 - Present

THE RELATIONSHIP

With over 20 years of experience in architecture, strategic consulting, and education, Scott has become a fantastic mentor to me since my days as just a humble student in his class.

WHAT I LEARNED

• Building lifelong networks from school relations.

The contents of this section will differ a bit from previous ones, as it is not based on a single project. However, I’d love to end things with this “role”, as it is one which has transformed remarkably over time. Scott was one of my first professors at The New School, and, looking back, it’s certainly been quite a journey growing as an individual, with him serving as both a professional and spiritual guide.

DIY Cat Fort

Ways of Working

Shelters for feral colonies.

SOCIAL GOOD.

Lead and collaborate.

NO “I” IN TEAM.

Ways of Seeing

Everything in the Moleskine.

SKETCH, SKETCH, SKETCH.

Client Projects

Handbag: Reimagined Conceptualize, from sketch to store.

INNOVATION.

Strategy presentation decks.

IGNITE NEW VISIONS.

Personal

Style ideas, networking.

ANYTHING TO LEND A HAND.

Going in naive...

Transferred from a Liberal Arts school.

So how do designers perceive the world?

Believed her career lies only within fashion. But so many other industries meld right- and left-brained thinking...

This was NOT just for the sake of my career.

Well-versed in various topics, ranging from finance, fashion, architecture and sustainability, Scott exposed me to an eclectic breadth of perspectives which only expanded my personal scope of curiosities.

As a Student in Scott’s Introduction to Design & Management class, I was introduced to new Ways of Working and Ways of Thinking.

Lessons in both I know I will continue to turn to throughout my life.

How to really get students involved in the learning process? Jump start class sessions with a brief but engaging lecture, than challenge them to apply the concepts right then and there. Through our frequent real world expeditions and in-class experiments, I learned invaluable Ways of Working as a strategic designer.

Less lectures,

In-Class Collaborations

more hands-on teamwork. Getting us out of our seats.

Visiting a co-working space it’s successfully blended

Field Expeditions

in Brooklyn, documenting how community with productivity.

My Moleskine

A designer’s memoirs - even class lectures were captured in sketch-form.

After having Scott as an instructor, I found myself firmly attached to my Moleskine - the notebook became another appendage, blossomed into an extension of who I am. Sketching everything and anything thus became secondary nature. This was how Scott trained us in the Ways of Seeing the world as a designer - through the mere act of putting pencil to paper.

1. Traditional African Letter Opener. Visit a NYC flea market, source an artifact that intrigues you, sketch your discovery.

2. MOMA Chair Exhibit. Browse the museum’s displays, consider their objectives and the designers’ intentions.

3. Orchard Street, LES. Wander the area, note the mixed spaces that exist, create a visual poem that tells its story.

Observational Vignettes

Who needs high-tech apps, software and gadgets? Proof that putting mind to paper, not computer, is still the best way to spark ideas and creativity.

My hunger for knowledge not yet satiated, I was ecstatic to receive an internship offer from Scott after the semester ended. As a Pilot Projects Intern, I was given complete creative freedom over projects such as our DIY Cat Fort and Handbag: Reimagined.

Non-profit Architects for Animals’ annual “Giving Shelter” event challenges design firms to conceive habitats to help solve NYC’s feral cat problem. Rather than a ready-made construction, we proposed a DIY Cat Fort step-by-step guide that lets anyone join the effort.

Design Proposal: DIY Cat Fort

Goals: Clandestine adventure meets community engagement, use of natural materials found on site. Inspiration: Traditional Native American shelter building, Where the Wild Things Are.

Process > Results

From honing old skills (sketching, painting) to learning new ones (sewing, photography), this project taught me to embrace the design process as an odyssey - a journey filled with challenges and serendipitous discoveries.

Innovation doesn’t always require creating something entirely new. In Handbag: Reimagined, we took on transforming the handbag from an architect’s perspective: can it be redesigned as a layered composition, one which allows a wearer to easily adjust all of its dimensions?

The Design Process

From sketching the concept and sourcing materials, to editting prototypes and Photoshopping product shots - the results and skills I learned along the way.

My relationship with Scott certainly didn’t end once my internship wrapped up. Since then, I have worked with his firm as a Collaborator on various other Client Projects, and have been more than happy to lend a hand with any more Personal assignments.

One of my favorite Client Projects I worked on was building several presentations that traced how YSL has transformed as a brand since its storied origins. Research included a biographical snapshot of Yves Saint Laurent, as well as runway show analyses and the company’s business strategies, past and present.

Presentation Decks

YSL happenings since new Creative Director Hedi Slimane’s takeover.

Networking

Pilot Projects events and scrumptious suppers the best places to meet interesting people and absorb new ideas!

After eveything Scott had done to help me better define my career goals, it felt wonderful to be able lend my support in his own Personal projects. We are of course still in touch today, and I hope to continue collaborating with him on whatever design challenges come his way.

Scott’s Wardrobe Guide

My affair with fashion put to good use - personalized ideas for some closet refreshing, complete with a LES shopping guide.