Research Team

Ginger Deverell

WHAT I LEARNED

I walked away from this experience with a changed perspective on what it means to be a ‘designer'. I've observed that streamlining and specializing are values of North America, whereas in Italy it is common, and rewarded, to work in multiple fields at the same time. This is important because creative people are often inspired to cross over the boundaries between fields, applying principles of one art-form to another. I now rejoice in dabbling, and cease to accept the belief that exploring is equivalent to floundering. This has changed my life.

WOULD I RECOMMEND THIS PROGRAM?

Absolutely, for personal and professional growth.

FAVOURITE MOMENTS

  • The light filtering into St Peters, eating gelato in piazza navona and people watching, friends and fireflies at night in Dolciano.

FAVOURITE QUOTE(S)

  • You have to understand that we can not spend so much money for everything. First we have to try to have a better balance between needs [and] ecology; we have to pay attention. If you ask Brazil not to cut the Amazon forest, you have to [make concessions] in your country too (Fuksas, 2006).

  • "The Italians were always up ahead then the other cultures in that sense because the American concept or other concepts were more based on functionality or on service or size. The driving force behind the vast majority of consumer product concerns has been the concept “you are incomplete if you don't own this”. This is simply the concept that personal or family satisfaction comes by surrounding yourself with objects of consumer functionalism. There are different ways of approaching the satisfying of needs and the inventing of new needs" (Irvine, 2006).

FAVOURITE BUILDING OR SPACE

San Minato Cemetery in Florence.

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

BA Communication and Publishing achieved in 2001 / 2nd Year Interaction Design studies 2006.

CAREER GOALS AND INTERESTS

communication design and multimedia painting
www.redpear.ca

PERSONAL BACKGROUND

28 years old. Favourite past-times are jazz & modern dance and off-road travel. And I live to paint, it's as natural as breathing for me.