WantedDesign has announced this year’s Be Original Americas Summer Design Fellows: Tom Groom, who studies graphic and industrial design at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s School of Art + Design, with a minor in new media arts, and Irene Lee, who is studying design and environmental analysis at Cornell University, with a minor in business.
The two fellows will learn about the process of making, distributing, and selling authentic design. They will travel across the country to visit Be Original Americas member companies, including Bernhardt Design, Carnegie, Chilewich, Design Within Reach, Emeco, Flavor Paper, Herman Miller, Rich Brilliant Winning and Vitra.
“I’m excited to meet the other student I’ll be spending the seven weeks with and get to know her,” says Groom. “Second, I’ve never been to New York before, so I’m really looking forward to visiting and having the chance to see some of the huge cultural landmarks and museums there. Lastly and most importantly, I’m very eager to learn as much as I can from the experience and hope to be able to bring some of that back to UIC with me and pass it on to my fellow students here.”
Lee shares: “I am excited to learn about the process of producing original design, all the way from the research to the distribution. I want to learn about the design philosophies of the companies we visit and hopefully develop my own to guide my future designs and work.”
