Core77

Core77 Conference Designing Here/Now 2016

By Core Jr - November 16, 2016

Day 1: Morning Check-In Last year's conference at Vibiana in downtown L.A. went over so well we decided to do it all over again! 1 of 62

Mingle at Morning Check-In Attendees were greeted at the door with conference swag like tote bags and pins along with a delicious breakfast spread. 2 of 62

Name badge wall After signing in, attendees scavenged for their name badge on our magnetized conference wall, which also got people interacting and talking. 3 of 62

Volunteers Core77's passionate group of volunteers ranged from eager design students ready to meet designers in the industry to several friendly, curious creatives. 4 of 62

This year's conference was filled with attendees from past years along with a number of new faces from around the world. 5 of 62

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A peek at the stage setup, equipped with an illuminated plywood Core77 sign. 7 of 62

A Friendly Welcome Attendees were escorted to the conference hall, where they were greeted by a choir who helped kickoff the day's festivities. 8 of 62

The Conference Begins... Attendees and speakers all ready to hear a day's worth of fascinating talks. 9 of 62

Speaker Jamer Hunt The morning roster of lectures began with a talk from founder and director of the Transdisciplinary Design Program at Parsons School of Design. 10 of 62

Jamer Hunt Jamer Hunt's keynote focused on promoting a unique systems-based approach to social innovation, encouraging designers to create open platforms that in turn incite collaboration. 11 of 62

Panel Discussion on Design and the Refugee Crisis Hunt's lecture followed with a panel discussion between (from left) architect Amro Sallam, designer John Farrace and designer Ekene Ijeoma on the importance of designers working to provide their knowledge and resources to refugees, a population of people who need it most. 12 of 62

Social Media Blitz Many speakers were interviewed live on Facebook after their presentations in order to give Core77's audience a look into conference happenings. 13 of 62

Eames Demetrios Thinker Eames Demetrios lets the conference audience in on a fascinating example of multi-dimensional storytelling he has invented within the imaginary world of Kcymaerxthaere. His unconventional talk slowly revealed the power of a well though-out narrative within design. 14 of 62

Breaks during the conference allowed attendees plenty of opportunities to mingle with speakers and other designers attending the conference. 15 of 62

Paul Sohi Paul Sohi, a product designer shaping the way designers might work in the future, shares his thoughts on the important role digital fabrication and creating products as services plays in future business models. 16 of 62

As you can tell by the looks on their faces, the audience is learning tons minute by minute... 17 of 62

Alexis Lloyd on Our Future with Robots Creative Director Alexis Lloyd's presentation focused on the future influx of robotics and how we should look past sci-fi depictions of them as human-like creatures to tap into their enormous potential. Hear her discuss more on the topic here 18 of 62

Kudo Tsunoda on the Social Power of Technology Microsoft Vice President Kudo Tsunoda shares his perspective on the connective rather than isolating potential of future technologies and some behind the scenes information regarding Microsoft's fascinating HoloLens project. 19 of 62

Lunchtime After a morning of thought-provoking presentations, conference attendees are invited to lunch in the outside courtyard. 20 of 62

Guests enjoying the sunny LA weather. 21 of 62

Lunch Design Challenge In addition to lunch, designers at the conference were invited to participate in a lunchtime edition of the 1-Hour Design Challenge. 22 of 62

Lunch Design Challenge Attendees could choose from three different design prompts to either imagine an office robot of the future, a shoe incorporating future technologies, or edible food packaging. 23 of 62

Lunch Design Challenge Designers shared their ideas on our Lunch Design Challenge Wall so all attendees could take a look at their creations. 10 winners were chosen to take home a copy of Core77's book, Designing Here/Now. 24 of 62

Gurneet Kaur of Hyperloop One After lunch, everyone was excited to hear what Hyperloop One's own Gurneet Kaur had to say as she laid out the company's future plans for the revolutionary transportation system. 26 of 62

Sponsors like Autodesk and IBM had booths in the back of the space sharing information about their company in fun, inventive ways. 27 of 62

30 Weeks' Shana Dressler on How Designers Start Successful Businesses The director of startup incubator 30 Weeks' shed some light in her presentation on what it really takes nowadays to turn designers into successful and smart entrepreneurs. 28 of 62

James Monsees of PAX Labs Cofounder of premium vaporizer company PAX Labs shared how his own design failures fueled his success. 29 of 62

James Monsees' Marshmallow Challenge Monsees invited members of the audience to participate in a Marshmallow Challenge where teams attempted to create the tallest freestanding structure in the bunch using pasta and marshmallows. The challenge worked to emphasize the importance of harmonious team collaboration in fast paced environments in order to achieve true innovation. 30 of 62

Another mingling session in the middle of the conference (with snacks!) 31 of 62

Another mingling session in the middle of the conference (with snacks!) 32 of 62

Dana Cho on Designing for Death The touching presentation by Dana Cho of IDEO focused on the company's recent open-platform challenge inviting people to create more thoughtful design solutions for the end of life experience. 33 of 62

Antionette Carroll of Creative Reaction Lab Designer, activist and CRXLab founder Antionette Carroll discussed the need for designers to use their skills to tackle social issues. "Human centered design is not enough," said Carroll, "we need inclusivity and equality of ideation and activation." 34 of 62

Grand Finale Our conference went out with a bang thanks to Syyn Labs' Adam Sadowsky, who created an interactive sonic laser display for the audience to toy with. 35 of 62

Audience During Grand Finale Conference attendees were all given lasers and asked to shine the laser at a light sensitive display that would generate different musical tones according to where the laser beam shone—as you can see, it was a hit. 36 of 62

Core77 co-founder Stuart Constantine helps wrap up the day's worth of speakers. 37 of 62

Closing Reception Presented by IBM Design After the conference, everyone was invited to take part in the IBM sponsored cocktail hour in the Vibiana courtyard. 38 of 62

Delicious hors d'eourves, cocktails and interactive installations were aplenty in the Vibiana Courtyard. 39 of 62

Celebrity Twitter Match by IBM Ever wanted to know if you write like a certain celebrity? IBM's Celebrity Twitter Match booth at the reception allowed attendees to see if their tweeting style mirrored stars like Samuel L. Jackson or JK Rowling. 40 of 62

Celebrity Twitter Match Ever wanted to know if you write like a certain celebrity? IBM's Celebrity Twitter Match booth at the reception allowed attendees to see if their tweeting style mirrored stars like Samuel L. Jackson or JK Rowling. 41 of 62

This year's conference was a great opportunity to make connections and meet new design friends. 42 of 62

The closing reception also allowed for everyone to meet and reflect—speakers and attendees alike. 43 of 62

A group photo of the Core77 crew, elated post-conference. 44 of 62

A view from the Vibiana courtyard. 45 of 62

Day 2: Workshops If you yourself were an attendee of our second day of workshops and tours, chances are you were greeted in the morning by these shining faces. 46 of 62

Morning Workshops Our morning's worth of workshops tackled a number of topics relevant to working designers like how to future-proof your designs and how to license product ideas easily. 47 of 62

Morning Workshops Our morning's worth of workshops tackled a number of topics relevant to working designers like how to future-proof your designs and how to license product ideas easily. 48 of 62

Morning Workshops Our morning's worth of workshops tackled a number of topics relevant to working designers like how to future-proof your designs and how to license product ideas easily. 49 of 62

Conference speaker Shana Dressler taking part in the morning workshop at the Standard Hotel in Downtown LA. 50 of 62

An itinerary showing all the workshop options for attendees. 51 of 62

Many of the workshops incorporated interactive activities that allowed designers to brainstorm together while getting to know one another. 52 of 62

Lunch at the A+D Architecture and Design Museum After workshops, tour attendees were shuttled to L.A.'s A+D Architecture and Design Museum where they were treated to lunch and a free tour of the museum. 53 of 62

Hyperloop One Tour Some lucky few were invited to Hyperloop One's headquarters to get an inside look into how the company is changing the face of future transportation. You can see those tour participants here in a scale prototype of the Hyperloop tube (unfortunately, this was the only picture allowed to be taken on the tour). 55 of 62

Downtown Los Angeles Walking Tour Alissa Walker's 2-year running walking tour gave designers a fun, informed look at the architecture and history of downtown LA. 56 of 62

Glass Slide Tour Another group of tour participants went to the OUE Skyspace in downtown LA, where they also got to go down the building's famous SkySlide. 57 of 62

SkySlide Tour This one's for thrill-seekers only! The SkySlide, a glass chute suspended on the outside of the U.S. Bank Tower takes you from the 70th floor down to the 69th—at 1,000 feet above the ground. 58 of 62

SkySlide Fun fact: the slide is also made to withstand hurricane-force winds while also supposedly being able to support the weight of two blue whales.. 59 of 62

Rooftop Reception After all the tours, Core77 hosted a final reception on the rooftop of the Standard Hotel for one last hurrah. 60 of 62

Rooftop Reception at the Standard After all the tours, Core77 hosted a final reception on the rooftop of the Standard Hotel for one last hurrah. 61 of 62

Thanks Everyone Needless to say, we had a lot of fun. 62 of 62

For the second year in a row, Core77's 2016 Designing Here/Now Conference in September provided similar thrills from previous years while also focusing on fresh insight into the evolving, collaborative landscape of design. This year's co-creation theme opened up doors to fascinating talks intersecting design with other fields, on top of a number of eye-opening and meaningful experiences attendees shared together. From a day's worth of presentations by trailblazing designers, to workshops exploring less-discussed topics in relation to the future of design, to tours giving inside access to fun or rarely-seen destinations like L.A.'s SkySlide and the elusive Hyperloop One headquarters, the conference was a 2-day celebration and educational experience not to be missed.