Advanced Design

🌟 Reflecting on an inspiring week at the SQ1 in San Francisco! 🌟 A huge thank you to Hector Silva and the Advanced Design team for organizing such an impactful event, and for the chance to connect with so many incredible studios and designers. It was an unforgettable experience exploring the spaces and insights of Gantri, PROWL Studio, WHIPSAW, fuseproject, level, Box Clever, Ammunition, PA Consulting, and frog. Though each of these studios has its unique vision and focus, they all share a deep commitment to crafting meaningful user experiences that truly moved me. This year’s theme, "Identity," was especially powerful. I especially enjoyed Snow Xue Zhou’s powerful talk on self-acceptance and growth through her zine "Work in Progress." Her quote, “Everyone is your mirror,” has stuck with me. Her perspective on how each interaction serves as an opportunity for self-inquiry resonates deeply. As someone who has relocated and adopted across cultures —from Taipei to Shanghai, Fremont, back to Taipei, Atlanta, and now Chicago—her journey of self-acceptance felt incredibly relatable. Snow’s insights, along with Lonnie Tapia’s, sparked a lot of personal reflection on how I can bring my own cultural background into my design practice, not simply as an influence but as an integrated part of my approach. Their words reminded me of the value in accepting oneself and how our identities continuously evolve through these “mirrors” of interaction. Thank you to everyone who made this event possible! It reinforced why I chose to pursue design and reminded me of the profound power our identities hold in shaping the work we create. Here’s to the journey ahead and to continuing to learn from this inspiring community. #SquareOneDesignConference #AdvancedDesign #DesignJourney #IdentityInDesign #UserExperience #Reflection #DesignCommunity #CulturalIdentity #FutureOfDesign

A huge thank you to everyone who came to the Square One Design Conference! 🙌 It was so special giving a talk on identity and sharing mine with all of you. Your presence, the questions you asked, and the heartfelt moments of vulnerability afterwards made it truly special. 💖 To the 150+ attendees, speakers, and guests who brought their whole selves to the space: you made it incredible. And a big shoutout to the legends from Ammunition, PROWL Studio, WHIPSAW, level, PA Consulting, fuseproject, Box Clever, Gantri—and to 🐸 frog for hosting my keynote and providing the perfect spot to relax and connect at the end of the conference. And a massive THANK YOU to Hector Silva and the entire Advanced Design team of volunteers for everything, and for crafting SQ1 2024 to be an experience we’ll never forget. It meant a lot to hear that the line that stayed with people was, “Learn your ancestral stories and listen to them.” 🖤 I wish you the best on your journey and cultural regeneration. Cheers, everyone!

What a rush of excitement I have felt in the last week. I was fortunate enough to spend three full days hopping from one design studio to the next learning about the identities of each one and the individuals that work there. First and foremost thank you so much to Hector Silva and the teams at Advanced Design and Offsite for organizing this event. Throughout the three days I found myself continually inspired and driven to meet more people and hear their stories. Starting at WHIPSAW we got to see their portfolio of projects and learn about how they balance internal and client projects. At Gantri I got to meet so many people that I would see in the following days and over those days got to learn about what brought them to the design conference. The following day we heard from PROWL Studio and learned about their five design principles which changed the way I see design. At level I learned how powerful a small team can be and met some great people that I would chat with later on. Just around the corner we went to PA Consulting and met some big name industry professionals. I made some connections that I hope to continue through out my career. On the last day we heard from Snow Xue Zhou at fuseproject and learned the importance of balancing design with your personal life. We left and quickly had lunch then headed to Box Clever where I was immensely inspired. I wish I had an hour to ask questions about their most recent project. Finally we arrived at frog and heard from Lonnie Tapia about their view on identity and how it influences their design. Thank you to all the studios that hosted and to all the people that showed up and made this event one to remember!

✨Grow with Design Pros: Part 3✨ Square One. What an event. 🏙️ 💛 There were so many opportunities to learn and many key moments, so it’s impossible to talk about everything, but I did my best to summarize some QUOTES/TAKEAWAYS around the theme IDENTITY and general things to keep in mind as young designers navigating a design career. Here are 8 highlights! A ginormous thank you to all of these studios for hosting, also everyone who spoke with us and shared parts of yourself + your studio. 🎤 Another thank you to all of the wonderful professionals I had the privilege of talking with separately after! 🎨 It was so fun getting an inside look and deep dive into who you all are as a team and individuals. Such beautiful places, products, and people. Ammunition PROWL Studio WHIPSAW level PA Consulting fuseproject Box Clever  frog Gantri Lastly, THANK YOU to Hector Silva and the entirety of the Advanced Design team for everything, and for crafting SQ1 2024 to be an incredible experience. 📸 Moments and pictures from events at the very end. —— s/o to Julie Groh for connecting me with some of these lovely people, and sharing with me this amazing community! 💓 s/o IDSA San Jose for rolling deep at the conference all 3 days. 🤝 #growwithdesignpros #design #sq1

This past week at the Square One Design Conference was an amazing opportunity to learn and connect! Over three days, I joined presentations from talented speakers representing different parts of the SF design community. Hearing about diverse design processes and seeing how identity influences individual design journeys was especially inspiring. Plus, meeting other students and design professionals gave me fresh insights as I continue building my career and looking for internships. A big thank you to Advanced Design and Hector Silva! Excited for more conferences ahead! #industrialdesign #design #sq1

Aaand scene! Over the past few days, I had the privilege of getting an insider’s look at how various firms reveal their design processes from behind the scenes. This year, the SQ1 conference was centered around the theme of 'IDENTITY,' and it was fascinating to hear how different firms interpret that—both in terms of their personal place in the design world and their broader design philosophy. I was particularly struck by Snow Xue Zhou’s insights as a design strategist navigating such a diverse and multifaceted field. It’s always refreshing to attend events like these and imagine where I might fit in a few years. While each firm has its unique approach, they all share a common thread: creating meaningful user experiences. Huge thanks to Hector & the Advanced Design + Offsite team for organizing this; I know my peers and I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity. Loved meeting new people from around the country; it's always intriguing learning about people's backgrounds and what led them to design. I'd also like to thank the teams at Gantri, PROWL Studio, WHIPSAW, fuseproject, level, Box Clever, Ammunition, PA Consulting, and frog; you all were fantastic hosts and provided wonderful spaces for us to network and enjoy each other's company. #Industrialdesign #SQ1 #advanceddesign #design #IDSA

This past week I had the incredible opportunity to attend Square One, an Industrial Design conference hosted by Advanced Design in San Fransisco. Specific to this experience was the ability for attendees to visit various company showrooms and consultancies, some of which include WHIPSAW, frog, Boxclever Design, and level amonst various others. With networking events, constant design discourse, and integrated community building, I was fully enthralled with the opportunity to meet and befriend many inspirational and innovative designers. Thank you so much to Advanced Design for letting myself alongside many other curious and passionate designers attend Square One. SAIC IDSA visited from Chicago, and the experience, surreal as is, was exceedingly memorable and insightful to say the least! My notebook is full and I am excited to begin applying all the information I absorbed to my growing design skillset! Finally, A huge thank you to Hector Silva for not only introducing us to Square One but also for guiding us through the planning and logistics to make this experience possible—your support and dedication to our growth as students and professionals means the world.

Just wrapped up an incredible week at the 2024 Square One Design Conference in San Francisco, hosted by Advanced Design! I had the opportunity to dive deep into the theme of identity, exploring how companies like PROWL Studio , Boxclever Design , leveldesignsf and frog bring their unique values to life through their products. It was inspiring to witness the powerful connection between design and brand identity, and it truly affirmed my passion for this field. A huge thank you to all the speakers and the lovely friends I made for such engaging discussions and insights. I’m more excited than ever to take these valuable experiences into my career journey. A final gratification for Hector Silva and the team of Advanced Design for this wonderful opportunity! #SquareOneDesign #BrandIdentity #Design #IndustrialDesign #SanFransisco

Attending the SQ1 design conference was a really eye-opening experience for me. Talking to my peers and industry folks in ID gave me a lot to think about. One thing that stood out was how industrial design students have to juggle multiple projects at once, rather than being able to really dive deep into one concept. Hearing about the advantages and challenges Emerald G. had with this type of pedagogy made me appreciate how I've been to be able to keep working on my universal clock idea across different classes in my self-designed ID path. This got me thinking about how we could do a better job at turning our school projects into real-world solutions. Instead of just adding them to our portfolios, is there a way to ask us to push them further because so many students put so many hours behind them? Launch an app, sell the products, or enter competitions with the stuff we make? Who/what is the barrier? Networking with other attendees was also super valuable. I loved being able to chat with people in a more casual setting, without the usual pressure of trying to impress. Hearing about the unique focuses of studios like Gantri (lighting design), PROWL Studio (regenerative design) and WHIPSAW (adaptive design) was really interesting too. Overall, the conference left me feeling inspired and motivated. I'm even more determined now to keep inventing. I want to thank Hector Silva and other Advanced Design folks for gathering all the people, spaces, food, and fun this week. *I would have never Bart to & bike in SF without this conference. Studios are all gorgeous. The last photo was in City Lights Publishers.

This past week at Square One Design Conference has been a fantastic learning experience! Over the past three days, I’ve listened to presentations from amazing speakers from many corners of the SF design scene. Hearing how various companies use their design process and understanding how identity fits into one’s individual design journey, as well as speaking to the numerous students and design professionals, gave me great insight as I move forward in my design career and internship search. Special thanks to Advanced Design, Hector Silva, and my fellow cabinet members at IDSA San Jose for organizing! Looking forward to future conferences! #industrialdesign #design #sq1 #IDSA #SJSU