The culmination of the interior design degree, this studio focuses on translating research into design strategies evidenced by final design proposals. Essentially each independent projects, students are encouraged to align the project with their own sense of culture and emerging professional interests.
In the Spring of 2024, the studio site was within the local shopping mall center. Like many malls, Gateway faced declining traffic and vacancies. Students worked to bring back life to a desolate corner of the mall site. The studio and its outcomes were presented at the 2025 IDEC Annual Conference.
The following Spring co-lead Kendra Ordia and I worked to bring life to yet another under-utilized site in Lincoln. This once bustling downtown department store shared a similar trajectory as Gateway. The building was challenging in a number of ways asking that students consider what historic elements should and should not be included in their design proposals. Culture again was a design research topic and driver for the final project. This capstone studio was presented at the 2025 IDEC Virtual Conference.
