Pratt Institute in Brooklyn held their annual student exhibition, Pratt Shows to kick off NYCxDesign 2024. The design programs including fashion, jewelry, communication, illustration, architecture and industrial design were clustered inside the expansive ARC building. It’s an overwhelming show and consistently the best presented student design show in New York City.

We’re focusing on the architectural model output once again. As I’ve said in the past, it’s a representation asset that’s largely disappeared from commercial work. 3D and VR have been the default presentation formats for years now. But analog models, like hand drawings, have that magic quality that engages your brain to fill in the blanks and see a project from a unique perspective.

The work presented for 2024 ranges from conceptual studies to highly detailed scale structures. There’s a lot of aesthetic variety from carefully considered geometric compositions to freeform organic forms. In person it was great to move around and see the models from different vantage points and observe how the structures visually moved and transitioned.

Kyana – Jin Ye

It’s rare to see a transportation design project come out of Pratt’s ID program these days. However Jin Ye’s autonomous mobile wellness room caught my eye. The rolling interior space facilitates activities including a sauna, exercise space and meditation area. Ye designed the Kyana to function off a skateboard-style electric chassis with a leveling system to keep the room flat on sloped streets or parking areas. The boxy, slatted aesthetics with sculptural round impressions make for an interesting contrast in forms and a distinctive graphic take on transportation design.

Photos and Text: Dave Pinter