Kayla Towns

Design Day

GAINES

18 October 2011

Design Day

Design Day this year was really a very special treat for me this year. Although I wasn’t able to go to the learning lunch because of a test in another class, I was able to make it for awhile to the rest of the festivities. One of Dr. Collier’s good friends Brian Graham was the guest speaker at the luncheon and he ended up hanging around and talking with us at the Expo. I have had personal experience with Brian previously from the San Francisco trip Dr. Collier took us on during Spring Break back in March. We toured the Knoll showroom there and got to meet his lovely wife as well. He shared with us some of his design inspirations for his new lines and taught us everything there was to know about Knoll and what they do. We got to go through the showroom and try out ALL of the furniture. That was a blast! I’ve never enjoyed learning so much about furniture and office space solutions in my life. Getting to talk with Brian at the Expo made me relive a lot of moments from the Spring that I really enjoyed. In talking with Brian, I found out that he is a very down-to-earth person. Most designers that have made it to the big times think they’re too good to associate with or help students, but Brian’s not like that and that’s what I appreciate so much about him. He has always been warm and welcoming and open to any questions we might have for him about design or really anything for that matter. All in all, he’s just a really good man. We need more good designers like him in this world. Just as last year, there was wonderful food (those firecrackers were my favorite this year and last) and lots of good samples and pamphlets to take home. I came home with an entire bag full of goodies… again. When I get in a pinch with a project, it really helps to have abundant resources to rely on.

In conclusion, I really enjoyed Design Day at The Expo and look forward to next year. It is always a pleasure to be in a room full of sophisticated and ambitious designers and I am proud to be able to call myself and my friends as such. What a wonderful life this is turning out to be.