In 2026, after nearly 90 years, the Institute of Design was folded into Illinois Tech's School of Design & Society.
This website is an archive of the impactful and inspirational work produced by the ID community before that transition.

László Moholy-Nagy opened the New Bauhaus in Chicago in 1937, treating design as a discipline that was teachable, testable, and consequential. Nine decades on, its scope had widened from the things people use to the systems they depend on: hospitals, government agencies, classrooms, supply chains, digital platforms. Along the way, ID community members developed the published research, methods, and frameworks that designers rely on every day.

Chief among them is human-centered design: close attention to how people actually live, and advocacy for what that research reveals. It shaped designers who are comfortable with complexity and ambiguity: curious, rigorous, inclusive, and stubbornly optimistic about design's ability to change the systems that shape our lives.

To every one of them, who taught, studied, built, critiqued, and stayed late in the studio: thank you, and keep designing.

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Introduction to Design Practice

Introduction to Design Practice

Builds a contextual basis for the field and profession of design.

Objective & Outcomes

This course provides an understanding of the history, values, politics, and ethics of design as practiced from the beginning of the industrial revolution to the present day. We will explore significant developments in the history of design, primarily from the perspective of Europe and America, with attention paid to global societal impacts. Students will reflect on the changing structure of design practice, the role and responsibilities of the designer amidst shifting ways of life, and the forces that shape design and its role in society.

Upon completing this course, students will be able to discuss, in their own terms, important ways design shapes human experience and how social/historical/political/cultural forces shape design. Students will articulate a vision for the future of their careers and be able to discuss the importance of design with others in the field.

Typical Schedule

  • Session 1: Introduction & ID Today
  • Session 2: Industrialization — Pre-1900
  • Session 3: Time — 1900–1920
  • Session 4: Space — 1920–1940
  • Session 5: Psychology — 1940–1960
  • Session 6: Design Methods Workshop
  • Session 7: Sociology — 1960–1980
  • Session 8: Design Thinking Workshop
  • Session 9: Globalization — 1980–2000
  • Session 10: Service Design Workshop
  • Session 11: Behavior — 2000–2020
  • Session 12: User Experience Design Workshop
  • Session 13: Posthuman Design— 2020-2040
  • Session 14: Review & Final Presentations

See all MDes Courses