From ‘ Old Masters’ to the new…- Institute Design students visit Belgium
A group of Design students from IT, Sligo recently returned from a stimulating five day field trip to a number of cities and relevant sites in Belgium.
Field trips like these, an important part of many courses at the Institute, allow Institute students engage with design culture and approaches internationally. This year, 21 students, ranging across course years 1 to 4 availed of the trip. The visit was supervised by Staff members including David Roberts and Ann Gheelin.
The group viewed Art exhibitions and visited Design Displays and museums in Brussels, Ghent and Antwerp to seeing paintings by old masters such as Breughel, Bosch, Van Eyck and Reuben’s.
They also visited the Museum of Modern Design in Ghent.
A poignant visit to the Great War Memorial the Menin Gate at Ypres in Flanders was also included. Students were moved to see the numbers of recorded casualties and took particular note of the section that honours the fallen from Ireland.
From a learning perspective, visits like this are a critical part of the student’s development. They undertake a busy schedule of visits to gain experience of both antique and modern design. This helps to place the design of contemporary products in the correct context.
Design Lecturer Dave Roberts, outlines the considerable learning elements of the trip: ‘The selling and marketing of goods for an island nation such as Ireland, demands that our design graduates have a clear picture of the required levels of design and delivery in a European and international context.
He went on to note that trips such as these make students ‘aware and respectful of the subtle differences that may arise between the presentation of products to customers in different markets.
He further reflected that ‘Accepting that you don’t know everything and respecting what you don’t understand are the most fundamental milestones in the progression of our young designers.’
A visit to the European Parliament was co-ordinated through the offices of Sligo, Euro MP, Marian Harkin and her staff. A particular thanks from the group is due to Aide Dennis Hogan who guided the students.
The party learned of the facilities and workings of the parliament and were generously provided with lunch in the parliament restaurant.
They participated in an informative private workshop in one of the committee rooms on the structure and workings of the parliament in the context of developing EU policy. This workshop was hosted by an Irish member of the EU civil service, Roger Chadwick
IT, Sligo Industrial Design staff and students as EU parliament in Brussels.
Peader Geelan of year 4 Industrial Design during the workshop at EU.