Educational partnership between Mayer Fabrics & SCAD

07 Sep '09

2 min read

Mayer Fabrics and the Savannah College of Art & Design have completed a collaboration on a unique opportunity for the School of Design's Department of Fibers.

The school's spring semester offering included a 400 level course entitled 'Concept to Consumer: Textiles for Interiors'.The class was designed to impart an understanding of how textiles are researched and developed into products useful for today's market. Under the instruction of Professor Jeremy Noonan, students gained insight beyond the classroom and drew upon the expertise of Lucia Kennerly, Mayer Fabrics' director of product development. SCAD student designers included Adelyn Janulis, Nicole Schlesinger, Melanie Wilcox, Allison Adderton, Katherine Dagen, Elizabeth Aubin-Barrett and Allyson Burke.

The class was tasked to create industry compatible solutions for commercial interiors with emphasis on the collaborative practices through the research and development process. Research included studying commercial applications, interior trends and textile constructions. Students explored the relationship between textile design and commercial applications, collaborated on appropriate solutions, and developed presentation techniques to convey their ideas.

Kennerly provided professional feedback throughout the process. She and the students had the opportunity to stay at the first hotel in the nation to achieve LEED Platinum, The Proximity Hotel in Greensboro, NC. After a tour of Mayer Fabrics' design studio, the group visited a textile mill, an architectural and design firm, and a furniture manufacturer. It was then the design class' responsibility to convert this knowledge into workable designs, color palettes and printed examples. A final presentation of 3 collections was given to Kennerly toward the end of the semester.

Says Kennerly of the unique opportunity to bring real world experience to students, “Sharing information and design ideas with the SCAD students and their professor, Jeremy Noonan, was an exhilarating creative experience, and we had fun!"

The Savannah College of Art and Design exists to prepare talented students for professional careers, emphasizing learning through individual attention in a positively oriented university environment. SCAD campuses are located in Savannah, Atlanta and LaCoste.

Mayer Fabrics is a family-owned company which has been headquartered in Indianapolis since its founding in 1897. The company distributed residential textiles before serving the needs of the contract market for office furniture, healthcare, hospitality, education and government entities. Distribution is achieved through a group of employee and independent sales reps throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, England and the Pacific Rim.

Mayer Fabrics

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