A wide shot of a ceramics studio, featuring students working with pottery wheels and other tools.
A headshot of SAIC faculty member Zachary Manuel

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Zachary Manuel

Lecturer

Contact

Professional Site

Bio

Zach Manuel (they/them) is a multi-disciplinary designer that brings expertise from a range of large and small corporations, taking products from concept to reality in every environment. Zach has lead the development of award-winning furniture designs that were recognized through Best of Year, Best of NeoCon and HiP awards.

Zach's love of constructing with his hands, both growing up and in school established the foundation for who he is as a designer. He is a design enthusiast and furniture aficionado, inspired by all things creative, expressive and joyful. With each new project he strives to challenge assumptions, apply his knowledge in surprising ways, create unique experiences and stay curious.

Zach has a Master's degree in Interior Architecture and Product Design from Kansas State University. He has worked in-house at corporate leaders including IKEA and Target. In addition to designing in-house products for Martin Brattrud, he has developed products with industry leaders; Google, Facebook, Kaiser Permanente and Populous to name a few.

Personal Statement

My intersectional identity has been the guide to my journey in design and research. I am a Midwesterner, I have lived all over the country, I am a Filipino, I am non-binary, I am a parent, I am a partner. Each of these elements of self contribute to my unique sense of empathy I bring to the design process. Empathy not only for the 99 percent user we identify to inform our design decisions but more importantly for the 1 percent that is marginalized. Empathy also for the team making the design decisions, that they too are representative of the people we are designing for. My role as a parent has led me to, most importantly, empathize with users outside of the 100 percent, the future generations these products and byproducts will be passed down to. By creating a compassionate ecosystem of design, I believe we elevate the industry, empower other designers to embrace their full identities, and design for all.

Awards

Djembe Collection, 2022 Best of Year Award; Djembe Collection, 2022 HiP Winner; Heceta, 2022 Best of Neocon Silver; Trikaya Lounge, 2016 IWF Design Emphasis Seating Division Winner; Allen Hastings Outstanding Product Design Award; IDSA Student Merit Award Recipient; Tot Bot, Kansas State Launch Winner.

Publications

Amplifying Design Through Sustainability, Innovation Magazine, 2024; Passion for Woodworking Magazine Publication, Trikaya Lounge, 2016.

Courses

Title Department Catalog Term

Description

This course will provide the student with the skills to create design concept sketches (ideation/thinking) that will communicate with the viewer and visualize the design concept as a design object using sketch renderings to define and communicate the object's form and function. Instructions will focus on freehand marker sketching for ideation/thumbnails, shading, form development and rendering, followed by orthographic projection (measured technical drawing) and two-point perspective. Each of these skills will be demonstrated in class and on a one to one basis during the semester

In each class I will share design drawings from my collection that show a history of sketching styles for presentations using Prismacolor Pencils and NuPastels to markers, along with marker drawings for clients that I and other designers have created in product, packaging and display projects. These presentations will also be used to lecture on the history of design drawing styles and techniques.

Students will be given three design projects in which they will go through the design process of starting with ideation sketches, followed by design selection, renderings and an orthographic drawing of the final design. The first project focuses on the development of forms, the next two projects have an emphasis on ideas and drawing skills.

This course requires students to have a laptop that meets SAIC's minimum hardware specs and runs the AIADO template.

Class Number

1380

Credits

3

Description

This course will provide the student with the skills to create design concept sketches (ideation/thinking) that will communicate with the viewer and visualize the design concept as a design object using sketch renderings to define and communicate the object's form and function. Instructions will focus on freehand marker sketching for ideation/thumbnails, shading, form development and rendering, followed by orthographic projection (measured technical drawing) and two-point perspective. Each of these skills will be demonstrated in class and on a one to one basis during the semester

In each class I will share design drawings from my collection that show a history of sketching styles for presentations using Prismacolor Pencils and NuPastels to markers, along with marker drawings for clients that I and other designers have created in product, packaging and display projects. These presentations will also be used to lecture on the history of design drawing styles and techniques.

Students will be given three design projects in which they will go through the design process of starting with ideation sketches, followed by design selection, renderings and an orthographic drawing of the final design. The first project focuses on the development of forms, the next two projects have an emphasis on ideas and drawing skills.

This course requires students to have a laptop that meets SAIC's minimum hardware specs and runs the AIADO template.

Class Number

1259

Credits

3