Peter De Smidt 

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Resumé 

Exploring the aesthetic of Eva Ziesel 


Course: Design Innovation & Society Studio IIDuration: February - March 2023 Software Used: Rhino 3D, Unreal Engine  Tags: Product Design, Ceramics, Research Design 
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Abstract: 

In this project we were tasked to immerse ourselves into the aesthetics of a famous industrial designer and design a household product in the style of the assigned designer. My group of two was assigned Eva Ziesel and the prompt “I need to eat more vegetables.”

Problem Definition: 

How can we as young working professionals prepare vegetables in an easy and efficient manner in our home kitchens?




Research:


After  receiving our designer and prompt, we got to work researching the history of our designer, as well as her famous design works . Eva Zeisel was a Hungarian-born industrial designer who lived from 1906-2011. Eva studied ceramics at the Hungarian Royal Academy of Fine Arts and after being falsely accused of plotting to kill Stalin, she immigrated to the United States, where she taught ceramics at the Pratt Institute in New York City. Eva designed countless collections of dinnerware and various other commercially produced and critically acclaimed pieces of ceramics, and her spectacular portfolio branches from coffee tables to teapots and contains American household staples. Eva’s aesthetics incorporate organic shapes and smooth pulled lines, with whimsical ducks repeating throughout her creations. Due to her iconic style and world-renown skills, it's hard to find a ceramics exhibit in a museum today without an Eva Zeisel creation.


Eva Ziesel and Work 



Ideation and Concept:  


From our research we found a lot of inspiration from Eva’s whimsical designs and love of ducks. We decided we would make a microwaveable vegetable steamer in the shape of a duck. We also wanted to design two supporting tools for the users to have everything they need all in one steamer, and we wanted to ensure that the tools complemented the design just as Eva’s pieces do. 




Pin Up 
Sketches 
Thumbnails 

Prototype  I

We used air-dry clay and molded the base on an egg-shaped plastic container. The head, tail, and wings were hand-formed. We molded the wing hilts around the handles of a plastic knife and a metal peeler. We poked the holes in the grate using a straw. We glazed the product in modge-podge to give it a glossy finish and a texture similar to glazed clay so users would have a sense of what the final product would look and feel like. For this prototype we had students do a walkthrough, cleaning test, and form test. 

Steamer and tools 
Fully Assembled 
User testing 



Prototype  II

Based on the feedback received from users during our rough prototype testing phase, we knew we needed to include indicators in our product to guide users on the proper orientation of the components, especially the wings in the side of the lid. We had several ideas, including color coordination, creating a track along the lid for the wings to slide through into position, and exaggerating the curvature of the wings and tail so they fit together more obviously. We ultimately decided to go with color-coordinated half-circles that would be completed when the wings were correctly aligned. This way, we could incorporate color into the product in a subtle but hopefully helpful way. We also upgraded the material from air-dry clay and modge-podge to white ceramic clay and a food-safe glaze, and added two handles to the grate instead of one. We chose to poke the holes in the grate in a vaguely floral pattern to incorporate more whimsical design into the product. We had three functional user tests with this prototype in which users actually cooked vegetables. 

Front View
User testing 
Inside view 


Prototype  III

After completing all three rounds of user testing we adapted our detailed prototype into our final concept in a few ways in order to enhance the user experience even more. The main concerns users experienced while using the product occurred with the arms/utensils. Users had a strong distrust for the side pockets and therefore did not feel comfortable using the provided tool storage, ultimately losing a central part of the experience of the product and more importantly not meeting the user groups desire for compatibility and efficiency. We solved this issue in our final concept by redesigning the pocket the utensils sit in, by creating a smaller tighter slot for the utensil end of the arm this increased the stability of the utensil in the product, and operates in a knife block method, a mechanism that users are already familiar and comfortable with. The second issue users encountered  was with understanding which arm went in  which side. In our detailed prototype we tried to apply indicators to signify which arm goes on which side, but because of the method of glazing we used, the colors ran and were not clear, resulting in the indicators failing and confused users. To solve this issue, we redesigned our method of glazing in order to result in a clearer indicator. To glaze the final concept, we would first apply an undercoat of the indicators, then apply a clear glaze over top, still resulting in a fully white body, but leaving visible half circle indicators, signifying to the users exactly which arm goes on what side. We also include only one color per indicator. Fixing the indicators would also improve the overall usability and experience for the users, as now they would not have to deal with the confusion or awkwardness of the arms falling out or not fitting into the pockets. 
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