MAED
The Exhibition Designer
Nowadays, engaging the user through immersive, connected, evolutionary spaces is crucial in any communication project, whatever the end goal might be: selling a product, exhibiting works of art, raising awareness of a territory, telling the story of a brand.
An Exhibition Designer must know how to navigate in contexts where the boundary between physical and digital is increasingly fluid, and be comfortable bridging different disciplines, from interior architecture, digital media, construction methods and the management of environmental parameters such as light and sound.
The course aims to equip the designer with vision, technique and execution skills, indispensable tools to face a market that requires professional figures capable of competently interpreting the information provided by the client and transforming it into meaningful and convincing interactions.”
Valentina Temporin
MAED Coordinator
Why choose this Masters program?
To acquire the ability to transform content to be communicated into a physical, hybrid or virtual exhibit.
To confront the job market by knowing how to apply the most important innovative technologies used in the design of public spaces.
To learn about construction methods and advanced fabrication techniques through a digital fabrication lab that is unparalleled in the national educational landscape.
To accelerate your skills and career path by holding roles in managing and coordinating challenging, cutting-edge projects between the physical and virtual.
Internships
After 4 intensive months of training, your newly acquired knowledge is immediately applied in an internship that the Masters School guarantees to each participant. During the training, a free individual coaching session will be offered to support the participant in the choice of the internship and in entering the corporate world.
Companies and studios offering internships have been selected by the coordinators and include national and international studios, companies and entities including: Atelier Brückner (Stuttgart), Dontstop Architettura (Milan), Bluarch (Rome, New York), We Exhibit (Rome), 120lab (Rome), BAG Beyond Architecture Group (Rome), Matteo Silverio (Venice).
Faculty
All faculty members come from established professional backgrounds that alternate between teaching and research activities. The coordination of the Masters program ensures the connection between faculty referents of the subjects, so as to offer maximum efficiency throughout the training.
Here are some of the lecturers involved:
Valentina Temporin
Architect
Post-graduate Masters degree in sustainability, founder and designer of Poplab, researcher for T.E.A.M.- Time Enhanced Architectural Modeling-. She has collaborated on the In/Arch Masters in Rome and coordinated the PCS Masters degree at the IUAV University of Venice where she taught until 2014.
John Volpato
Designer
Post-graduate Masters degree in sustainability, founder and designer of Poplab, researcher for T.E.A.M.- He works on multimedia installations, immersive technologies, VR/ AR and Physical Computing.
Michele Brunello
Architect
Matteo Silverio
Architect
and researcher based in Venice, expert in computational design and digital fabrication. He is a visiting professor at IUAV University of Venice, IED and LABA in Rovereto.
Paolo Robazza
Architect
Shanti Alberti di Catenajo
Designer
Founder of DONTSTOP Architettura Milano
Who is the Masters program intended for?
The Masters program is intended for professionals with Bachelor’s or Masters degrees in Industrial Design, Architecture, Economics, Engineering, Marketing and Communication or from other schools or academies who wish to accelerate their skills with a training course tailored to the specific needs of the current job market. It is a path that combines hands-on training, advanced professional tools and strategic vision.
Enrollment in the Masters program is limited to ensure a high quality of teaching and to center attention on each individual student. Classes will have a maximum of 20 participants.
- Sept. 10, 2022 – last date to register with an early bird reduction
- Sept. 30, 2022 – last date for registration
- Oct. 07, 2022 – final date for passing selections and enrolling in the Masters courses.
Masters programs will begin the following week and conclude in March 2023, participants will then continue on the internship. The presentation of Masters theses will take place in July 2023.
How to pre-register for the Masters selection?
Pre-registration for the Masters programs is necessary to access the selections and obtain eligibility for final enrollment.
The Masters programs involve a selection process through individual interviews (online or in-person). At the interview, the candidate will have to present his or her curriculum vitae, portfolio (except for the DEMA Masters degree) and give a detailed explanation for why the candidate is applying for the particular Masters course.
To enter the selection process, the candidate must complete the pre-application form by downloading the form and sending it in its entirety to the Secretary’s office of the School of Masters (masters@scuolaitalianadesign.com). He/she will then be contacted to schedule an interview with the coordinator of the chosen Masters program.
The outcome will be communicated within 7 days of the interview; if the candidate is found eligible, he/she may proceed to enrollment.
After the Masters degree
Upon completion of the Masters program, participants obtain the qualification of Exhibition Designer for the museum, exhibition, event and retail fields. The student will be able to pursue a career in the following sectors:
- Private companies and exhibition organizations (managing the physical and interactive exhibition sections for points of sale, fairs and conventions);
- the cultural and artistic sectors (permanent and temporary exhibitions, edutainment activities);
- Event organizing agencies (physical and virtual).
Want to Know More?
Find out more about the subjects, how the course is organized and the main skills you will acquire with our Masters.
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Education Objectives
The objective of the MAED program is to accelerate the strategic expertise and career path of the participants to achieve the ability to propose effective Exhibit design that integrates the design of spaces, technologies and implementation with an exact awareness of all the parameters involved.
The Masters proposes the following strategic objectives:
- Address parametric design with the aid of advanced modeling software
- Delve into the tools of interaction design to lend intelligence and sensitivity to layouts;
- Control the project down to the finest details using innovative fabrication methods and construction technologies;
- Design and implement virtual or hybrid scenarios with VR and AR;
- Gain the ability to integrate space design and technologies in a coherent and nonlinear way;
- Learn to assess the best possible project according to the main parameters involved: target, budget, duration, location;
- Know the different players involved in an Exhibition project;
- Acquire skills in summarizing content and organizing the different aspects of a project to deal with the management of working teams.
Method and structure
In order to provide the participant with a comprehensive survey of Exhibition Design, the curriculum aims to approach the teaching of three types of tools in a cross-curricular manner:
Strategic Tools
Focus on the design of exhibition and retail spaces, assessment and management of the relationship between technology, space and people, and excursus on contemporary arts.
Digital Tools.
Insight into advanced design tools for 3D modeling, interaction and immersiveness combined with VR and AR.
Constructive Tools.
The teaching method adopted will be that of “learning by doing,” which lies at the core of the academic experience.
This approach will also be enhanced by the digital fabrication lab available to participants. With the aim of immediately putting into practice what has been learned, an assignment will be required at the end of each month, and two intensive workshops will be held at the close of the Masters program.
To explore both physical and virtual space, the first workshop will be related to the setting up of a VR exhibition, and the second will be geared toward the actual 1:1 scale construction of a small exhibition hall.
In order to generate networking opportunities during the course, lectures will be organized with prominent companies and professionals, both Italian and foreign, who are actively working in the field of Exhibition Design and who may also host some of the students in internships.
| Educational Modules | Description |
| Design process | A dynamic approach to defining contemporary environments as a fundamental tool for rendering participant independent in their designing. |
| Design to production | The construction and fabrication methods most commonly used in outfitting projects are comprehended through direct contact with the fablab. Innovative materials, membranes and textiles for architecture are studied with attention to the life cycle of the artifact. |
| Parametric Modeling | The concept of Parametric Design is explored for full flexibility in the concept phase and for maximum control of the construction phase. In detail, students learn how to use Archicad and Grasshopper with its main add-ons. |
| Emerging Technologies | Students tackle the design of immersive, hybrid and virtual spaces by learning dynamic rendering software and working with a programming platform to create scenes in VR and build fully virtual experiences. Students use tools for augmented reality projects. |
| Interaction Design | Participants gain awareness in managing the “user-space-technology” relationship, learning the technical tools needed to masters the setting up of contemporary multimedia exhibition areas with dedicated devices and software. |
| Contemporary Art and Installations | Contemporary art currents and experiments spanning art and installation are investigated to extrapolate fundamental elements for exhibit design. |
Duration of the Masters program
The Masters program starts in November 2021 and has a total duration of 1500 hours divided as follows:
400 hours – lectures, workshops and seminars
100 hours – tutoring
360 hours – individual study
480 hours – internship
160 hours – final project and Masters thesis (individual)
2022/23 Edition
- September 10, 2022 – last date for registration for selections with early bird reduction
- Sept. 30, 2022 – last date for registration
- Oct. 07, 2022 – final date for passing selections and enrolling in the Masters courses.
Masters programs will start the following week and end in March 2023, participants will then continue to the internship. The presentation of Masters theses will take place in July 2023.
Contact us
If you would like to receive information about the Masters program, registration fees, or to learn more about the School of Masters’ academic program in detail, you can contact the Secretary’s Office at Scuola Italiana Design.
If you would like more clarification on the contents of the Masters program you can write to the MAED Masters Coordinator:
Parco Scientifico e Tecnologico Galileo Scpa is an organization of higher education accredited by the Veneto Region. Through its education department SID – Scuola Italiana Design, it offers a three-year course in Industrial Design and Product Communication.