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On the occasion of the second annual Parsons Festival, PARSONS THE NEW SCHOOL FOR DESIGN presents the MFA Design + Technology Thesis Show 2012, composed of an exhibition, screening, and symposium by this year’s degree program candidates. Between May 6 and May 19, thesis candidates present installations and performances, objects and apps, games and video, and interactive experiences that explore the dynamic role of technology in our current lives. These 80 projects represent a unique convergence of lenses, designed to question, engage, or critique technology. They invoke the playful, the informative, the empowering, the critical, and the subversive to explore emerging issues and provoke discussion.

The MFA Design + Technology Thesis Show begins with an opening reception in Kellen Gallery and D12 on Sunday, May 6th, 2012 from 7 to 10pm, and continues with the Symposium held on Tuesday, May 15th through Wednesday, May 16th, where students and design practitioners will lead a series of panel discussions and presentations. All events are free and open to the public.

The MFA Design + Technology program explores the social and cultural dimensions of technological change. Today’s designer faces two fundamental challenges: the expanding influence of design within society, and the growing role of technology within design. As a terminal degree, the MFA Design + Technology provides a lively and dynamic environment for students to use design research, process, applied theory, and writing to address these challenges. Students push their experimentation beyond the visual: design is used as a mechanism for developing strategies, knowledge organization, business structures, and social consciousness. For more information, please visit http://www.newschool.edu/parsons/festival.

Our official Event List can be found on the Schedule page.