Using AI in Design

 AI is a tool that can be used in design very easily. I had my Year 11 Design and Visual Communication class use Adobe Express for this purpose.

We used the text to image tool to generate some design ideas. I wanted the students to experience using AI this way as we always have trouble trying to draw their ideas in 3D. It is not the 3D drawing that is the problem, as I can help them with those skills, it is the visualising the idea in their head and then trying to describe to me what they want when I am trying to help them, that is the problem. I usually get round this by getting the students to quickly make a model of their idea with plasticine so we can both see it. AI seemed like an interesting way to try to do this. 

The class are designing seating and have two design influences. One is from looking at an architects work and one is from researching images from Matariki. 

First of all we put in a description of what we wanted. Here, I put in a garden chair for four people that is made from wood. It came up with a design which was ok but quite boring and generic.

Next, we used the style box to upload an image from one of the design influences we have been looking at. I used an image of a silver fern as this came from researching images to do with Tupuārangi.

This came up with a much more interesting set of designs. You can definitely see the influence of the silver fern here.

The one that I chose to use is below here. I used the button on Adobe Express that removes the background so that I could just focus on the image of the seat.

As a class, we have had a conversation about how we then use these designs we are generating using AI. They can not just stick this print out into their sketch books and say it is their design. We discussed the fact that although there is not a person involved that drew this who they would be taking it from, it is still not the students own work so they can't say that it is.

What we are going to do with these generated images is use them as starting points for our own drawings. They are a great visual aid as you can see the design in 3D, see how the light hits it and how that light causes shadows and how the material looks. Basically all the things that are assessed.

This is my drawing using the AI design as a starting point. I added more spirals to reference the silver fern more and I changed the base the way I have to reference my architect, who is Frank Lloyd Wright. I wanted to specifically reference the Guggenheim Museum. You can see that I used the AI image as a starting point but the drawing is still my own work and my own design.

We are currently adding to the design page with details of the references that we have used and views that show scale. We will finish this work with research on the properties of the chosen materials. (I hope I've left enough room for those notes!!)