It is no secret that the rise of new materials is transforming the world around us.  Over the years, we’ve chronicled such changes in these very pages of Matter—from advancements in sustainability and performance to the realization of wholly new products and ideas.  But what about the next generation of designers?  How has the proliferation of new materials changed how design is being taught, and how are students engaging these innovations in the classroom?

The recent phenomenon of materials libraries may provide some answers.  Established in response to the rapid influx of advanced and sustainable materials toward the end of the twentieth century through today, these collections serve as a vital tool for modern design professionals.  While many architecture and industrial design firms maintain their own archives of samples (and have done so for years), independently run materials libraries are able to track emerging materials on a much larger and broader scale, offering thousands of different solutions under one roof.

Conceived to chart, catalog and contextualize the latest developments, collections like Material ConneXion’s Materials Library can greatly facilitate materials sourcing and distribution.  In this environment, materials selection becomes an integral part of the design process.  No longer bound by the same tried and true options, designers are encouraged to experiment with novel technologies and explore solutions from other industries.  With a physical sample in hand, they can experience a material’s color, texture, shape and other visual and tactile characteristics that are essential to determining its potential for application.

The increase of materials libraries on the professional front has not gone unnoticed by academia.  As educators seek to better prepare students for life after graduation, materials libraries have become an important teaching method for design schools looking to inspire creativity while giving students hands-on experience with the cutting-edge tools of their trade.

One of the first institutions to recognize the importance of materials libraries was the School of Architecture at the University of Texas.  Founded in 2001, its Materials Lab includes more than 25,000 samples that are accessible through a physical archive and an online electronic database.  While the bulk of the collection features traditional building materials, the Lab makes a concerted effort to acquire smart, innovative, emerging and sustainable materials and technologies, too.

In the last decade, several other schools have followed the UT School of Architecture's lead, most notably Harvard University's Graduate School of Design (GSD).  Established in 2003, its Materials Collection was pioneered by a team of faculty and students who saw the profound impact that revolutionary materials and fabrication methods were having on design.  Among them was then-MLA candidate Liat Margolis, who served as the director of Material ConneXion’s Materials Library from 1997-2002, and who is today an Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture at the University of Toronto.

The aim of Harvard’s collection, writes Margolis in an essay for the new book Material Design: Informing Architecture by Materiality (edited by Thomas Schröpfer) “is to curate materiality in conjunction with the pedagogy and current discourse at the GSD.”   The library and design curriculum coexist symbiotically— "the research conducted within the school's design studios and seminars feeds back into the Collection, creating an institutional archive of material trends and critical thought."

The College of Architecture and Environmental Design at CalPoly and the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) envisioned their new on-site materials libraries with physical interaction as the primary goal.  “Students are encouraged to browse the collection, touch and smell the samples, feel their weight and tactility,” wrote Leanne Hindmarch and Robert Arens, two of the founders of CalPoly's library, in an article for the journal Art Documentation.  Holding the samples should conjure “the haptic possibilities that open up when the designer or engineer engages a material for the first time.” RISD’s library, which opened earlier this year, allows students to check out materials for up to three days to use as visual aids in their studios.  The collection is a “place to explore materials and discover new methods and processes which can lead to new sources of inspiration and creativity,” its website says.  

Some schools are turning to the experts to help them customize their own materials learning centers.  Situated in the atrium of Kendall College of Art and Design’s Grand Rapids campus stands a resource like no other the school has ever seen.  It is a Materials Library designed by Material ConneXion—the largest of its kind in any school or university—that features close to five hundred unique samples.  Realizing the importance of new materials in contemporary design practice, Kendall partnered with Material ConneXion to build a collection that would help broaden its students’ professional horizons while introducing them to the latest technologies.

“Access to materials stimulates creativity and innovative thinking,” said Dr. Oliver Evans, Kendall’s Vice President and Chancellor.  “An idea can often take literal shape when an artist or designer discovers a material that can become the means of realizing a vision.”  Asked whether information on new materials from a website or textbook would provide the same benefits, Evans disagreed.  “No matter how good a description of a material may be, there is no substitute for a student being able to look at, feel, manipulate, even smell a material.”

As Michigan’s foremost college for art and design, Kendall offers thirteen career-oriented programs that provide students with ample opportunities to gain professional experience while earning their degrees.  For Evans, the new library is a way to teach Kendall's budding designers about one of the key tools of the professional. “On the simplest level,” he said, “the Materials Library introduces students to a resource they will draw upon throughout their careers.”

In today's digital age, when so many aspects of education are moving out of the classroom and onto the web, educators are realizing that even the most sophisticated online programs cannot replace hands-on learning.  On-site materials libraries help schools bring a sense of discovery and serendipity back into the design process.  They supplement the studio environment with a rich palette of resources and promote interdisciplinary interaction and an awareness of the trends and developments that are shaping our world.  Armed with this knowledge, the student is ready to meet the challenges of an increasingly global and technologically advanced marketplace. M