David Weightman, IDSA | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
IDSA Board of Directors Midwest District VP: 2011
David Weightman graduated from the Royal College of Art, London in 1970 with a master’s in industrial design engineering. His career has been a combination of working in higher education and later in senior administrative positions in research and consultancy activities. Until recently he was the director of the School of Art + Design at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he continues as a senior faculty member in the industrial design program. Before that he was the dean of the School of Art + Design at Staffordshire University in the U.K. Weightman has been a consultant to companies such as Yamaha, Massey Ferguson, British Rail, BBC television, the Tate Gallery and even a burrow for Jonathan Millers Alice in Wonderland movie. His current research is in the relationship between product users and the design and manufacturing process, particularly the new relationships enabled by digital technology.
Two things in the field of design impressed David right away – the first was the rapid change that design practice was experiencing and the growing recognition in business and society of the value of good design. The second was the role that the IDSA played in this as a professional association and in particular the way in which the interests of design practice and design education were inter-linked in IDSA activities.
From his work with the NASD and the National Science Foundation David brings additional perspectives to the role of Midwest District VP. He said the connection between the work of industrial designers and that of colleagues in business and technology is important. David added designers are now part of many conversations about the future. David will be joining the IDSA Board and organizing the Midwest Conference that provides a forum for practioners and students to meet, learn and share information. He brings to that task recent experience organizing a campus wide lecture series that connected design, technology and business and involed the likes of Don Norman, Bill McDonough, Dan Heath, Matthew Crawford and Bill Buxton.
David may be reached at 217-778-3752 or [email protected].
