Visual Narrative Research Methods as Performance in Industrial Design Education

This article discusses teaching empathic research methodology as performance. The authors describe their collaboration in an activity to help undergraduate industrial design students learn empathy for others when designing products for use by diverse or underrepresented people. The authors propose that an industrial design curriculum would benefit from such an arts-based performative research model as described. Visual images are included for the purpose of sharing the learning process with the reader. This article seeks to make connections between visual narratives, performative pedagogy and methodology, and spirituality and empathy, thus providing a unique contribution to industrial design education.