Tonight the newly hatched Designers as Authors/Entrepreneurs in the School of Visual Arts MFA Design Department will toast their success, their families, teachers and friends at a year-end exhibition at the Visual Arts Gallery. On April 16th, they held forth at the SVA Theater, pitching their wares as professionally and persuasively as any agency team. I was in the audience for a session that included projects designed for social interaction and community-building.

Samia Kallidis presented Jointly, a decentralized mobile application that enables communities to self-organize disaster relief without relying on government organizations.

In the days following Hurricane Sandy, Kallidis joined the relief effort in the Rockaways as a volunteer. It quickly became apparent to her that the best way for people to recover and rebuild was through neighbors helping neighbors, so she began developing Jointly to appropriately match up volunteers and victims; to build a digital platform for victims to register for aid programs without getting snagged in red tape and access a steady newsfeed; and to track the progress of relief dollars due to them. Because the app was created using the reality of Sandy, rather than abstract models, it can be further developed for use in any disaster situation, anywhere in the world.

Jung Min Kim, whose childhood in Korea was marred by bullying at her school,created Brave Friends, an iPad interactive book for children aged five to eight. Through research she conducted in Korea, Kim found that that is the ideal age group for teaching kids how to become “upstanders” (those who stand up against bullies) rather than passive bystanders. Her charming cast of cartoon characters offer lessons easily learned that help children understand why it’s important to be a "brave friend." Above: Kim pitches Brave Friends at the Thesus Forum on April 18th at the SVA Theater; photo: Peggy Roalf.

These are just two of the 19 projects presented, which run the gamut from serious social issues to understaning other cultures through their cuisine to bringing manufactured products to retail markets. A few more examples:

Hijaz–The Cookbook is a book created by Nada Seet that introduces Americans to the Saudi/Hijazi culture and history through food. Unlike standard recipe cookbooks, Hijaz incorporates stories that provide a new way of looking at a culturally rich and long misunderstood Saudi Arabia.

This is Graphic Design, by Janine Toro, is an educational program that delivers understanding and awareness of graphic design to high school students. Through workshops, graphic design is presented as problem solving, storytelling and critical thinking, students learn the process and aesthetics of design, and its potential as a future career choice.

Pump’d, Marcie Lawrence’s independent magazine for young women with diabetes, provides thoughtful and intelligent content on life with the chronic illness from the perspective of the young women who live it.

Justin Colt reinvents how products are manufactured and sold with Made Here, a platform connecting product designers with manufactures and retailers and enabling them to take their product ideas from concept to the retail shelf.

All 19 projects can be explored on the Hatched website.

The Hatched showcase was curated by faculty member Ada Whitney, and will be on view through May 11 at the Visual Arts Gallery, 601 West 26th Street, 15th floor, New York City. The celebration tonight runs from 6-8 pm. Information. Designer as Author/Entrepreneur, co-founded and co-chaired by Lita Talarico and Steven Heller, is a program in the School of Visual Arts MFA Design Department. Information.

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