Lisa Fontaine

Associate Professor, Graphic Design

Education

BFA, Boston University, 1980
MFA, Boston University, 1983

On the Web

http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id

Supporting Files

• Short CV
• CV-Short Format (03/19/21)

Research Interests

Interactive exhibition design.
Graphic Design in the built environment.
Main Street design & revitalization.
Wayfinding design.
Placemaking.
Symbology.

Ecological issues in graphic design education and practice.

Current Scholarship

• Museums as Experiential Learning Labs, 09/25/2018

  AIGA Design Educators Conference,  Ann Arbor, MI

• Museums as Experiential Learning Labs: Developing User-centric Interactive Exhibits through Observational and Participatory research, 06/10/2018

  in Communication and Place, the research journal of the Society of Experiential Graphic Design

• Children’s Book as Change Agent? Teaching Sequential Visual Narrative Assignments That Cultivate Tolerance and Inclusion, 03/25/2018

  International Design Principles and Practices conference, March 2018 in Barcelona, Spain

• Providing brand guidance for independent businesses as a supplement to District Signage Standards, 08/01/2017

  in Interdisciplinary Journal of Signage and Wayfinding, Vol 2, No 1. Co-authored with Susan Bradbury

• Best Research Poster award for International Conference, 09/30/2016

  awarded by the International Design and Emotion Society: 

• Uncomfortable Self-reflections, 09/28/2016

  at the Design and Emotion Conference, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. 2016. 

• If we build it: Designing a Prototype For a Revitalized Dubuque Commercial District , 07/15/2015

  at the Community Development Society National Conference, Dubuque, IA. 2014.

• Learning Design by Designing Learning Experiences: A Case Study in the development of strategic thinking skills through the design of interactive museum exhibitions, 09/05/2014

  Visible Language, vol 48.2

• Learning Design by Designing Learning Experiences: A Case Study in the development of strategic thinking skills through the design of interactive museum exhibitions, 10/10/2013

  at the AIGA  National Conference, Minneapolis, MN. 

• Social Networking As A Mentoring And Engagement Tool Between Design Alumni And Early Design Students, 05/18/2013

  at the Design Research Society Conference, Oslo, Norway.

• Design in Action: Transforming Communities, 07/01/2012

  Iowa State University’s exhibit at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Design of the overall concept of the exhibit (message and structure); design of overall graphic identity for the exhibit; design and conceptual development of interactive games; design of all graphic elements on the exhibit, including video and slide presentations.

• Experiential Learning through Interactive Exhibit Design, 10/22/2011

  at New Contexts/new Practices AIGA Education Conference, Raleigh, NC.

• Subversive thinking as a learning method: The Corporate Identity Parody assignment, 10/09/2011

  at the SECAC Conference, Savannah, GA

• International Institute for Information Design: Best in Category, 09/01/2011

  The universal healthcare symbol set (Hablamos Juntos) won best in category for healthcare design in the organization’s annual international design competition. The award was for the entire design team. 

• Universal Symbols for Cross Cultural Audiences: New Methods for Design and Testing, 04/01/2011

  co-authored with Oscar Fernandez and Kathryn McCormick. Published in the International Journal of the Humanities.

• Representational Image-Making by Bonobo-Chimpanzees: A Study in Interspecies Visual Communication, 02/04/2011

  at the International Conference on Design Principles and Practices, Rome, Italy.

• Universal Symbols for Cross Cultural Audiences: New Methods for Design and Testing, 06/01/2010

  co-authored with Oscar Fernandez and Kathryn McCormick. IIID Space Journal, published by IIID in Vienna, Austria.

• Hablamos Juntos Universal Healthcare Symbols, 05/28/2010

  at the SEGD national conference, San Diego. 2010.

• Universal Symbol Systems for Cross- Cultural Audiences, 12/04/2009

  at the Sign 09 Conference, Vienna, Austria.

• Developing an Environmental Graphic Design Curriculum, 05/30/2009

  presented at Ignoring Boundaries, the Society of Environmental Graphic Design (SEGD) Annual Conference,  San Diego CA.

• Felix Adler Children's Discovery Center, 05/01/2009
  Supervised design outreach project for interactive museum exhibits for Clinton, IA children's museum.
• Woodbury County Courthouse Wayfinding, 12/15/2008
  Supervised design outreach project for the wayfinding system for Sioux City's national landmark courthouse building. 
• Atlantic Iowa Downtown District, 12/15/2008
  Supervised design outreach project for downtown Atlantic's retail district, which included the design of 20 business identities, signs and storefronts. 
• Graphic Design in the Built Environment, 09/20/2008

  Southeastern College Art Association Conference, New Orleans

• Culture jamming and the global brand: a satirical response to ubiquitous Corporate Identities, 07/06/2008

  presented at "From Power to Empowerment: Examining Critical Literacy in Visual Culture," Dallas, TX.

• Developing an Environmental Graphic Design Curriculum, 05/29/2008

  at the SEGD annual Conference, Washington, DC. 

• Visual Metaphor in Logo and Symbol Design, 04/22/2008

  Conference presentation at the Kern Conference on Visual Communication: Rhetorics and Technology, Rochester NY, 2008

• Graphic Design Against the Public Interest: How Branding Exploits Consumer Culture, 01/11/2008

  The Second International Conference on Design Principles and Practice,
  Miami FL. 

• Staying on Message: Reinforcing Your District’s Story as Told through its Commercial Signs, 11/14/2007
  Illinois Main Streets Conference, Danville, IL.
  
• Advancing Environmental Graphic Design in the Curriculum, 06/02/2007
  Rethink: the National Conference of the Society of Environmental Graphic Design, Boston MA.
  
• Branding and Cultural Imperialism: A satirical Look at Graphic Identity in the Global Economy, 04/20/2007
  Cross-Cultural Perspectives of Visual Communication Conference; Eau-Claire WI
• Sign Designs for Eclectic Retail Districts, 04/17/2007
  National Conference of  American Planning Association; Philadelphia PA
  
• When is Branding Counter-productive?, 03/28/2007
  National Main Street Conference; Seattle WA
• Biting the Hand that Feeds Us: Culture Jamming in the Studio Classroom, 10/14/2005
  presented at By Design: the National Design Conference of Canada Toronto, Ontario