In this episode of Design Education Talks, we speak with Ksenija Miļča, Assistant Professor and Head of the Interior Design and Brand Design study programmes at EKA University of Applied Sciences in Riga, Latvia. Her work sits at the intersection of brand identity, spatial design, visual communication, sustainability and design education, bringing together questions of aesthetics, value, meaning and human experience.

Together, we explore how design education can move beyond fragmented courses and passive learning towards a more integrated, practical and reflective model. Ksenija discusses the importance of real projects, material experimentation, interdisciplinary thinking and international collaboration, showing how students can learn to connect theory with practice and develop the confidence to work with complexity.

This conversation is about more than interiors or branding. It is about how design forms relationships between people, spaces, organisations and values. At a time when education is being reshaped by technology, sustainability, global exchange and changing student needs, Ksenija’s perspective reminds us that design education must remain close to reality while still protecting imagination, judgement and creative courage.

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

In this episode of Design Education Talks, I am joined by graphic designer, publisher, editor and educator Esen Karol for a thoughtful conversation about what it means to educate designers in an age of distraction, artificial intelligence and accelerating change. Drawing on her experience at Pratt Institute in New York and through her independent cultural criticism journal Manifold, Esen reflects on the changing role of the design educator, the importance of editorial thinking, and why the future of design education depends on cultivating attention, curiosity and meaningful human relationships rather than simply teaching software or preparing students for employment.

Together we explore the value of studio culture, deep reading, writing, publishing and critique as essential components of creative education. Esen argues that students need more than technical skills or polished portfolios; they need opportunities to experience the world directly, develop confidence in their own actions, and discover their unique voice through making, reflection and dialogue. The conversation examines how joy, discipline and slow observation can become powerful teaching methods, and why publishing remains one of the richest educational frameworks for developing critical thinking, collaboration and cultural awareness.

More than a discussion about graphic design, this episode is an exploration of the future of art and design education itself. We consider how schools can resist standardisation, rebuild communities of learning, and create spaces where students learn not only to communicate, but to perceive, question and think independently. It is a conversation for educators, designers, students, researchers and anyone interested in how creativity is formed, how culture is transmitted, and why the most important work of education may still be helping people learn how to see.

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

Simon Collins is one of the most internationally experienced figures working at the intersection of design education, creative leadership and innovation. His career spans global brands including Nike, Zegna and Polo Ralph Lauren, leadership roles at Parsons School of Design, advisory work with governments and major institutions, and his current position as Chief Creative Officer of the Design Innovation Institute Shanghai. Having lived and worked across Europe, the United States and China, Simon brings a rare perspective on how creativity, education and industry intersect across cultures.

In this conversation, we explore the evolving purpose of art and design education at a time when artificial intelligence, globalisation and rapidly changing industries are forcing educators to rethink long-held assumptions. Rather than focusing on software or technology, Simon argues that the true purpose of a design school is to teach students how to learn, how to remain curious, and how to approach complex problems with confidence and imagination. Drawing on decades of experience as both practitioner and educator, he reflects on design thinking, innovation, sustainability, industry collaboration, educational philosophy and the relationship between Western and Eastern approaches to creative education.

This is a conversation about far more than fashion or design. It is about the qualities that make creative people valuable in an uncertain world: curiosity over certainty, learning over knowing, and thoughtful action over fashionable rhetoric. Whether you are an educator, student, designer, researcher or creative leader, Simon Collins offers an honest and thought-provoking perspective on what art and design education can become when it refuses to separate imagination from reality, and creativity from responsibility.

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

Graham Fink is one of those rare creative figures whose career refuses to fit neatly into a single title. Creative director, art director, writer, artist, technologist, musician, filmmaker and educator, his practice moves fluidly across disciplines, cultures, and technologies. From global advertising leadership roles to experimental art-making, from working with robotics and AI to developing tools that allow him to draw using only his eyes, Graham’s work is driven by a restless curiosity and a deep belief in the power of ideas to cut through sameness.

Alongside his commercial and artistic practice, Graham has spent decades committed to creative education and mentorship. Through initiatives such as Think Different and the relaunch of his influential Art School, he has challenged conventional models of learning, advocating for experimentation, cross-pollination, and thinking before polish. In this conversation, we explore creativity as a way of seeing the world, the dangers of mediocrity in an age of speed and AI, and why difference, curiosity, and discomfort remain essential tools for the next generation of creatives.

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

Dan Vlahos is a Boston-based design leader, educator, and researcher. He is currently a Senior Lecturer at Bentley University and is serving on the AIGA Boston Board. Vlahos is also a member of the Boston Society of Printers, the Design Management Institute, and was a founding member of Design Museum Boston (now CoDesign Collaborative). His interdisciplinary design work has been recognized by the AIGA, the One Club, Print, How, and the Interactive Media Council. Vlahos began his career in Arnold Worldwide’s Volkswagen Design Group and later served as Creative Director for Shepley Bulfinch architects. His past clients include Harvard University, Duke University, Educators for Social Responsibility, and the Industrial History Center. Vlahos received a BFA in Graphic Design from Massachusetts College of Art and Design and returned to MassArt’s Dynamic Media Institute to complete his MFA in Design in 2017. Vlahos’ research explores empowerment, complexity, dynamic media, sustainability, and creative learning. In 2020, Merrimack College’s Interdisciplinary Institute named Vlahos a Presidential Fellow, and in 2021, Vlahos entered into the Design Incubation program as a Writing Fellow. In 2023, he became a USGBC LEED Green Associate and an AIGA Design Leader (DL). In 2024, Vlahos was named an AACSRE Emerging Fellow, and in June 2025, his short motion-graphics-based film Towards a Dynamic Discipline of Design premiered at the MODE Summit in Prague.

Link to website: https://danvlahos.com

Link to Towards a Dynamic Discipline of Design motion graphics film: http://dynamicdesign.film

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

Our guest today is Jan Kubasiewicz, Professor of Design at Massachusetts College of Art and Design and one of the most influential figures in the development of dynamic media and motion design education. Born and educated in Poland, Jan has spent decades working at the intersection of visual language, time, information, and systems. He is the founder and long-time coordinator of the Dynamic Media Institute at MassArt, a programme that helped define how motion, interaction, and data could be taught as core design literacies rather than technical specialisms. Alongside his academic work, Jan’s practice spans exhibition making, research, and authorship, with his work exhibited internationally across Europe, the United States, and Asia.

Beyond the classroom, Jan has played a crucial role in shaping design discourse through lectures, publications, and curatorial projects at institutions including Harvard University, where he serves as an affiliate of the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies and curator of the Giedrojć Gallery. His writing on motion literacy, information design, and dynamic media pedagogy has become foundational reading for design educators worldwide. In this conversation, we explore how design functions as a language over time, why research is inseparable from practice, and what it means to educate designers for complexity, responsibility, and meaning in a world increasingly defined by motion and data.

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

Nikolaus Hafermaas is a designer, educator, artist, and lifelong experimenter whose career moves fluidly between practice and pedagogy, Europe and the United States, the analogue and the digital. A self-described classic car romantic and spirited driver, his work is grounded in physical experience, curiosity, and resistance to comfort—values that shape both how he designs and how he teaches.

Growing up in Kassel, Hafermaas encountered art early as a source of awe rather than instruction. With a father who was an early computer engineer and a mother who worked as an illustration artist, his formative years unfolded between technology and craft. Childhood beach holidays spent building improvised objects from flotsam and jetsam laid the foundations for a mindset rooted in making, hacking, and learning by doing.

At eighteen, he left Kassel for Berlin to study Visual Communication at UdK, choosing breadth over specialisation at a time when design education favoured narrow paths. Alongside his studies, he became a partner at the emerging agency Triad Berlin, later working on cultural exhibitions, expo pavilions, and large-scale brand experiences for institutions and global companies. These spatial and narrative projects informed his conviction that graphic design cannot be confined to surfaces or screens.

Teaching emerged organically through talks, workshops, and his involvement in Berlin’s Young Creative Industries during the city’s “poor but sexy” era. In 2002, he became a professor in Bremen, embracing an integrated design approach shaped by trial, error, and what he calls productive ignorance. This trajectory culminated at ArtCenter College of Design, where he reimagined the Graphic Design programme as Transmedia Design, an education in orchestrating graphics, motion, interaction and space into holistic experiences.

Across institutions in Europe, the U.S., and Mexico, Hafermaas has championed fearlessness, collaboration, and critical engagement with technology. He challenges students to leave their comfort zones, distrust convenience, and resist tools that promise speed without depth. For him, design education is not about producing specialists for a market, but designers able to navigate complexity, uncertainty, and responsibility with courage and empathy.

A mentor who insists that experimentation and play are necessities rather than luxuries, Nikolaus Hafermaas continues to push design education beyond screens, silos, and safe answers, toward learning that remains restless, human, and alive.

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

Christian Dominique, co-founder of Digital Wellness and trained neuroscientist from McGill University, is on a mission to redesign education systems that have forgotten how to cultivate joy. In this compelling episode of Design Education Talks, Dominique reveals a startling statistic: adults laugh and smile more than ten times less than children, and traces this "domestication" directly to outdated educational models that prioritise compliance over creativity. Drawing on cutting-edge neuroscience, practical philosophy, and design thinking, he shares frameworks for building happiness at individual, relational, and communal levels, while offering a candid assessment of where educational innovation is thriving and where it's stagnating. Dominique also previews his pipeline of specialised AI wellness tools, including an education-focused platform launching in summer 2025. Whether you're an educator, designer, administrator, or simply someone who believes schools should inspire anticipation rather than dread, this wide-ranging conversation will challenge your assumptions about what's possible when we design learning environments with human flourishing at the centre. Listen now to discover why play isn't frivolous, why art and design must remain connected, and how removing systemic blockers can help students, and all of us, rediscover the inherent joy of being alive and learning.

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

James Grady is a designer, educator, and creative researcher who fosters interdisciplinary collaboration in design, technology, and performance. As an Assistant Professor of Graphic Design at Boston University, he works closely with faculty, students, and industry partners to explore how emerging tools and processes shape creative practice. His teaching emphasizes experimentation, authorship, and process-driven design, encouraging students to merge traditional and digital techniques in innovative ways.

In addition to his academic work, James leads Design Axl, a design consultancy specializing in brand identity, digital experiences, and interactive storytelling. His projects span venture capital, technology, real estate, healthcare, and the arts, collaborating with clients to solve complex design challenges. His research and professional practice explore computational design, creative process, and the intersection of human and machine-generated work—an approach reflected in his latest talks and award-winning projects.

www.profgrady.com

www.axl.design

https://vimeo.com/jamesjgrady

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesjgrady/

https://www.instagram.com/design_axl/

https://www.instagram.com/prof_grady

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting

Today on Design Education Talks, we’re joined by John McFaul , Executive Creative Director, Brand Consultant, Educator, and one of those rare, restless creatives who has never quite fitted into the neat boxes the world tries to offer. From the Wirral to New York, from art school misfit to brand visionary, John's career is a vivid testament to curiosity, risk-taking, and cultural immersion.

He began his journey believing he was a failure for choosing Art & Design over Oxford or Cambridge , until his foundation year transformed everything. Since then, John’s path has included studying at Kingston, a brief stint at Central Saint Martins, and pioneering the early fusion of illustration, digital tools and boundary-breaking design. He co-founded Black Convoy, then launched McFaulStudio, working with clients like Nike, Levi’s, New Balance, Brand Jordan, and more , often blending art, fashion, photography, and culture into truly genre-defying work.

After closing McFaul-Day in 2024, having led a decade-long partnership with New Balance and other major lifestyle brands, John now finds himself at a turning point , what he calls the “Second Mountain.” Diagnosed with ADHD and fuelled by a desire to create work with more purpose and community impact, he is exploring new models of creative leadership and education.

In the classroom, John is known for bringing raw honesty, boundless cultural insight, and a powerful message: that creativity is messy, emotional, and deeply human. He speaks openly about failure, process, and the dangers of marketised education, and he champions a design education rooted in risk, curiosity, and authenticity.

Whether consulting global brands or inspiring the next generation, John McFaul remains a passionate advocate for creative freedom, experimentation, and meaningful cultural engagement.

Welcome, John.

Support the show

Since its inception in 2019, Design Education Talks podcast has served as a dynamic platform for the exchange of insights and ideas within the realm of art and design education. This initiative sprang from a culmination of nearly a decade of extensive research conducted by Lefteris Heretakis. His rich background, intertwining academia, industry, and student engagement, laid the foundation for a podcast that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of educational discourse.

See all of our work on on https://linktr.ee/thenewartschool
Follow us on twitter at @newartschool
Read our latest articles at https://newartschool.education/
and https://heretakis.medium.com/

Equipment used to produce the podcast:
Rodcaster pro II
Rode NT1 5th generation
Elgato Low profile Microphone Arm
Monster Prolink Studio Pro microphone cable

The rest of the equipment is here 👉https://kit.co/heretakis/podcasting