Meet Fast Forward Presenter >> Erike De Veyra

What is your Big Idea for Philadelphia?

A Studio for the Non-Designer 

Design surrounds us, every day. On a rainy day, the umbrella we grab on our way out. The door we walk out of every day. The space that protects us from the elements. Even The paperclip or the stapler we use to hold papers. Most people don’t know that there are stories behind it, the design team that solved a problem to make life a bit easier, and maybe a bit more pleasant.

Design can make a change, it just needs to reach the masses in a personable, scalable manner. What if you were told the economic development of our city depended on scraps of paper, a glue stick, a crayon, some play dough, or even some toothpicks? Would you believe it? Is there even a connection?

Designers spend most of their time in the “studio,” in school and when they became professionals. It’s where they learned and honed their skills, where their love and passion for design was nurtured. How can you appreciate something you know nothing about?. Give the non-designer a place to ask questions without judgment, to be introduced to a world unknown to them, give them the gift of studio + fun.

erikedeveyra(at)gmail(dot)com
Instagram: @erikedeveyra
Twitter: @eh_rihk

Erike is an experienced designer, connector, and public programs manager with over a decade of engaging and educating people through design experiences. Throughout her career the opportunity to do this has varied in medium--exhibitions, ephemeral installations, Pecha Kucha style and one-on-one talks, communications, conferences, buildings, charrettes and workshops--and programming for varying age groups and learners. Erike has managed the worldwide event PARK(ing) Day in Philadelphia to celebrate parks and public space. Erike completed a Bachelor of Architecture with a minor in Photography from Jefferson (Philadelphia University + Thomas Jefferson University). Erike’s most recent position was the Community Outreach and Program Manager at the Center for Architecture and Design (until the pandemic’s stay-at-home order). She serves on Jefferson’s College of Architecture & the Built Environment Advancement (C-ABE) Council, and was honored in the inaugural cohort of Philly Girls Do Good--recognizing and celebrating women leaders in design and community development. In the fall of 2017, through the Public Interest Design Institute, Erike became a Social Economic Environmental Design (SEED) Certified Professional.