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In the newly installed exhibit in the Westport Library's first-floor Riverwalk Display Case, "'Imaginate' • Iterate • Reiterate," Schott explores design by re-imagining four existing objects in new ways, using a variety of tools, new and old, available to the modern maker. According to Schott, the design process involves a few simple stages – Imaginate, Iterate and Reiterate.
Imaginate (a term made up by Schott's young son) happens when you create an object or find one that you want to alter in some way, or when you respond to a question that needs a solution. Iterate occurs when you make or change an original object in some way. The inevitable failures and flaws are addressed when you reiterate, or make the object again.
The projects – a sailboat mast, a windmill tower support, a child's chair and an airplane airfoil – are some of many that stem from Schott’s 2012 appointment as the Westport Library’s first Maker-in-Residence. All of the projects followed a similar process of development: Schott and collaborators explored an object or idea using drawings, computer models, traditional fabrication techniques, laser printing and 3D printing. Often, the explorations did not quite work as planned; however, the malleable nature of computer drawings, used in tandem with the speed of 3D printing, allowed for rapid iteration and reiteration — and more time to imaginate, iterate and reiterate anew.
Schott started a career in the construction industry in 1987. Since then, he has worked on a variety of building types and projects in 12 states. Lately, he has shared design thinking and creativity with people ranging in age from 5-85 in schools and libraries across Connecticut. In the fall of 2016, he will serve as professor-in-residence for Clemson University’s Foreign Studies Program in Genoa, Italy.
The Westport Library is at 20 Jesup Road.
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