User-Centered Designer: Pat Antonick

Who is Pat Antonick?
Pat Antonick is an artist from my home town of Dayton, Ohio and she is known for her work with ephemera, hand-built stoneware ceramics, hand-built found object assemblages like robots and other decorative pieces, quilted digital textiles, hard-edge paintings, game boards, and jewelry.
“I’m a multi-media artist. Most of my inspiration is from flora in the garden, embellished costumes, the flea market, folk music and my scrap yard finds.”
-Pat Antonick

How has Pat practiced user-centered design?
I recently had a conversation with her {prior to this assignment} when I visited her in her studio. She described how she wanted to do a set of intricate projects for a client but her idea wasn’t exactly what the client envisioned. The client wanted something more practical but also could be used as a set of display ceramics in their home. She then talked with my mom {who is also a designer} about what kinds of color palettes we thought would be suitable for her client, and the three of us were able to discuss how to handle juggling our personal design aesthetics with the client’s intended purpose for the pieces they were purchasing. Collaboration is key to good design, no one can design alone! Her ability to work with clients to create compelling pieces that also still fit into her niche style lead to some amazing commissioned projects.
What user-centered design principles and methods did the designer utilize?
She definitely focuses on the user in her pieces that are meant to be in the kitchen, like her pitchers and tea pots. She makes all of her glazes from scratch to ensure that the quality of the pieces is nothing short of perfection. All of her glazes for countertop wares are waterproof to make sure they last and have proper function. But before she starts any project, she sketches out exactly what she wants with detailed measurements and is able to visualize the end result with her notes and criteria given to her by her clients. If she’s not working with a client she experiments and sketches over and over, until she figures out what kinds of new tools and objects she can put together to create things of extraordinary beauty. With most of her pieces, the context is decoration in a home or in an exhibit. So she always makes sure her pieces are eye-catching and “beautious” as she likes to say.

Whom are the designers target audience? What was their gender, generation, culture, and profession?
I have known Pat my whole life, she is one of my mom’s best friends {hence why I used a phone call with my mother to complete this project} and is an incredible force of nature. She makes things for people who appreciate history, for the quirky old souls who have a style that is futuristic but made from items found at flea markets. She is eccentric, bold, and the most creative person I’ve ever met… so she designs and makes things ideally for people like her a.k.a. those who appreciate true craftsmanship and the history behind most objects that have an ‘Americana’ origin. {As of late she has been very into the print making industry in the midwest so her game boards reflect ephemera collected from those periods.} If you want to dumb it down…to me, the target market is wealthy hipsters and other artists she barters with.
“Her Heliotrope store is a treasure. Her artwork is stunning and functional, I keep most of her pieces in my kitchen for decorative display and to hold sugars, spices, and salts. Visiting her shop is like walking into wonderland!”
-Janet Strauss
How did practicing user-centered design add value to the project as a whole?
Throughout her career as an artist she has been able to make and sell her wares because of their functionality, but also because her pieces are very intriguing. When you focus on the user like Pat does, you can tap into a market where there might not have been a market before, and be able to sell your product solely because it is eye-catching. But the way you keep those clients is from the quality of craftsmanship and the level of functionality.

What are the key takeaways from this assignment?
All designers — whether they are an industrial designer like my mom, or a fine artist like Pat Antonick— focus around the user, whether the end result is functional or used as purely as decoration. I have known her for a very long time and I have a deep respect for her work and her work ethic. I can’t wait to go back to her studio, and maybe this time she can teach me how she makes her game boards!
Sources
Strauss, Janet. “Phone Call with My Mom.” 7 Sept. 2018.