Department of Design

Design Practice Research Group

We are a community of designers using practice-research to link academia, studio and industry. Our focus is on prototyping, manufacturing, digital fabrication and materiality.
Abstract close-up of layered green and yellow lines forming a mesh-like pattern
Photo by Leonardo Hidalgo Uribe, 2026.

We are a community of designers exploring the relationships among materials, tools, and processes through a practice-research approach, aiming to bridge academic, studio, production and industrial practices. We collaborate across multidisciplinary teams building a diverse environment in which academic inquiry, creative practice, education and industry inform and transform one another. Our interests centre on physical prototyping, redesigning manufacturing systems, digital fabrication, rethinking material practices, materiality and the built environment, and dialogues between design and industry and design education. 

MELANGE

MELANGE shifts interior textile color design to the start of production, embracing variation over uniformity, while reducing water, energy and chemical use.

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Close-up of fuzzy orange and yellow fabric or felt with soft texture and a small dark area at the top

art-ai-fact

A developing collection of design projects with an AI element to them, building understanding of AI's contribution to design at Aalto ARTS.

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Evolumination at DDW 2023, by Kollegi.

New landscapes in textile design

Sustainable textile production by innovative technique combinations.

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Fabric design by Maija Fagerlund, Emilia Kuurila, Maarit Salolainen and Anna Semi Photo Mikko Raskinen

News and Events

Symposium poster showing a close-up of a shoulder covered in pale, clay-like material

Wearing : A symposium on the experiential dimension of clothing

Wearing Symposium invites research on the lived experience of clothing across design and social sciences; submit 500-word abstract + bio by Nov 1, 2026.

Department of Design
Poster for Kyoto craft workshop with cracked brown earth wall and tied grey stone on wooden table

WORKSHOP// Earth as Surface, Stone as Point-Tangible Gestures in Space-Making through Kyoto Craft-

This two-day workshop explores space-making through two elemental materials: earth and stone.

School of Arts, Design and Architecture
Three people hold yarn spools in front of large green textile machinery in a factory setting.

Design at the start of the supply chain – Aalto University leads a major EU project to transform textile colouration practices

The EU Horizon-funded MELANGE project brings together design, technology and business to rethink colouration practices in the textile industry and accelerate the transition towards circular and sustainable textile systems.

News
Industrial robot arm carving a long beige block on a textured workshop floor
Photo by Hironori Yoshida.

Leadership Team

Woman with glasses in black and white outfit sits on bench in bright office lobby, plant in background

Julia Valle Noronha

Assistant Professor

Department of Design
Woman in black top standing by a large green textile machine with white threads in a factory

Maarit Salolainen

Associate Professor

Department of Design
Man in light jumper sits on outdoor concrete steps by a brick and dark stone wall, looking relaxed at camera

Hironori Yoshida

Assistant Professor

Department of Design

Research Team

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Namkyu Chun

University Lecturer in Design Communication

Department of Design
Smiling person in a dark top stands arms crossed in front of vertical white threads on a green weaving machine

Maija Fagerlund

Lecturer in Textiles

Department of Design
Person with short light hair lit by greenish projected patterns in an otherwise dark space

Priska Falin

Academy Research Fellow.

Department of Design
Smiling person in glasses and rust-red top, sitting by a white wall with blurred yellow flowers in front

Katrin Greiling

Assistant Professor

Department of Design
Curly-haired person in glasses and brown shearling jacket standing by a mossy rock wall in sunlight

Leonardo Hidalgo Uribe

Postdoctoral Researcher

Department of Design
Smiling person in a large denim shirt outdoors, standing before tall bushes and a house wall

Helmiina Hirviniemi

Doctoral Researcher

Department of Design
Person in blue shirt arranging narrow ceramic tiles in soft grey and pastel tones on a studio table

Nathalie Lautenbacher

University Lecturer in Ceramics

Department of Design
Smiling person with long blond hair and fringe in a black patterned blouse, indoors by large windows

Anna-Mari Leppisaari

University Lecturer in Textiles and Fashion

Department of Design
Person with long hair sits in cluttered office, in neon trousers and dark boots, coat on chair armrest

Elina Määttänen

Doctoral Researcher

Department of Design
Person with short grey hair and round black glasses, wearing a dark top, looks at camera indoors.

Heidi Paavilainen

Senior University Lecturer

Department of Design
Smiling man in dark jumper holding a sleek dog with a harness in his arms, indoors

Simo Puintila

University Lecturer in Industrial Design

Department of Design
Smiling adult with glasses and grey hair in a white shirt, standing outdoors with trees behind

Saara Pyykkö

Doctoral Researcher

Department of Design
Smiling man in glasses and grey blazer leaning against a white wall in bright indoor light

Severi Uusitalo

Senior Universtiy Lecturer

Department of Design
Woman with eye patch holding glowing glass sphere, light patterns on striped shirt, dark background

Kirsti Taiviola

Lecturer in Glass

Department of Design
Person with glasses in a black outfit seated cross-legged by a light wooden wall

Héctor Velásquez Reynoso

Senior Workshop Master

Department of Design

Coordinator

Curly-haired person in glasses and brown shearling jacket standing by a mossy rock wall in sunlight

Leonardo Hidalgo Uribe

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