Narrative environments are public spaces that are designed to communicate a story, deliver a message, provide entertainment, create a sense of place, or sell a product. Examples include exhibitions (museum ortradeshow), transaction experiences (store or restaurant), entertainment venues (theater or theme park), or special events (festivals or parties). Designers for these spaces are articulate storytellers who use strategies to engage, inform and entertain multiple audience types. Each environment varies by region and country, dictated by unique cultural differences, historical and social contexts, and public consumer markets. This course will examine the expanded role of the designer as entrepreneur, inventor, protagonist, communicator of information, and shaper of style and place.

Multiple techniques are available to convey content and shape spatial environments. Multi-sensory tools such as graphics, objects, sound, audio, light, video, touch and role playing can be used in varying degrees to create experiences that extend from the contemplative to the highly participatory. This course will introduce a range of design techniques and methods, and how they are appropriated into a storytelling environment. A series of projects will tackle the fluid boundaries between public art and public design, and the emergence of the experience economy, where culture, commerce and entertainment are packaged for public consumption in a variety of hybrid display venues and theme based environments.