In 1993, an interdisciplinary team of over 100 students in the Industrial Design, Architecture, and Interior Architecture embarked on RISD’s most ambitious project to-date: to design a more accessible, efficient, and user-friendly kitchen from the ground-up. The campaign began with a simple notion: that routine kitchen tasks force people to bend, stoop, reach and lift—to accommodate design flaws in uncomfortable ways.
The Universal Kitchen project was led by design directors Jane Langmuir (‘66 IA), Marc Harrison (ID) and Peter Wooding. It was the brainchild of Langmuir, who alongside Harrison saw the kitchen as an icon of poor design; one in which the able-bodied can remarkably adapt. Harrison believed that it was the role of design to accommodate the user, rather than the user having to adapt to rigid, unforgiving design.
The three directors alternated teaching courses on universal kitchen design each semester, where they challenged students to unlearn what they were patterned to know about kitchens. Their approach included a step-by-step analysis of meal making and mapping techniques, so that design decisions were based on numerical information, not just intuitive feeling.
Students conducted a number of motion tests and determined that over 400 movements are taken to make the average dinner. From there, the designers considered the essential elements of water, fire, surface, and storage. Through ergonomic studies, they developed the parameters of a key concept they call the “comfort zone" - the area within easy reach for each individual. Among the many innovative ideas produced over the five year research period: a utility mouse, continuous wet surfaces, pop-up dishwashers, grey water irrigation systems, counter top waste channels, toe-kick suction, electronic consumption tracking, misting bays, steaming bays, and retractable burners.
The team designed three tiers to their kitchens; MIN, MID, and MAX. MIN was a small kitchen for studio apartments, dorm rooms, hotel suites, independent living centers, etc; and MAX, a gourmet cooking kitchen and dining area able to accommodate large families or other groups.
The project gathered financial support from a number of appliance corporations, including Frigidaire and Maytag, who provided students with funds and prototyping materials. Two of RISD’s Universal Kitchens debuted at a 1998 exhibition at the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City, and the project was also featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show. The project was dedicated to Harrison, who died before its premiere in 1998 after a battle with ALS. RISD sold the exclusive worldwide rights of the Universal Kitchen to the Maytag Corporation, who sent prototypes to market but ultimately has never implemented the designs.
The use of certain documents and collections may be restricted. Please consult the Archives staff for further details.
Permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from archival materials must be obtained in writing from the Archives. The researcher assumes full responsibility for use of material and for conformity to all applicable laws, including copyright.
Department of Industrial Design. Universal Kitchen records, Rhode Island School of Design.
Photographs, negatives, videos (VHS and 8mm), 2 audio cassettes, slides, drawings, reports, and research records document the Universal Kitchen project, 1990-2002. The bulk of the collection contains extensive visual documentation including approximately 5800 slides, 59 videos, transparencies and negatives, and multiple portfolios of drawings and large photographs. Documents include Max, Mid, and Mini kitchen models, time-motion studies(behavioral maps), confidential reports from corporations, and so on.
The video and audio cassettes have been digitized and will be posted on the Fleet Library at RISD's Digital Commons website. The slides, photographs, drawings, and research records are published and available to researchers.
Transferred to the Archives by Michael Lye, Department of Industrial Design.
The audio/video recordings were digitized in 2021 with the assistance of a Libraries of Rhode Island (LORI) grant from the RI Office of Library and Information Services using funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. See the Fleet Library at RISD's Digital Commons website.
The 59 videos document time motion studies, presentations by outside consultants, news coverage, testing and demonstrations, studio crits and discussions, and advisory committees. The two audio cassettes record lectures by Bill Stumpf and Ralph Caplan on universal design given at Brown University's Salomon Center. The 1996 lectures were part of the "Design for the 21st Century" lecture series sponsored by RISD's Department of Interior Architecture.
The series includes over 5000 slides with a few photos and negatives for the University Kitchen Project that document the classroom presentations, drafts, craft processes, models, test processes, especially with wheelchairs, user simulations, and delivery processes. The collection presents the final results of island and dishwasher mock-ups as well as the max, mid, and mini kitchens. Ranged from 1992-2002, the bulk of the slides are stored in notebook slide sleeves organized by semester. Slides in box 4 are stored in slide sleeves. Most of the slides are not labeled, but each notebook may have a brief content description. Post-it notes may be used to identify individuals or photographers, who include RISD faculty Marc Harrison and Mark Johnston.
Classroom presentations; models; instructors
Drafts; models; cooking and dining activities; Eve Lopez; wheelchair access interior
Drafts; models; Marc Harrison; class presentations and discussions
Drafts; notes; models; class discussions; user simulations; Marc Harrison
Drafts; models; crafting processes
Drafts; models; Marc Harrison
Drafts; models; class presentations(finals);
Preliminary drafts and models
Models and user simulations
Models; tests; video shooting; group crit; Julia; Richard Eisermann; Eve Lopez; Marc Harrison; Joe Delvecchio; Julia Meas
Drafts; models; brainstorm notes; class presentations (finals)
Models; tests; Mark Johnston
Models; tests; Mark Johnston
Drafts; models; presentation slides; book images; time motion; Marc Harrison
Drafts; models; tests; presentation slides; original negatives;
Models;(storage; cooking and prep; waste delivery)
Models; (storage; cooking and prep; waste delivery)
Models
Models
Build Boston presentation; Julia Child
Mini Kitchen models
U.K.D. 18; Mini Kitchen models
Drafts; models; discussion and crafting process; cooking and dining activities; Marc Harrison
Models of mini kitchen
Wrapping and shipping process
Drafts; models; tests; wrapping and shipping process; Marc Harrison
Tests; critiques
Models; packing process
Models
Model detail breakdown (numbered)
Model detail breakdown(numbered)
Models (numbered); · dishwasher
Models (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Models (numbered); island/side ?
Model detail breakdown (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Model testing (numbered)
Model testing
Models (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Model testing (numbered)
Models (numbered)
Assembly process
Components; assembly process
Models; tests
Models; tests
Models; tests with wheelchairs
Negatives and photos of models
Negatives and photos of models
portraits photos
Negatives of models and tests
Negatives of models and tests
Negatives of components
Details; components
Faxes covering 1997 May-1998 November document the activities of the project team including project manager Michael Lye’s coordination work, and Notch Design Group’s design prototype. Philip Martin contributed a lot to concept solutions and revisions. Design director Peter Wooding, Nathan Dean, Jon Woodman, Roger Antaya appear several times. Important documents include exhibition plans of the Universal Kitchen Exhibition in Cooper-Hewitt Museum, project director Jane K. Langmuir’s invitation to Fisher and Paykel Appliances, Inc and Sony Corporation. Corporations include 3-D Technical Services, Art Form Inc., Broan Mfg. Co., Inc., Design Standards, Frigidaire, Garcy Stud, item products, Inc., Monarch Appliances, Notch Design Group Inc., Panoramic Architectural Products, Rare Media Well Done, Inc., and Sony Corporation. Organized chronologically in notebooks, the faxes have been removed and placed in folders.
This collection documents research reports and publications, including the professors' and students' research materials and concepts, corporations' surveys and reports (partly confidential), and handicapped design specification publications. The themes range from categorized kitchen segment studies, behavioral maps, demographic and consumer studies, and design for the handicapped and elderly... The records are from 1990-1998 but publications may date earlier.
Thge mixed student and professor records document the Workteam activities, 1990-1998, and contains meeting notes, criteria and evaluation, 2D product layouts, control and dishwasher studies, photographs, and faxes. The Workteam records include meeting agendas and notes, demographics, research reports, contact sheets, and leaflets for dishwashers, water delivery, water quality, food waste recycler, and hydroponics. The records include prototype drawings consisting of concept drawings, 2D product layouts of storage, fridge, water management, tactile studies, carts, cooking surface, ventilation, controls, counter top, and floor plan. The Universal Kitchen Concepts includes mid kitchen design concepts and prototype; drafts of storage, floor, H2O process, ventilation, cooking, dish cleaning, adjustability system, closures, surface contours. and carts.
The records include two studies: Kohler Co. Needs/Benefits Kitchen Segmentation Study composed of studies and leaflets on filtration, chiller, gray water, anti microbial, and H2O management; analysis on consumer segmentation by Market Probe, Inc. (confidential) and Dowbrands Inc. Food Care New Products Opportunity Analysis Final Report contains basic measures, business potential assessment, task diagnostics, food continuum consumer segments, and strategic implications.
Companies mentioned include Dow Chemical Company, Kohler Company, Frigidaire Company, and Notch Design Group Inc.
Leaflets and brochures of carts
Data, collection sheets, design concepts, and drafts of carts
Drafts of carts design
Carts prototypes
Forward and basic measures
Business potential assessment and task diagnostics
Task diagnostics
The food continuum
Strategic implications and appendix
Segmentation study report; misc product and analysis sheets;
Brochures of filtration, chiller, gray water, antimicrobial, and trends
Study of segmentation and market preference
Strategy and summary, brochures of sinks, water management and materials
Workteam records, prototype pictures, and faxes
1-40; PEREZ; MTL; ?; JF; JPF; ART; SB; JCH
JCH and unnamed
Unnamed drawings
Misc drawings
Workteam records, meeting notes of waste management, and brochures and current trends
Brochures, presentation slides, and strategy research
Brochures and articles of waste management
Brochures, research articles, and concepts of waste management
Concepts and sketches of hydration and waste storage
Concepts and sketches of storage and H2O gutter
Concepts and sketches of ventilation, cooking, and cleaning
Concepts and sketches of systems, closures, and surfaces
Concepts and sketches of surface contours, seating, and transportation
Portable control concepts; dishwashing concepts; meeting notes; faxes
Faxes; concepts and ideas
Evaluation criteria; exhibition lists; adjustable systems
Agendas; notes; research reports; brochures of water delivery
Brochures of water management, recycler, hydroponics, and clean-up
Agendas; notes; demographics and research reports
This collection documents research reports and publications, including the professors' and students' research materials and concepts, corporations' surveys and reports (partly confidential), and handicapped design specification publications. The themes range from categorized kitchen segment studies, behavioral maps, demographic and consumer studies, and design for the handicapped and elderly... The records are from 1990-1998 but publications may date earlier.
Series V. Research records Part 2 Faculty collection
Part 2 documents research conducted by Industrial Design faculty Marc Harrison and Michael Lye, including handicapped design specification publications acquired by Harrison. The collection consists of books, slides, work records, faxes, photos of brainstorming sessions, Cooper-Hewitt museum exhibition records, and industry brochures. Few are confidential. Publications date to 1964 but the bulk of the records are from 1995-1998.
Categorized cooking process listing;(confidential) dimensioned plan with accessibility study; Adaptable kitchens and bathrooms by Hygeia; basic kitchen planning for the physically impaired by GE Appliances; categorized drawings
Concept notes; dimensioned plan; breakdown and reconfiguration, categorized study of counter, ventilation, storage, water system
Project research and agendas; communications with and research summary from sponsors; concept generation; and concept drawings. (more than just storage)
Summary of previous work from 1993-1994; testing notes; research of the older population; studies of waste management, behavioral maps, and disabilities; kitchen evolution sketches;
Drafts and plans of the system; Unlimited by Design exhibition proposal; meeting notes; budgets; work team records of letters
Faxes; thoughts draft; articles
Unlimited by Design; Universal Kitchen Project; Update on Universal Kitchen Status, drafts and photos
Articles and researches about ergonomics in design and disabilities
Ergonomics magazines; articles and researches about design for aging and disability; Herman Miller Research Corporation
Surveys and researches on American's food choices, ergonomics, behavioral maps and accessibility design guidelines
Housewares history
Product brochures
demographics and statistics; design graphics
Guidelines to modifications
Research on interior design for the elderly
Design guidelines for people with disabilities or who are aging
Introduction and summary of the Universal Kitchen Project
Item list; perspectives; layouts; sketches (out of envelopes)
Transparencies and papers of perspectives, kit of parts; set of components (out of envelopes)
Perspectives of island base structures; faxes (out of envelopes)
Introduction and summary of the Universal Kitchen Project
Perspectives, faxes, workteam documents
25 Tumble Forms slides (out of envelopes), and 8 photos of blackboard notes and sticky pads
Investigation of American dishwasher marketplace (Dow confidential)
Research about wheelchair users
Site development; buildings; requirements; design specifications; legislations
Site development; buildings; requirements; design specifications; legislations
Environmental considerations; areas of activity
Testing standards and dimensions(phase one) by George G. Brin, John P. Flannery, and Jeremy C. Howard
Images of systems, kits, configurations, and mini/mid/max kitchen
Future projections; competitors; customer surveys; concepts; drafts of waste management
Images of kit of parts, sink, drafts
Photos of the full kitchen; crit; drafts
Drafts of telescoping backsplash, and its details; categories of design activity sheets; evaluation participants list; meal preparation process
Notes; sheets; layouts; drafts
Concept drawings, and illustrations of kitchen models
Drafts and drawings
Sticky notes of ideas, and drafts
Contact information cards
CD
This is a collection of large format documents, including behavioral maps, portfolios, and plans and perspectives. Dated from Dec 1994 to Aug 1998, the records include students' work and their collaboration with corporations. Some are taken out and put in acid-free files.
This is a small collection of behavioral maps, documenting assembly, preparation, main dish, side dish, dessert, cleaning...and paired cooking process. Some are mounted, some in large format. The cooking steps breakdown is also included, which lists 156 steps of cooking and dining pasta and salad. The Home Water Management chart by Kohler Co. is confidential. Most of the records are undated.
156 steps of pasta and salad cooking and dining (mounted on cardboard)
Behavioral maps (time-motion studies) of assembly, preparation, main dish, side dish, dessert, cleaning...
Chart of water management by Kohler Co. (confidential)
2 mounted behavioral maps of Wally and Esther's movement during trashing, cooking, gathering, and cleaning.
3 transparents on 1 cardboard
Portfolio #1 documents color renderings and material samples of max, mid, mini kitchens; mounted drawings of dimensioned perspectives, and wireframe perspectives of max kitchen. The mounted drawings were created between 1994 Feb-May, the others are undated.
Portfolio #2 documents mostly drawings and two papers ranging from 1994-1997. It consists of behavioral maps, concept drawings, components breakdown, perspectives, and kit of parts instructions. Besides, Breakdown of the meal preparation process analyzes the steps of basic cooking, and the Charrette folder includes a letter to Jane Langmuir.
Cleaning location connections and wheelchair behavioral map
Light sources; kit of parts; perspectives; max kitchen cabinetry components breakdown; concept drawings
Analysis of the meal preparation process
Letter to J.L dated 4 Oct. 94 about C-H exhibit; kit of parts; behavioral maps; 1 photo (missing)
Portfolio #3 documents the drawings and a letter to Allen Morse about carts’ design. The drawings ranged from 1995-1998, but many are undated. Behavioral maps, concept drawings, dimensioned perspectives and floor plans constitute the majority.
Concept drawings; motion maps; waste management; and statistics of time
Letter from Marc Harrison and Jane Langmuir to Allen Morse; and drawings of the carts
Dimensioned perspectives and floor plans of mini kitchen
Portfolio #4 documents large format photos, drawings, and time-motion studies. The works are not dated but according to the inventory list, most works are from 1994-1995.
Floor plan
Full view of kitchen in cooking, serving, preparing, and assembly process
Portfolio #5 documents drawings between summer '96 and winter '97. Most are undated but likely from the same session as the dated. In 1996 summer students created concept drawings of waste management, water management, packaging, storage, cleaning, racks, counter, and carts. In 1997, time-motion studies, cooking process breakdown, assemblage plans, and perspective drawings were created.
Cooking elements and process breakdown; concept drawings of waste management, water management, packaging, storage, cleaning, racks, counter, and carts
Time-motion studies; assembling plans of the min and mid kitchen; perspectives
This is a small collection of large format plans and perspectives. Dated from Dec 1997 to Aug 1998, RISD cooperated with Jutras Woodworking Inc. to furnish and fabricate the mini kitchen and multiple appliance columns. The scales range from 1:8 to 1:1.
Large format dimensioned plans, perspectives and details of dishwashers, recycling overall, water delivery, oven controls, light cap, refrig, shelves, brackets, cart, counter top, cabinet, appliance column, and assembly.
Large format dimensioned plans of counter top, multiple cabinet, and appliance columns