Patricia Moore, also as known as the Mother of Universal Design, is a female industrial designer in the US.
Graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology, Moore chose to complete advanced studies in biomechanics at the New York University School of Medicine and the Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine.
Realized how important of taking empathic research to the extreme to design products, Moore acted like an 80-year old woman from 1979-1982, traveling through 116 cities in America and Canada. To learn the behavior of different groups of elderly people, she gave herself nine personas include a homeless woman, a very wealthy woman, a woman with a wheelchair, etc. This experience opened her mind to intimately understand how difficult the world was to negotiate as an elder.
Then through her career, Moore worked for enterprises such as Johnson & Johnson, Maytag, NASA, OXO, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, and Whirlpool. More than 300 products from the medical facilities are designed by Moore.
Moore became a fellow of the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), which later named Moore as one of The Most Notable American Industrial Designers in the history of the field in 2016. Moore is also elected as one of The 40 Most Socially Conscious Designers in the world.
Also known as a media guest and international lecturer, Moore wrote numerous articles and books including Disguised: A True Story; Ageing, Ingenuity & Design; and The Business of Aging (forthcoming).
Resources:
Patricia Moore: 2020 CHANGEMAKER Award, Renowned Gerontologist, and Designer
https://www.gdaspeakers.com/speaker/patricia-moore/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patricia_Moore
Design Pioneer: Patricia Moore – Mother of Universal Design http://wonderwomenglobal.com/design-pioneer-patricia-moore-mother-of-universal-design/
it is amazing to learn about this woman! she has great contribution to the design field. i think it will be helpful to learn more if you could upload some pictures of her works.
She is really encouraging – I appreciate the artists and designers putting themselves out there and experimenting stuff with their own body.
Hi Hermoine,
What an inspiring woman! I think it was a great idea to include an image of Moore, as it really helps see her as a person, rather than a figure.
I really love the story of her travels. I think these days in particular, its so easy to be chained to my desk, but her personas offer a really creative way to build and develop our sense of empathy.
Thank you for sharing!
It great to know Moore’s contribution to design. I am inspired by her dedication on researching elderly people.