I recently had the privilege of being invited to review and comment on outstanding electric guitar design work by students in a GA Tech studio course on electric guitar design, taught by Sam Harris, IDSA, Adjunct Faculty Member and also President of Form and Function, Inc. The web site for Sam's Industrial Design/Product Development firm, Form and Function, is www.f-square.com/.
This studio course, ID 3011 INTERMEDIATE DESIGN I, is the first of several in-depth courses on the ENTIRE design process required of all Industrial Design students at the Georgia Institute of Technology (better known as GA Tech). Various product development domains are utilized in order to ground the essential theoretical aspects of design in real world design research, product design, manufacturing, and so forth. This instance of ID 3011 used electric guitar design, specifically re-design of the Fender Guitar, as the real world bed rock.
My friend and colleague, Prof. Samuel Harris, IDSA, has forgotten more about guitars in general, as well as specific models and their minute unique features, than most of us will ever know in our lifetimes. His deep lutherie knowledge goes back to the early days of American guitar design (C.F. Martin) and beyond!…and he is an awesome teacher…wish that I had been so lucky as a young student.
Had I done my homework, I would have known that this was an undergraduate course. Based on the professional demeanor, design and prototyping skills of the students, I thought that I was critiquing students in the Industrial Design Graduate Program. I was astounded when I found out afterwards that these were sophomores and juniors in the Undergraduate Program. This is a very high compliment to the students and Sam Harris’s mentorship. Wow!
There is a Photo Album of this great experience on the Donald Rickert Facebook site:
Don Rickert Guest Appearance at Guitar Design Studio July 6, 2011
D Rickert Musical Instruments 
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