Repost from original CAP article here

Students from the Hospitality+ studio in our Multi-Disciplinary Design program, led by Visiting Assistant Professor Sebastian Frith, traveled to Los Angeles to attend the ALIS Design Plus Conference with support from the J.W. Marriott, Jr. Institute. The conference gave students direct exposure to current conversations shaping hospitality design, hotel architecture, sustainability, and guest experience. Through panels and industry sessions, students learned how business strategy, operations, and long-term performance inform design decisions.

Students had the opportunity to visit a wide range of creative and professional environments, including visits to Nickelodeon Animation, the Intuit Dome, home of the LA Clippers, and Monks, a creative technology firm, alongside architectural and cultural sites such as the Eames House, LACMA, and The Broad. These experiences helped students explore how storytelling, architecture, branding, and digital experiences shape how people interact with spaces and media.

“Visiting Eames house was like a religious experience, it was beautiful.” – Benjamin Davie, MDD Junior

The group also participated in a scent workshop and a journey of the senses, where students explored how sensory design can influence emotion, memory, and user experience. In addition to professional visits, students experienced hospitality and cultural spaces such as Grand Central Market, Elorea, Disneyland, and neighborhoods throughout the city.

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“Going to LA was amazing – It brought back so much creative inspiration, especially from the Eames House and the art in LACMA.” – Olive Yoo, MDD Junior

Through this immersive experience, students gained insight into how multidisciplinary collaboration functions in real-world settings. The trip helped prepare MDD students to approach their studio projects with greater empathy, creativity, and awareness of how design impacts people across physical and digital environments.

To learn more about Hospitality+ Studio and opportunities to collaborate, contact Sebastian Frith at [email protected].
To see more content from their trip and overall MDD content, check out their Instagram @uofu_design and visit their website.

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Written by Alexandra Alarcon, MDD Social Media Intern, College of Architecture and Planning

Image Credits: Isabel Corpus