Design, creation and art,

The FHNW offers a broad platform for individual artistic development and cultural discourse. The programme combines practice, theory and research and encourages students to find their own content, positions and paths within the artistic field. At the heart of this is an in-depth en-gagement with one’s own artistic practice, which is reflexively expanded and placed in relation to current and historical art contexts. Exchange with lecturers, artists and cultural practitioners creates an inspiring network that continues to have an impact beyond the course. Current social, political and aesthetic issues play just as much a role as new technologies and forms of media expression.

Art and design education promotes active engagement with art and design in various social contexts and strengthens cultural participation. The FHNW programme equips students to prepare and communicate artistic and design processes – whether in a school setting, in cultural institutions or in adult education. Through individual projects, peer support and innovative research methods, new outreach formats are developed and tested in practice. Graduates open up spaces for aesthetic experience for learners, encourage independent, creative action and provide educational inspiration.

Spaces are integral components of social life and are therefore socially relevant. At the FHNW, students and continuing education participants engage with architectural, scenographic and spatial issues to create spaces that meet the demands of the present and the future. They learn to design outdoor and indoor spaces creatively, functionally and sustainably, whether in the public sphere, for exhibitions or for performative formats on stage and in the theatre. Interdisciplinary thinking and collaboration are central to this.

Design shapes and influences our social lives. Studying product and process design at the FHNW teaches more than just design principles – it fosters systemic thinking, innovative thinking and a sense of responsibility. Students learn to develop products and processes in a user- and society-centred, sustainable and aesthetically pleasing way, to shape different forms of coexistence and to drive social change. The focus in product design is on practical work with materials, technologies and methods, complemented by theoretical reflection. The aim is to create design solutions that are not only functional but also socially relevant and sustainable. The focus in process design is on the themes of equity, sustainability and digitalisation, which are addressed through collaborative working methods.

User-centred design and UX focus on people – their needs, experiences and interactions with products and digital applications. The FHNW teaches methods for the targeted analysis and design of user experiences. Students and participants in continuing education programmes acquire skills in prototyping, usability testing and interaction design. This results in services and solutions that are intuitive to use and offer genuine added value – whether in business, healthcare or education.

Visual messages shape our society. With advancing digitalisation, visual communication is becoming increasingly important – developing a critical approach to images is central to this. The degree and further education programmes in visual communication and graphic design at the FHNW teach students to convey complex content in a way that is understandable, tailored to the target audience and aesthetically compelling, as well as to develop and reflect on visual messages for everyday and specialised communication contexts. Creative ideas are brought to life with technical expertise – from traditional print media to digital applications. A practice-oriented learning environment enables the development of an individual creative profile.