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Michael Pecirno

MA work

MA work

  • Europe Light Pollution

    Europe Light Pollution

  • London's Typeface

    London's Typeface

  • Bortle 9 Typeface

    Bortle 9 Typeface

Everything That Was There Before (and Still Is)

Eighty per cent of children born today in the US and Europe will never experience a sky dark enough to see the Milky Way.

How do we encourage people to save something they’ve never seen?

Light pollution is a growing problem that is affecting urban areas across the world. The improper and overuse of lighting through cities continues to grow, as now two-thirds of Americans and Europeans can't see the Milky Way. And while the poetic loss of the night sky carries its own implications, new evidence is emerging that connects a number of health problems with excessive and invasive lighting.

From disrupted circadian rhythms, to altered migratory patterns of animals, to the age-old loss of something unimaginably greater than us, light pollution affects our world in so many ways. And yet, it is a problem that is solvable.

Michael Pecirno's work begins to explore a future dark sky's greatest challenge: encouraging people to save something they’ve never seen. Through a multi-disciplinary approach of cartography, typography, and experiential installation, the piece begins to explore how designers can play a role in communicating a story as old as the Universe.

Programme
Information Experience Design

Info

Info

  • MA Degree

    School

    School of Communication

    Programme

    MA Information Experience Design, 2015

  • Michael Pecirno is a London-based designer whose work focusses on storytelling through visual and built experiences.

    His work crosses the boundaries of traditional design disciplines in order to create enriched objects, spaces, and ideas through research. 

    Michael completed his undergraduate degree in architecture at the University of Illinois at Chicago and is currently pursuing his MA.from the Royal College of Art's Information Experience Design programme. He has been an invited research fellow and scholarship recipient at multiple institutions, including the Architectural Association School of Architecture and Archeworks School of Design.

    Michael's work and writing has been featured in numerous places, including: Wired Magazine, Fast Company Design, Gizmodo, The Washington Post, The Venice Biennale's Spontaneous Interventions Travelling Exhibit, Proximity Magazine, and numerous other spaces and publications.

  • Degrees

  • Visitor Scholar, Archeworks School of Design, 2013; Research Fellow, AA School of Architecture, 2013; BA Architecture, University of Illinois, 2012

  • Experience

  • Designer, Gensler, Chicago, 2012–13; Designer, Bruce Mau Design, Chicago, 2010–12; Research associate, UIC School of Architecture, 2010–11

  • Exhibitions

  • The Atmospheric Tide, Broomhill Sculpture Park, Barnstaple, 2015–16; The Air Above, Battersea Park, London, 2014–15; Notes for Anyone, Venice Biennale, Chicago, 2013; As You Are, Green Exchange, Chicago, 2013; Parking Day 2012, Chicago, 2012; Make Lots of Little Plans, IGNITE Talks, Chicago, 2012; Notes for Anyone, The Billboard Art Project, Chicago, 2012; Experiential Landscapes, UIC School of Architecture Year End Show, Chicago, 2012

  • Awards

  • Prize, Broomhill Sculpture Award 2015; Prize, Battersea Sculpture Award 2014; Prize, UIC Academic Honors Award, 2008–12

  • Publications

  • 'The Underemployed Urbanist', Remedy Quarterly, 2014; 'Everything, Everywhere', Proximity Magazine, 2012

Registered Office: Royal College of Art, Kensington Gore, London SW7 2EU