so there's this...

We are finally doing our design critic doodies and getting to the bottom of: bathrooms. What makes good bathroom design? Answering that question would require a whole separate podcast. (Bidet all the way, baby!) For this episode, we plunge into a couple specific icks that really make us scrunch our nose in disgust. Cornelia may ruffle some feathers with this one, bravely sharing her harsh critique on toothbrushes being stored in the bathroom. We will keep coming back to her weird thing with plastic and wetness… Brooke, on the other hand, steps outside the private commode and fixes her eye on public bathroom stalls. Why are they so flimsy? And exposing?? The famous architect behind the design may surprise you…so there's this... is produced, edited, hosted, and researched by Brooke Viegut & Cornelia Smith. Special thanks to the MA Design Research, Writing & Criticism program at the School of Visual Arts. Join us on Instagram or designthatdisappoints.com.

JOYYY to the world… or not? Is joy actually destroying our world? In this episode, we reflect on the definition of joy—a fleeting moment of intense pleasure and elation experienced in the present—and exchange purportedly joyful designs that disappoint us and also Mother Nature. Brooke comes out as an ice queen and unleashes bold anti-glitter vitriol over the airwaves, backed with jaw-dropping facts about the secretive Glitter industry that may or may not be manufacturing weapons. Cornelia unwittingly dovetails off of Brooke’s topic with a segment on party poppers. No, not the fun kind of poppers—the mini confetti explosive devices that are hell for people with sensory issues and anyone who cares about plastic pollution. Also, they’re highly flammable! In conclusion, confetti is a gateway drug to pyromania. How do you feel about weaponized joy?so there's this... is produced, edited, hosted, and researched by Brooke Viegut & Cornelia Smith. Special thanks to the MA Design Research, Writing & Criticism program at the School of Visual Arts. Join us on Instagram or designthatdisappoints.com.

Is candy advertising encouraging cannibalism? Is your sweet tooth the reason for the Great Pacific Garbage Patch? In this episode, we share some not-so-sweet thoughts on candy design. We had to restrain ourselves from just having a complaining sesh on all the candy we straight up do not like (looking at you, nougat-dominant chocolate) to instead focus on the reason we’re here in the first place: #designthatdisappoints. Cornelia kicks off the convo with the type of candy packaging marketed in movie theaters and box store bargain bins, and Brooke closes us out with her distaste for a certain marketing ploy: anthropomorphic candy characters, or brand mascots, whose lore has garnered celeb status in our cultural zeitgeist. so there's this... is produced, edited, hosted, and researched by Brooke Viegut & Cornelia Smith. Special thanks to the MA Design Research, Writing & Criticism program at the School of Visual Arts. Join us on Instagram or designthatdisappoints.com.

Vacation is a respite, a period of leisure away from the doldrums of quotidian life. An adventure anywhere but home. It should be fun! And relaxing! But vacation can sometimes feel like a burden—the planning involved, the travel to and from places, the coordination of people and prices and comfort. In this episode, we look at vacation through two different lenses: paid time off as a flawed design practice, and highway rest stops—one in particular—whose design can make or break a family vacay.so there's this... is produced, edited, hosted, and researched by Brooke Viegut & Cornelia Smith. Special thanks to the MA Design Research, Writing & Criticism program at the School of Visual Arts. Join us on Instagram or designthatdisappoints.com.

What better way to kick off this season than with a discussion centered around the very essence of our being, the inescapable substance that rules our lives? Designs for, of, with, and about water are endless. The world is overflowing with bad water-related designs. In this episode, Cornelia condemns the reusable water bottle industry for its apparent love of hard-to-clean vessels (people are gonna hate this!), while Brooke talks Super Slurpers, absorbent shape-shifting playthings, and the pediatric health hazards of toy design.so there's this... is produced, edited, hosted, and researched by Brooke Viegut & Cornelia Smith. Special thanks to the MA Design Research, Writing & Criticism program at the School of Visual Arts. Join us on Instagram or designthatdisappoints.com.

Well well well…here we are. Welcome!!! We are thrilled you’re joining us here on “so there’s this…”, a show in which we share our thoughts and opinions on everyday design that disappoints.So…what does it even mean for something to be “design-related”? Why does that matter? Who are we to talk about design? For Episode Zero, we talk through these questions and valiantly attempt to define design–in our own words. Come explore the origins of STT, who we are, and why you should like/rate/subscribe to continue listening to our hot takes. Let’s roll!so there's this... is produced, edited, hosted, and researched by Brooke Viegut & Cornelia Smith. Special thanks to the MA Design Research, Writing & Criticism program at the School of Visual Arts. Join us on Instagram or designthatdisappoints.com.

so there’s this… is your friendly neighborhood podcast about design that disappoints. As design critics, co-hosts Brooke Viegut and Cornelia Smith couldn’t help but wonder about those minor inconveniences in the world that can ruin your day — those little everyday designs that just make you think “ick.” Chances are, that “ick” is a design flaw. On “so there’s this…” we explore our own icks through a design lens to figure out how they ended up like… that. From rest stops to inspirational quotes, bathroom stalls to chocolate, join us as we share our many opinions on a journey through design and its disappointments.So... how does this work? Every episode, one of our hosts chooses a topic to discuss. Based on that topic, they each pick a lamentable design to research, examine and critique. But here’s the catch — neither knows what designed “thing” the other is bringing in before recording!so there's this... is produced, edited, hosted, and researched by Brooke Viegut & Cornelia Smith. Special thanks to the MA Design Research, Writing & Criticism program at the School of Visual Arts. Join us on Instagram or designthatdisappoints.com.