Rafe Totengco played a special role in the Cooper-Hewitt Museum’s Teen Design Fair held last October 19, 2009. As a featured exhibitor and speaker, he interacted with hundreds of New York City high school students, who were invited to learn about careers in design.
The event, which featured Tim Gunn as the keynote speaker and was held at The New York Times Center, is one of the most popular elements of National Design Week, an education initiative offering free admission for all museum visitors and hosting a series of public programs surrounding the National Design Awards. Rafe was joined by leading designers working in the fields of fashion, industrial, multimedia, graphic design and architecture. Design colleges from around the country were also on hand to provide admissions and scholarship information.
The informal atmosphere allowed Rafe to talk with the students one-on-one and share his experiences and insights. “I really enjoyed meeting the students, answering their questions and offering guidance on their career paths,” Rafe enthused. “It wasn’t long ago that I was working my way through FIT as a design assistant. I know the realities and the rewards of the industry and I was happy to share my story.”
