About the Lab
The Eskenazi Technology and Innovation Lab (ETIL) at the Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design opened in spring 2024. The lab supports faculty research at the intersection of art, design, social science, and technology. We provide space and structure for faculty to share research findings, collaborate on projects, and pursue grant funding together. The lab also serves as a point of contact for partnerships beyond the university.
ETIL contributes to the IU Research A&H AI+Digital Future program, but our scope extends beyond artificial intelligence. Faculty research spans digital fabrication, CNC machining, parametric modeling, virtual and augmented reality, interactive systems, generative design, and material innovation. Some projects examine how emerging tools reshape creative processes. Others use computational methods to solve production problems or expand what artists and designers can make.
What connects this work is an interest in how technology changes the relationship between maker, tool, and outcome. When a designer uses parametric software to generate forms, or a ceramicist uses CNC milling to produce molds, or a painter uses diffusion models to develop imagery, something shifts in the creative process. We want to understand those shifts and their implications for education, practice, and the objects themselves.