Research Supervision
I am available for Primary Supervision for PhD (Design) and Masters by Research (Design) candidates within the Faculty of Design & Society, UTS.
My supervision strengths are best catered to candidates in the fields of design history, design studies, sustainable design and repair, maker studies, craft studies, print culture, labour history, gender-labour relations and the history of technology. I have experience supporting students in research that moves somewhat beyond design as a discipline – including but not limited to: oral history, sociology, human geography and labour history. To undertake a PhD in Design, see the UTS Handbook.
Candidates would be networked with the UTS Australian Centre for Public History. I can provide experience and support for research projects involving interviews, archival research, object analysis and visual analysis. Please feel free to contact me to discuss your research proposal.
I teach in the Design Studies program within the UTS School of Design. I have taught design and art subjects at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, UNSW and the University of Canberra.
Current PhD candidate supervision:
Sue Brian, “Cabbage-tree hats – a forgotten icon”, commenced Feb 2023. (Principal Sup: P McNeil/ Co-Supervisor JA Stein.)
Frances Harvey, ” ‘I wouldn’t be caught dead in that’: A study of dress, death, and the aesthetic in the Victorian era (1830 – 1910)” (Principal Sup: J Stein, Co-sup: P McNeil).
Alexandra Barter, “European Couturiers and Australian Manufacturers: Migration, Technical Knowledge and Manufacturing Skills 1930s – 1960s” (Principal Sup: Stein; Co-Sup: McNeil), commencing October 2024.
Current Masters candidate supervision:
Zoe Rose, “Competency frameworks and ethical standards: could they help to solve the design skills deficit in the Australian Public Service?” (title to change), commenced 2023. (Principal sup: C. Tonkinwise, co-sup JA Stein).
Completed PhD projects:
Geoff Isaac, “Design for the environmental emergency: Plastic chairs as a case study for the transition to low-carbon product design” PhD thesis (Sydney: University of Technology Sydney, 2022). (Principal Sup: P McNeil/ Co-Supervisors S. Lie & JA Stein.) Note: Isaac’s PhD research led to his new monograph, Rethinking Plastics in Product Design (Bloomsbury 2025).
Subjects taught
Researching Design Histories 85502 (Design Studies, UTS School of Design) (coordination, lecturing, classes)
+ Guest lecturing at UNSW and the University of Sydney, in design, architecture and business subjects.
Key teaching areas
- Industrial craft & maker cultures (past and present)
- History & theory of technology
- Maintenance and repair
- Gender, design and technology
- The past and future of work
- Printing history and the history of visual communication design
- Research methods & interviewing
Jesse Adams Stein 