We remember Frank warmly. He was an advocate of the integration of industrial design with research and engineering and passionate about cross-discipline innovation. His retirement lecture “The Redesign of Design” attended by Prince Charles, Ove Arup and many other leading figures was testimony to his influence and is fondly remembered by those of us involved. He was a gifted professor whose legacy is surely the generations of designers in prominent positions in business, education and research the world over.
Frank Height: Inspiring generations
By Graham
on August 7 2013
We received the sad news on 28th July that Frank Height had passed away. Frank was Professor of Industrial Design at the Royal College of Art, London until 1986 and founder of the pioneering Industrial Design Engineering (IDE) course from which at least 20 PDD staff graduated over the years and became inspired into their current careers.
Frank was also a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, the Chartered Society of Designers and the Royal Society of Arts. He won three Design Council awards; the Silver Medal XII Triennale, Milan; international design awards in Paris, Hanover and New York; the Institute of Packaging Award; and the Sir Misha Black Medal for services to design education. His professional work included the design of: furniture, domestic products, medical and office equipment and interiors.