Investigating the Bridge Between Engineering and Art with Sara Hendren

National Fellow Sara Hendren was quoted in Make Magazine about her design work in disability:

Sara Hendren’s work challenges our assumptions of what normal is— in engineering, design, bodies, and minds.
She’s currently an artist, designer, and researcher in residence at Olin College of Engineering, where she’s PI on an initiative to bring more Arts and Humanities experiences to Engineering students and faculty. She also runs an adaptive technology work group and writes about related topics at Ablersite.org. Her work has been exhibited around the world (including the White House), and is in permanent collections at MoMA and the Cooper – Hewitt. She’s currently in the process of writing her first book for Riverhead/Penguin.

We talked over Skype about some of her work and motivations—including her favorite projects, her thoughts on the importance of considering those with disabilities when designing something, and how keeping busy can be a detriment to good work. The transcript has been lightly edited for breadth and clarity.