Designer Young Lee Huh ’87 Brings Her Book Tour Home to Cranbrook

She began her visit in a particularly fitting place: the Weaving Studio, where she had once been a student weaver herself. She spent time with Weaving/Fibers students talking about color, pattern, texture, materials, and the creative process—and reflecting on the ways interests that began at Kingswood have continued to inform her work.

From there, Young joined students in Foundations in Design and Design Studio Honors, where the conversation turned to how ideas develop, how designers move from inspiration to finished work, and how mood and feeling influence choices in color, materials, and form.

Her own path gave the conversation another dimension. Young did not leave Cranbrook and head directly into design. She studied English at Smith College, earned a law degree from Fordham, and practiced law before eventually finding her way professionally to the creative work that had interested her for years. For students just beginning to discover their own interests and abilities, her story was a reminder that those early experiences can matter even when the destination is not yet clear.

In the afternoon, Young visited an Engineering Design class, where students explored another side of her work: how she thinks about space, structure, and human behavior when beginning a project. She talked about learning to understand her clients and considering how people will move through, interact in, and ultimately feel in the environments she creates.

Between classroom visits, Young joined faculty and staff for lunch in the Kingswood Dining Hall and toured Saarinen House, revisiting the architecture and landscape that have long influenced the way she thinks about design.

The day culminated in a full house in Kingswood Auditorium, where alumni, parents, faculty, students, and friends gathered to hear Young talk about her creative journey, her design philosophy, and A Mood, A Thought, A Feeling. Among the alumni gathered were some familiar faces from Young's Kingswood class that included Alexis Pollock, Christina Paris McBride, Elizabeth Carmichael Davis. The enthusiasm continued after the conversation, when every copy of the book available for purchase sold.

What made Young’s return especially meaningful was the time she spent with students throughout the day. She came back not simply to talk about what she has accomplished, but to return to studios and classrooms, see what students are exploring today, answer their questions, and share what she has learned along the way.

We are grateful to Young for returning to Cranbrook and sharing so generously of her time, experience, and ideas with our students and community. We know there are many more alumni whose experiences, expertise, and stories could make a meaningful connection with today’s students. If you, or a classmate you admire, might have something to share, we would love to hear from you at alumni@cranbrook.edu.