Play at the da Vinci Center
Bridge imagination and real-world innovation.
At the da Vinci Center, we help learners apply what they’re studying through hands-on, creative exploration. Play unlocks fresh perspectives, strengthens collaboration, and transforms complex challenges into opportunities for innovation.
Through methods like design thinking, LEGO® Serious Play®, and student entrepreneurship through the Shelfie Program, learners practice curiosity in action, developing the empathy, confidence, and skills to turn their ideas into real-world impact.
Every time you play, you practice thinking differently and that’s where real-world innovation begins.
How We Play
Explore the methods that bring creativity, empathy, and collaboration to life. Each one helps learners experiment, connect, and turn ideas into real-world impact.
We build to think and think by building. LEGO® Serious Play® helps individuals and teams make ideas visible, explore systems, and align around shared goals. By using our hands to express complex ideas, we uncover new perspectives, deepen collaboration, and spark creative breakthroughs.
Join a Workshop
Experience LEGO® Serious Play® with others through interactive sessions that spark creativity, alignment, and shared understanding.
Bring it to Your Class or Team
Collaborate with da Vinci facilitators to design a session that helps your students or team members explore challenges, imagine possibilities, and build ideas together.
From our learners:
I loved how everyone goes back to being a kid again when the LEGO® bricks come out.
People who don’t identify as being creative were able to tap into creativity.
We use design thinking to connect creativity with empathy. Learners explore real challenges, listen deeply to the people affected, and turn insights into innovative solutions. Whether it’s improving healthcare experiences or reimagining campus sustainability, design thinking helps transform understanding into action.
Join a Workshop
Practice design thinking with others through collaborative, guided sessions where you build, test, and share ideas.
Bring it to Your Class or Team
Learn design thinking at your own pace through short, self-guided modules that help you apply creativity and empathy to your work.
Bring it to Your Class or Team
Collaborate with da Vinci to lead a hands-on design session that inspires your students or teams to apply design thinking to real challenges.
From our learners:
One important idea I will take away from this course is the significance of empathy in the design thinking process. Understanding the needs and experiences of users deeply informs the creation of effective solutions. It's not just about solving a problem but about truly connecting with the people impacted by it. This course has shown me that empathy is not just a soft skill but a foundational principle that drives innovation and ensures that solutions are meaningful and relevant.
Play becomes practice when ideas meet the real world. Through the Shelfie Program, students and community members test concepts, gather feedback, and iterate fast. This process builds creative confidence, entrepreneurial thinking, and skills that transfer far beyond the classroom.
Test your Ideas at Shift Retail Lab
Step into VCU’s living lab where new ideas are designed, tested, and shared through the Shelfie Program!
The Shelfie Program provides the opportunity for creators and makers to test their ideas and learn by doing. Feedback is our currency, helping projects evolve with every try. Participants bring concepts to life, connect with real customers, and gain valuable insights. Shift is more than retail, it’s a supportive space to explore, create, and grow.
From our Shelfies:
Learning and work have always happened to me in silos. This is the first time in my life where both of those things are intersecting. I am learning as I work on something and I think that is a unique model.
I’ve attempted to write books since seventh grade and I would always get stuck at the third chapter. I came here and somebody read like the first couple chapters and they were like I really like this and I want to see where it goes. I was like what? It just gave me that extra kick of motivation and now we’re like 30 chapters in, closing in on the finale. I never thought I’d get this far!