Significant design contributions of the past as interpreted by design leaders of today, and cultural contributions of emerging artists, characterize the two major fall/winter exhibitions at MIAD.
“Style, Innovation and Vision: Six Perspectives of a Design Collection” opened October 7, 2011 in the Brooks Stevens Gallery and runs through March 1, 2012. Regular gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.”Generation Next” ran from from October 21 through December 10, 2011 in the Frederick Layton Gallery.
‘Style, Innovation and Vision’
Since the first exhibition in the Brooks Steven Gallery of Industrial Design in 1993, MIAD has accumulated a significant design collection for exhibition purposes. Recently, the college embarked on a program to create a new digital catalog of this collection that is visually rich and of enormous educational relevance.
Six guest curators from widely differing backgrounds were invited to study the catalog and create their own mini-exhibitions from it based on their specific curatorial perspectives. Their unique perspectives form “Style, Innovation and Vision” – this year’s major exhibition in MIAD’s Brooks Stevens Gallery.
The curators are:
- Richard Wright, renowned Chicago-based auctioneer who focuses on 20th-century design artifacts
- Kipp Stevens, son of legendary designer Brooks Stevens, talented industrial designer and retired president of Brooks Stevens Design
- Vicki Matranga, author and design historian for the International Housewares Association
- Melissa Buchanan,
Mae E. Demmer Assistant Curator of 20th-Century Design at the Milwaukee Art Museum - Ryan Ramos ’07 (Industrial Design), Lead Industrial Designer at GE Healthcare
- John Caruso, industrial designer and MIAD Professor
The curators’ focuses are varied, with Stevens, for example, selecting products that were marketed in their day as futuristic in their design approaches. Buchanan matched products to Time magazine covers that exhibited visual approaches and subject matter unique to specific eras.
Click here to read Buchanan’s take on the exhibit in her blog for the Milwaukee Art Museum.
‘Generation Next’
“Generation Next” featured a diverse group of young artists whose talents identify them as the next generation who will make a significant contribution to the cultural life of the region. Artist and MIAD Chair of Foundations Jason S. Yi selected the five with advice from Lisa Hostetler, Curator of Photographs at the Milwaukee Art Museum, and Cassandra Smith ’02 (Sculpture), co-editor of Fine Line, an international fine art magazine.
The artists are Evan Baden from Minneapolis, Sarah Gail Luther from Milwaukee, and Madison residents Sofia Arnold, Emily Belknap ’07 (Integrated Studio Arts), and Melissa Cooke.
Click here for a description of their works.
Top image: Sofia Arnold, “Bachelorette” detail, Oil and Acrylic on Canvas
Second and Third images: Curator Melissa Buchanan paired the Time magazine cover from June 8, 1953 with the Knoll diamond chair for “Style, Innovation and Vision.”
Fourth image: Emily Belknap ’07 (Integrated Studio Arts), “Country Road” detail, String and Wire
