Campus
MIAD’s campus is located in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward; some twenty blocks of renovated warehouses, artists lofts, theaters, businesses, shops, and restaurants. A destination for both tourists and residents, the Third Ward possesses a distinct and unique urban flavor.
A mainstay in the Third Ward, MIAD has since become the catalyst for further growth in the area. Now at the center of this thriving arts community, the college benefits from the region’s new-found prosperity while continuing to add to it.
Safe, public transportation stops near MIAD’s campus, and within walking distance are the Milwaukee Art Museum and the Milwaukee Public Museum and Library. There are also various lakefront activities, and assorted festivals at the Summerfest grounds featuring music and entertainment from around the world. Within a block there’s the Broadway Theater Center, with three resident companies. And just a few blocks away is the Marcus Center, featuring major pop and classic concerts as well as local touring performance groups. Throughout the city are scores of ethnic, fast food, and high cuisine restaurants, and the nearby shops at The Avenue offer 160 diverse stores and hosts MIAD’s first off-campus gallery space, the Gallery at The Ave.
News
Pallas Textiles competition provides real-world experience
First-place winner Sophia Simonson ’28 created Refractions as part of her MIAD studies in Interior Architecture and Design. She is one of 20 students studying at MIAD through a cross-registration program with Concordia University. MIAD students Kaitlyn Powers ’26 (Illustration) and Natalie Spetell ’27 (Product Design), both of whom have minors in Communication Design, received Honorable Mentions.
2026 First-Year Exhibition showcases professional growth
An annual tradition at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design from late March through September, the juried First-Year Experience Exhibition celebrates students’ yearlong personal and professional growth.
Meet Carmen Briones and 2026 Senior Exhibition Project Echo
Carmen Briones ‘26 (Product Design) is a President’s (Honor) List student from Cambria, Wis., president of the MIAD IDSA student chapter and an intern at SI Jacobson Manufacturing. Briones designed a device called “Echo” that removes ovarian cysts without surgery.
Meet Eeshaan Dutt and 2026 Senior Exhibition Project Indra Supreme
Eeshan Dutt ‘26 (Illustration) is a President’s (Honor) List student from India and a recipient of a 2026 Alumni Thesis Award. Dutt’s work centers on visual storytelling through sequential art, where he explores how narratives can engage and connect with audiences.
Poster designs boost professional skillsets, children’s nonprofit
Continuing an annual tradition begun in 2010 at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD), Illustration juniors worked with Cramer-Krasselt and Penfield Children’s Center to design posters for the center’s Annual Croquet Ball fundraiser.