Concordia/MIAD alum on second Whitefish Bay house flip
![Sohpie Zang stands in front of a two-story white house](https://miadwordpress.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/07102057/Sohpie_Lee-300x260.jpg)
Sohpie Zang’s “Sophomore House”
Successful blogger and promising interior designer Sophie Zang ’20, who majored in Interior Architecture & Design at MIAD and concurrently studied Marketing at Concordia University of Wisconsin, used her degrees to purchase, renovate, and resell a Whitefish Bay home for $1.1 million in September 2022. Last week, she announced the purchase of her second Whitefish Bay house for $580,000, this time on North Ardmore Avenue.
Zang, who maintains the popular blog and social media brand By Sophia Lee, recently launched her new interior design firm, BSL Studios. The renovation of the first house functioned as a marketing campaign for the new studio. Zang documented the process on her brand’s social media and the results went viral, resulting in numerous new clients for BSL Studios.
![A two story house, the left half of which is rectangular black shape, the right half a triangle of brick work.](https://miadwordpress.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/07102101/Sohpie-Lee_Home-News-300x300.jpg)
Sophie Zang’s first flipped house
“The Sophomore House,” as the BSL Studios team nicknamed their second endeavor, will involve mainly cosmetic updates rather than the larger-scale renovation they completed on the first house in fall of 2022. They plan to update tile, wallpaper and paint, as well as add a children’s bathroom on the second floor and widen access to the kitchen, according to videos on the By Sophia Lee Instagram page.
As a student at both Concordia and MIAD, Zang combined a minor in Marketing from Concordia with a major from MIAD in Interior Architecture & Design. “My time at MIAD gave me the confidence to go against the grain on the ‘normal’ way to start a career,” says Zang. She says MIAD “taught me the technical skills to thrive in the industry, but more importantly… taught me how to communicate with others, ask questions, and never be afraid of hearing the word ‘no.’” Concordia students are eligible to enroll in coursework at MIAD to study Graphic Design, Illustration or Interior Architecture & Design.
Check out more information for MIAD students on cross-registration, read more about Sophie’s work on house number one, and keep up with Sophie on Instagram @bysophialee, her blog, or BSL Studios.
News
MIAD Pre-College 2024 sees record-breaking enrollment
The Summer Pre-College program at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) returned with record-breaking enrollment in 2024.
MIAD instructor selected to produce work for Farm/Art DTour
Matthew Vivirito, adjunct instructor at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD), is one of eight artists and artist teams selected to create site-responsive art for Wormfarm Institute’s annual Farm/Art DTour.
Lubar Innovation Center concepts for Harley-Davidson Museum
Two students from the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) worked together to concept and develop fresh ideas for the Harley-Davidson Museum on a recent project through the Lubar Innovation Center.
MIAD alum named designated artist for ABCD gala event
Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) alum and employee Cheryl Klein ’98 (Drawing) was selected as the designated artist for the After Breast Cancer Diagnosis (ABCD) 25th anniversary gala on June 15, 2024.
Illustration and Animation faculty publishes book
Associate Professor Adam Osgood, who teaches Illustration and Animation courses at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD), will publish Motion Illustration: How to Use Animation Techniques to Make Illustrations Move through Bloomsbury in August 2024.