Emeritus Faculty
Al Balinsky
Al Balinsky received his Master of Fine Arts degree in Photography from The City University of New York, Brooklyn College. He is Emeritus Professor of Fine Arts and the Founder of the Photography Programs (in 1980) at MIAD. Al has been teaching and photographing for over 30 years and is the recipient of numerous grants and awards; including a Wisconsin Arts Board / National Endowment for the Arts, and two Wisconsin Humanities Council / National Endowment for the Humanities Grants.
Al’s work has been exhibited and collected both Nationally and Internationally. His current photographic / oral history exhibition of People with Disabilities in the Workplace, created during a MIAD sabbatical, in conjunction with Independence First, Milwaukee, has been exhibited at over 35 venues in California, Illinois, Washington D.C., and Wisconsin, and is still being exhibited at this time. Al was awarded the National Council on Independent Living Advocacy Award, presented to him in Washington, D.C., for the People with Disabilities project. That project is currently being exhibited in DVD format.
Waldek Dynerman
Waldek Dynerman received his MFA in painting from the Warsaw Fine Arts Academy and joined MIAD’s faculty in 1983 teaching fine arts courses in drawing, printmaking and painting. He works in a wide range of media including painting, drawing, sculpture, installation, video and sound. Influenced by his childhood in post-WWII Poland, his work is driven by personal experiences mediating tension and darkness, at times, with humor. Dynerman finds inspiration from outside the cultural mainstream. His pursuit of “absolute honesty in the artistic gesture” is reflected in his fondness for simple materials (found objects, commercial paints) and “lowbrow” art.
His awards include an Air Le Parc artists residency in Pampellone, France (2015), a Mary Nohl Fellowship in the Established Artist category (2010), and a Milwaukee County Artist Fellowship (2001). His work is exhibited work regularly in the U.S. and Europe including more than thirty solo exhibitions and over a hundred group shows. Most recently, his 2015 solo exhibition titled Rio Te Amo was on view at Gallery Apteka Sztuki in Warsaw.
See more of Waldek’s work at dynerman.com
Anne Ghory-Goodman
Quotes:
“Paul Rand, Bradbury Thompson, Armin Hoffman, Wolfgang Weingart, and Herbert Matter have inspired my work to clarify information in order to inform the design and communication of messages. I look at the photographs of Dorthea Lange, Bruce Davidson, Henri Cartier-Bressan, and Peter Trunley and see a deep empathy and compassion for their subjects. In the work of Marc Chagall, I see the joyous use of color and line.”
“MIAD is filled with energy. Students and faculty from a mix of disciplines share a passion for creativity and invention. It is located on the Milwaukee River in a loft-filled corner of the city. Thousands of people circulate among galleries, museums, and studios on Gallery Night. “
“Communication Design students at MIAD bring an artistic sensibility to the classroom. Though digitally expert, they can appreciate and use handmade materials. The inclusion of Korean, German, and Polish students in my classes has made it possible to explore the challenges of designing for an international community.”
Education:
BA, Yale University
MFA, Yale University
Post-Graduate Study, Basel, School of Design
Career Highlights:
Society of Environmental Graphic Design, 2003 Merit Award and Special Award for Doing a Lot with a Little, for “Thinking and Making: An April Greiman Retrospective”
National Endowment for the Arts, Visual Artist’s Fellowship, Photography
National Endowment for the Arts, Design Arts Fellowship
Vice President, Director of Creative Development, Silver Burdett Ginn Professor
Department Chair, Graduate Studies Faculty, University of Cincinnati
Jill Sebastian
Jill Sebastian grew up in steel towns of the Midwest rust belt which has formed her as an artist. Her sculpture, drawings and installations have been exhibited in museums and galleries across the United States and internationally (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Milwaukee, Tele Aviv, Amsterdam and more). Sebastian’s public art includes: a musical fence in New Orleans; an architecturally integrated literary project for the Milwaukee Convention Center (with Woodland Pattern Book Center); a streetscape (with Ken Saiki Design) for Madison, WI; and a mosaic for the Genome Center at UW-Madison. Her concerns with community participation and subliminal choreography underlying all her public work is expressed in the site-specific sculptural pocket park she developed among five baseball fields in Wick Park, Milwaukee. Sebastian has collaborated with Deb Loewen, Wild Space Dance Company to create a site-specific installation and hour-long multi media work, Art of the Ordinary, at the Milwaukee Art Museum. Other collaborators include composers Burt Levy and Josh Schmidt, writers John Koethe and Jon Erickson and filmmaker Jake Fuller. Among her awards are a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship 1985, City of Milwaukee Artist of the Year 1997 and Wisconsin Visual Art Lifetime Achievement Award 2016. Jill Sebastian is a Professor Emerita at Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design.
Visit www.jillsebastian.com for more information.
News
Independence First and MIAD students produce adaptive clothing
Students in a junior-level Fashion and Apparel Design class at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) collaborated with Independence First to design adaptive clothing. Two Independence First employees worked closely with MIAD students on customized outfits specific to their needs and preferences.
‘GQ Rebranded’ series is a hit for MIAD alum’s new studio
When Justin Thomas Kay ’04 (Communication Design) opened his own studio, JTK Studio, Inc., in New York City early this year, he hoped that his work “would contribute positively to helping to make things look nicer and more enjoyable and speak honestly to people broadly.” The new GQ Sports series “GQ Rebranded” turned out to be a good fit to do just that.
MIAD student support system receives national SMILE Award
Choose Mental Health, the national voice for children’s mental health, named the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) the 2024 SMILE Award–Organization Winner for the college’s commitment to promoting mental health and well-being among its students.
Senior’s passion for Illustration and Natural Sciences thrives at MIAD
Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) senior Lilly Zbiegien’s two passions – Illustration and Natural Sciences – flourished at an early age and have continued through college. Recently Zbiegien presented her Natural Science Independent Study research, “Junkyard Nests,” showing not only the impact of plastic pollution on birds, but also her skill in portraying the environment through Illustration.
Reducing food insecurity at MIAD’s People’s Pantry
Students, staff and faculty at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) are addressing short-term food insecurity on campus with direct action. One of the college’s newest resources, the People’s Pantry, provides free food for anyone in the MIAD community who needs a meal, no questions asked.