First-Year Exhibition 2023 winners announced
Four winners and three honorable mentions were selected at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design’s (MIAD) First-Year Experience Student Exhibition opening reception on Friday, March 24, 2023. Renato Umali, Mariah Tate Klemens and Gabrielle Banzhaf, the three jurors, commended all the participating students for their strong work.
Olivia Singer won Best in Show for Grace, a graphite drawing on paper. “This drawing basically clutched me by the throat, it was amazing,” says Banzhaf. Mo Johnson won for The All-Seeing Furby (white ink and Verithin colored pencil on mix-media paper), Amanda Smithvias for Chomp (stained glass), and Laken Dreher for ☆My Room! ^_^☆ (paint pens on Bristol). “Our winners brought us to this beautiful place of nostalgia,” said Banzhaf, noting overarching themes of the contemporary in conversation with the historical. “I think that everybody put their stamp on these iconic pieces,” Banzhaf continues.
Honorable mentions were awarded to Erin Haas for Operation Cake (stop motion), Kleo Van Dornick for Cardboard Box (cardboard and hot glue) and Daniel Perez for this half of the dichotomy (watercolor on paper). “These honorable mentions were chosen because they exhibit exceptional technical skills,” said the jurors. They noted the skillful use of materials, the beautiful craftsmanship and attention to detail. “It speaks to the inability of language to address some of the things we have to deal with as humans,” said Umali of Perez’s work.
Winners received gift cards to BLICK Art Materials. The installation, which celebrates the creative and personal growth that students experienced over the course of their first year at the college, will be on display on MIAD’s second floor until September 2023.
Keep up with MIAD’s First-Year Experience on Instagram or learn more about the program!
News
TMJ4 features two MIAD graduates during AAPI month
Stephanie Brown of TMJ4 News featured recent graduates Mengdian Xing ’23 (Product Design) and her sister Lynn Xing ’23 (Interior Architecture and Design) during a month-long celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander heritage.
Magic: The Gathering tournament in Italy features Illustration faculty
Ever since he was a student at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD), Associate Professor of Illustration John Matson has incorporated fantasy illustration into his work. This lifelong fascination has led to a fruitful career as a fantasy illustrator and educator, most recently manifesting in an invitation to attend a Magic: The Gathering tournament in Italy as a guest illustrator.
Successful Creative Fusion gala closes Our Creative Future campaign
Raising more than $10 million is no small feat. The Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) announced it had exceeded its comprehensive campaign goal of $10 million after its annual fundraising gala Creative Fusion: Fashion Forward, where donors generously raised more than $485,000 in scholarship support on May 6, 2023.
2023 Penfield Poster Competition bolsters professional experience
This year’s Penfield Poster winners have been announced! In collaboration with advertising agency Cramer-Krasselt, 80 juniors at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) designed posters for the Annual Croquet Ball fundraiser at the Penfield Children’s Center.
MIAD alumni, faculty selected for gener8tor x Sherman Phoenix 2023 Spring Cohort
The Sherman Phoenix Foundation in Milwaukee, in partnership with startup accelerator gener8tor, has announced the members of the 2023 Spring Cohort of artists. Selected from a pool of 300 applicants, five of the 15 Milwaukee creatives awarded the grant are affiliated with MIAD.