MIAD Galleries

Mission: The mission of MIAD Galleries is to support learning, cultivate conversation with the community, and demonstrate the cultural value of art and design. Through excellence and diversity in our changing exhibitions and educational programming,  MIAD Galleries reflect contemporary and historical trends in fine art and design. With a focus on diverse, innovative and interdisciplinary practices across art and design, we present a dynamic exhibition program featuring work by regional, national and international professional practitioners. Our exhibits are complemented by public and educational events.

Impact Statement: We make an impact through:

• The support of learning and pedagogy through programming reflecting contemporary and historical trends in fine art and design.
• Emphasizing diversity and engaging the college and community in issues of cultural construction and meaning.
• Expanding school curriculum and teaching by supporting new work and the curation of subjects and creative endeavors less commonly found in school or the larger community.
• Fostering connections with creative professionals and institutions in the region for mutual support of programming and audience cultivation.

MIAD’s Director of Galleries prepares professional shows in both the fine arts and design galleries, and also assists groups of students in organizing shows throughout the campus.

MIAD welcomes proposals for exhibitions on an ongoing basis. For questions, please contact Monica Miller, Director of Galleries & Community Engagement, monicamiller@miad.edu.

MIAD operates two main galleries: the Brooks Stevens Gallery and the Frederick Layton Gallery. MIAD’s galleries are open to the public Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission to the galleries is free. Both galleries are located on the college’s lower level, the River Level.

FREDERICK LAYTON GALLERY

This gallery is named after Frederick Layton, the founder of the first art gallery in the city of Milwaukee. This early art venue was also the site where MIAD’s predecessor institution, the Layton School of Art was founded. Four to five exhibits are on view in this space each year, based on the college’s academic calendar. It has no exterior windows, about 320 linear feet of wall space and has about 3,600 square feet of open space. It is accessible to by a freight elevator, and can exhibit very large or heavy artifacts. Download Frederick Layton Gallery floor plan PDF.

BROOKS STEVENS GALLERY

This gallery is named after Brooks Stevens, the famed Milwaukee-based industrial designer who was instrumental in developing the college’s Industrial Design program. During his long career, his design firm worked for hundreds of clients creating many influential, well-known products. This gallery focuses primarily on design exhibits, presenting two to three exhibits per year. The gallery features exterior windows to view Milwaukee’s River Walk. This space has about 4,000 square feet of open space with 220 feet of linear wall space, depending on the temporary wall partitions being used. Download Brooks Stevens Gallery floor plan PDF.

Dates: April 11 – May 10, 2025
Location: All MIAD Galleries, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

​Digital and traditional innovations meet in MIAD’s 2025 Senior Exhibition. The exhibition celebrates works of MIAD’s graduating class of emerging creative professionals representing all of MIAD’s Bachelor of Fine Arts majors, programs and minors. Explore our galleries and meet the class of 2025. Learn more at miad.edu/seniorexhibition.

Preview Night 
April 9, 2025 | 4 – 8 p.m.
All MIAD Galleries, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI
Business and gallery representatives, VIPs and family and friends of exhibiting seniors are invited to view the exhibition.

Gallery Night Public Opening
April 11, 2025 | 5 – 9 p.m.
All MIAD Galleries, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

Gallery Day
April 12, 2025 | 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
All MIAD Galleries, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

Fine Art + New Studio Practice Group Shows

Group Show 01: March 18 – 21, 2025
Closing reception Friday, Mar. 21 in MIAD’s 160 Gallery & 160 Auditorium.

Group Show 02: March 25 – 28, 2025
Closing reception Friday, Mar. 28 in MIAD’s 160 Gallery & 160 Auditorium.

Group Show 03: April 1 – 4, 2025
Closing reception Friday, Apr. 4 in MIAD’s 160 Gallery & 160 Auditorium.

Dates: January 13 – March 8, 2025
Location: Frederick Layton Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

Each year since 2015, Plum Blossom Initiative (PBI) — a collaboration between Leah Kolb and MIAD Fine Art Professor Jason S. Yi — invites three promising Milwaukee-based artists to join the Bridge Work program, which they established to help guide recent BFA graduates through the process of transitioning into a professional studio practice. “Bridge Work: Ten Years of Making” showcases recent work by 23 of the 29 program participants. Whether exploring consciousness through abstract forms, exposing hidden connections between body and environment, or imagining more equitable ways of existing in the world, their work pushes past conventional understanding to help us see new possibilities for our shared future.

Curated by Leah Kolb and Jason S. Yi.

Gallery Night 
Friday, Jan. 17 | 5 – 9 p.m.

Opening Reception
Friday, Jan. 17 | 6 – 8 p.m.

Bridge Work Panel Discussion
Thursday, Jan. 30 | 6:15 p.m.
Milwaukee Art Museum, 700 N Art Museum Dr., Milwaukee, WI

Panelists:

• Leah Kolb – Moderator (Co-Founder of PBI)
• Julia Bradfish (Bridge Work 09)
• Phoenix S. Brown (Bridge Work 05)
• Dominic Chambers (Bridge Work 02)
• Chad Alexander Matha (Bridge Work 10)
• Lindsey Yeager (Bridge Work 07)

Dates: January 17 – March 8, 2025
Location: Brooks Stevens Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

This exhibit showcases a powerful collection of international women’s rights and advocacy posters that highlight the ongoing struggle for gender equality. Created by artists and designers of all genders, the posters on display appeal to the collective responsibility to protect human rights, challenge gender stereotypes, and advance women’s rights. With widely varying stylistic and media approaches, these posters balance uniquely different artistic perspectives with a universal message.
Also showcased are impactful poster designs by MIAD students, who have embraced the theme of women’s rights and gender equality with their distinctive interpretations and innovative creative approaches, offering fresh perspectives that complement the global dialogue.

Curated by Elizabeth Resnick, Professor Emerita, Massachusetts College of Art and Design.

Gallery Night 
Friday, Jan. 17 | 5 – 9 p.m.

Opening Reception
Friday, Jan. 17 | 6 – 8 p.m.

Dates: October 18 – December 7, 2024
Location: Brooks Stevens Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

Waldek Dynerman, “Untitled.”

As the college celebrates its 50th anniversary year, we take a collective look forward and back through faculty who shaped MIAD’s curriculum and the education of generations. Whether their art directly related to their classroom teaching, or thrived in additional creative areas, these faculty profoundly influenced MIAD’s students and alumni, who carry their inspiration forward through their own professional and communal work. Individually and together, MIAD’s faculty emeriti stirred thousands of students and visitors to think, to feel and to question.

Curated by Leslie Fedorchuk, Jill Sebastian and Stacey Steinberg.

Reception
Friday, Oct. 18, 2024 | 5 – 9 p.m.
Brooks Stevens Gallery, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

Dates: October 7 – November 21, 2024
Location: Frederick Layton Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

“Of Our Time” celebrates 50 years of growth, innovation and creativity within the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design’s alumni community. This gallery-sized installation, resulting from an open call for submissions, showcases a diverse collection of work spanning five decades. From MIAD’s archives to contributions from graduates as far back as the 1980s to recent alumni, the exhibition offers a glimpse into our artistic evolution.

While the show highlights the past, it was conceived with our current students at the forefront of our minds. It invites them to see themselves as part of MIAD’s unfolding story, encouraging them to shape the future of our creative legacy. This exhibition offers a snapshot of the path they’ve stepped onto, bridging the past, present and future.

Curated by Kayle Karbowski.

Reception
Friday, October 18
Frederick Layton Gallery, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

Dates: August 19 – October 5, 2024
Location: Brooks Stevens Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

Kelly Alexander, “Tall Grass and Flowers.”

ARTservancy began in September 2018 and has grown to include five partnerships: The Ozaukee Washington Land Trust, The River Revitalization Foundation, The Lake Michigan Bird Observatory, Tall Pines Conservancy and The Milwaukee Area Land Conservancy. ARTservancy encourages collaborations with community partners to highlight access and create work in natural spaces, breaking down the gates of a metaphorical Walled Garden.

“Viewpoints on ARTservancy” is a curated retrospective highlighting several artists and their work from their residencies. Intention was given to choose ARTservancy artists who work across all disciplines and media. The work shown is as rich, varied and essential as our lands are to us.

Curated by Kelly Alexander-Wendorf, Leslie Fedorchuk, Mark Lawson, and kathryn e. martin.

We acknowledge that we live on the traditional land of the Forest County Potawatomi in Muskego, where the Tribal Nations of Lac du Flambeau Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa, the Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin, Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin St. Croix Chippewa, Sokaogon Chippewa and Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians, Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa remain present in what is now Wisconsin.

Reception
Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024 | 6 – 8 p.m.
Brooks Stevens Gallery, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

MARN Panel Discussion
Thursday, Sept. 12, 6 – 8 p.m.
MARN, 191 N Broadway Suite 102, Milwaukee, WI 53202

MIAD Panel Discussion
Thursday, Sept. 26, 6 – 8 p.m.
Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

Dates: August 25 – September 19, 2024
Location: 160 Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

MIAD, 1993. Courtesy of Brooks Stevens Design.

The international phenom Cars & Coffee comes to MIAD and the Historic Third Ward on Sunday, August 25, 2024, 8 a.m. – noon, as part of a trifecta of 2024 anniversary celebrations: the 50th of the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD); the 90th of Brooks Stevens Design; and the 60th of the Excalibur, designed by Brooks Stevens.

Car enthusiasts – and their cars – from throughout the world will celebrate the joy and art of well-designed cars on a specially closed Erie Street in front of MIAD’s academic building. The Sunday event also includes the opportunity to view a special exhibition of Brooks Stevens Design in MIAD’s first floor 160 Gallery.

View the car show and exhibition! Both are free and open to the public. Other ticketed events are happening throughout the weekend.

Brooks Stevens was a major contributor to the visual culture of the 20th century – designing products that helped shape and define the American post-World War II consumer culture.

He also was a leading educator in MIAD’s Industrial (Product) Design program, joining the faculty in the 1970s, and serving as one of the college’s donors and trustees until his death in 1995. Alums of MIAD’s Product Design program are design leaders at Trek, Milwaukee Tool, Generac, Harley-Davidson, General Motors, Delta Faucet, High Sierra and more.

Registration is open for the weekend events: https://brooksstevensshop.square.site/

Cars & Coffee MIAD Event
Sunday, August 25, 2024 | 8 a.m. – 12 p.m.
273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

Dates: August 5 – September 21, 2024
Location: Frederick Layton Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

Christopher T. Wood, “Vatnajökull,” 2024.

Lynden Sculpture Garden, with funding from the Greater Milwaukee Foundation and Joy Engine, administers the Mary L. Nohl Suitcase Export Fund for Individual Artists. Created to help visual artists with the cost of exhibiting their work outside the four-county area (Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee, Washington), the Fund is designed to provide greater visibility for individual artists and their work as well as sending art from Milwaukee outside our region. To date, the Fund has supported a diverse group of 358 individual artists and 22 collectives for a total of 404 artists who have exhibited their work throughout North America, and in Europe, the former Soviet Union, Africa, and Asia. The awardees work in a variety of media, from film to ceramics. They include well-established artists as well as those at the start of their careers.

The Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design is proud to present a special iteration of its biennial Suitcase Fund exhibition. This year’s showcase features not only awardees from the current cycle, but also those recognized in the previous cycle due to the pandemic’s pause on the exhibition in 2019. This expanded exhibition offers a unique survey of visual artists from the region, and it highlights the diversity and depth of talent creating new work in the Milwaukee area.

Curated by Monica Miller.

Reception
Thursday, September 19 | 6 – 8 p.m. with special performance of Dada’s Daughter by Sara Sowell at 7 p.m.
Frederick Layton Gallery, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

Out of the Picture: Film Screening
Saturday, August 31 | 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
MIAD 160 Gallery, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI
Registration required

Dates: June 17 – August 3, 2024
Location: Brooks Stevens Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

Lois Ehlert, “Circus.”

Wisconsin artist and designer Lois Ehlert is well known for her illustration work and, in some cases, authorship of 60 primarily children’s books. These include “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom,” “Growing Vegetable Soup” and “Planting a Rainbow.” This comprehensive exhibit features artwork from many of these books, plus many other creative projects from posters, wall hangings and even her own Christmas cards. Additionally, the exhibition delves into the processes behind this vast life-long creative output.

A 1957 graduate of MIAD’s predecessor college, the Layton School of Art, Lois Ehlert was granted an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Ms. Ehlert was honored with many awards, including the Caldecott Honor Book award, a Wisconsin Visual Art Lifetime Achievement Award and an Original Art Lifetime Achievement award from the Society of Illustrators. Her work has been featured in exhibitions at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Milwaukee Art Museum and the James Watrous Gallery. This exhibition at MIAD is the first to examine the depth and diversity of her many-decades-long career.

Reception
Friday, June 14 | 5:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Brooks Stevens Gallery, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI

Summer Youth Tours
MIAD invites youth arts groups, children’s library reading groups and other summer youth programs to visit the Lois Ehlert exhibition on special days this summer:

• June 25
• June 26
• July 2
• July 11
• July 12

In addition to a guided tour, art activities and read-alouds may be available. Spaces are limited. Schedule your tour here. Questions about youth engagement opportunities can be directed to Monica Miller, Director of Galleries & Community Engagement.

Dates: June 3 – July 20, 2024
Location: Frederick Layton Gallery, 273 E. Erie St., Milwaukee, W​I

The exhibit showcases junior student work from MIAD’s six majors: Communication Design, Illustration, Interior Architecture and Design, Fine Art + New Studio Practice, Product Design and Fashion and Apparel Design.

The featured work covers 2D, 3D and 4D projects from core and elective courses, including collaborations with community partners on sponsored client projects.

The exhibit features the talent and vision of a new generation of emerging artists and designers and reflects how, through a broad range of experiences, MIAD’s 3rd year curriculum prepares students for careers in their respective fields.

The junior year is a transformative year in which students hone their unique individual voices and set a direction for their professional focus in their senior year.

Gallery Night and Day
Friday, July 19 & Saturday, July 20
Frederick Layton Gallery, 273 E Erie St., Milwaukee, WI