MIAD welcomes new chair and four new trustees to board
Hans Eckholm, Kellie Hamilton, Todd Stone, Melissa Perez.
At its June Board of Trustees meeting, the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) welcomed four new trustees and recognized two new office appointments, including board chair.
Deanna Tillisch, retired president & CEO of the United Performing Arts Fund, was appointed Chair of the Board of Trustees for 2023-2024, with immediate past board chair and Astor Street Foundation president Sarah Zimmerman rejoining the board as a member. Geoffrey Mackey, director of marketing & communication at Robert W. Baird & Co., serves as Secretary of the Board during the 2023-2024 year, and Jason W. Allen, partner at Foley & Lardner LLP, continues as Treasurer.
The new members of the Board of Trustees are Hans Eckholm, Kellie Hamilton, Melissa Perez and Todd Stone. Hans Eckholm, the global design director for Trek Bicycle, has an “optimistic view of the future and seeks to inspire younger students and designers to take a role in improving our planet and its inhabitants’ lives.” Kellie Hamilton, who serves as manager corporate affairs at WEC Energy Group, brings passionate and engaged leadership to her role on the board. Melissa Perez, co-owner and director of customer experience at Stone Creek Coffee, also works locally as user experience designer for Gomoll Research + Design. Todd Stone, executive creative director at Cramer-Krasselt, specializes in “the fine line between creativity and commerce” in his role at one of the country’s largest independent advertising agencies.
Learn more about MIAD’s new board chair, Board of Trustees and find out how to get involved.
News
Moonlight Retreat Builds Connection
Since 2018, MIAD faculty member Naomi Shersty has been creating space for artists and nonartists alike to step away from the demands of everyday life and reconnect through creativity, community and nature.
A Tribute to Horicon Works: Barany’s Mural Celebrates Products, History and Community
A new mural at John Deere’s Horicon Works is bringing the company’s history to life, and it was created by MIAD professor and alum James Barany ’92 (Drawing).
Containment Breach Selected for ICON13 Motion Commotion Screening
Parker Deutsch ’26 (Illustration – Animation Track) recently had the animated short “Containment Breach” selected for screening in Motion Commotion, part of ICON13, the Illustration Conference. The showcase features innovative animation and motion-based work from illustrators and animators across the field.
MAKE! Participants Reflect on Creativity, Community and Growth
Alicia Zapata, a second-year MAKE! participant from Chicago and a K-8 art teacher at Waters Elementary School in Chicago, IL, Kelly Wendel, an eighth-year participant and art teacher at Nicolet High School in Glendale, WI and Gail Kowsky, a second-year participant and sixth- and seventh-grade art teacher in New Brighton, Minnesota, reflected on what they gained from this year’s program.
Meet Maya Koehn and 2026 Senior Exhibition Project L’Atelier
Maya Koehn ‘26 (Interior Architecture and Design) is a President’s (Honor) List student from Sheboygan, Wis., currently employed as a Junior Designer at Direct Supply.