The students in Brad Hokanson's (Graphic Design) Creative Problem Solving class invented and constructed unique musical instruments as a class project. The students then performed under direction as the Creative Problem Solving Orchestra in the McNeal Hall atrium on Wednesday, November 18, 2009.
The University's Hmong Student Association is holding a Hmong cultural education event on Saturday, November 21, 2009, 12-4 p.m., in the Saint Paul Student Center. Apparel Design student Susan Vue will display her work.
HGTV is seeking participants to compete in its design-based reality show, Design Star. HGTV notes that not only design ability and expertise are required but also the personality that its audience would want to watch. Design Star is the HGTV version of the formulaic competitive reality show: Participants compete in challenges and one or two are eliminated during each episode. The winner of the competition is given a chance to host their own HGTV design show.
If you are interested in applying, e-mail Jonathan Tanzman, tanzman.casting@gmail.com with your name, age, hometown, phone, photo, and brief description of your design background.
Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) covers the work the College of Design's Greenlight student group did to help the Brave New Workshop make its theater space greener. The Greenlight students traded their expertise for training in improvisation methods.
HaeWon Ju (MS Apparel Design, 2008), a current graduate student in the Apparel Studies track of the Doctoral Program in Design has received the outstanding research award from the International Textiles and Apparel Association for her MS thesis research. Ju's thesis was entitled, "Young women's visual processing of fashion advertisements using eye tracking."
International Education Week 2009 is November 16-20 and the College of Design will be participating with students presenting their study abroad experiences. Rapson Hall students will present Monday, November 16, 2009, 12:15-1:00 p.m., 43 Rapson Hall and McNeal Hall students will present Wednesday, November 18, 2009, 10:30-11:15 a.m., 22 McNeal Hall. Topics addressed include initial hesitation about studying abroad, skills learned, and advice for other students considering an experience abroad.
Additionally a career information session for CDes international students will be held Wednesday, November 18, 2009, 12:15-1:00 p.m., 58 Rapson Hall. The focus of this session is to help international students learn about the resources available through International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS), the St. Paul Campus Career Center (SPCCC), and the College of Design College to Career Program. Learn about obtaining work related experiences, internships, and jobs. Students will also hear how international students have successfully obtained work in their field of interest and how they have connected with professionals.
Amanda Kushner, writing for Downtown Journal, reports College of Design students are helping with the landscaping and site improvements at the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC). Sustainable landscaping -- the first improvements to the site in 20 years -- will reduce storm water runoff and includes more than 250 trees, 1,375 shrubs, and 3,200 perennials according to Kushner.
A design charette was held in February 2008 and CDes graduate students Ben Beery (MArch), Cassandra Meyer (MS Sustainable Design), Matt Sand (MArch), and Ashley Sommer (MLA) where hired as graduate research assistants to work on the project under Virajita Singh (Center for Sustainable Building Research). Singh's workgroup created the "HERC in My Backyard" report in August 2008.
Sommer told Kushner the workgroup created three tiers of design with Meyer focusing on a green roof, Sand and Beery working on the sustainable skin and messaging, and Somer herself working on the landscaping.
The pre-Clothing Design students in DHA 1221: Fundamentals of Apparel Assembly are exhibiting their class project, "Child's Play," for one day only on Monday, November 9, 2009 from 10:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m. in the hallway outside 240 McNeal Hall.
Students in the Apparel Design Studio 3 class, taught by Lucy Dunne, are again participating in the Affair with the Chocolate Extravaganza. Shows take place at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Saturday, November 7, 2009 and at 4 p.m. on Sunday, November 8, 2009 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
Housing Studies Fall Bus Tour
Friday, October 30, 2009, 10:45 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Housing sites in Minneapolis and Saint Paul
RSVP to Becky Yust, byust@umn.edu
Bus will leave from McNeal Hall at 10:45 a.m.
Architecture and Interior Design Firm Tour
Friday, November 6, 2009, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Shea, Inc. (10-11 a.m.) and KKE Architects (11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m.)
Bus will leave from Rapson Hall at 9:35 a.m.
Retail Merchandising Career Tour
Friday, November 13, 2009, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. (tentative)
Christopher & Banks
Bus will leave from McNeal Hall at 9:20 a.m.
Dirty Laundry
Presenters: Joe Duffy of Duffy & Partners and Apparel Design presenter TBD
Friday, November 20, 2009, 7‐9 p.m.
William G. Shepherd Room, Weisman Art Museum
The 2009 annual Housing Organization for University Students (H.O.U.S.) Alumni Gala, a casual gathering of Housing Studies alumni, faculty, and students, will be held Friday, November 13, 2009, 5:30 p.m., in 274 McNeal Hall. Topics of discussion include housing being planned at UMore Park, a 5,000-acre site 25 miles southeast of the Twin Cities at the suburban-rural interface, near Rosemount, Minnesota. The vision is to build a University-founded community of 20,000-30,000 people. Marilyn Bruin (Housing Studies), is serving on the UMore Park Academic Mission Advisory Committee and will share information about current and planned activities.
RSVP by November 9, 2009 to Becky Yust, H.O.U.S. faculty advisor, byust@umn.edu or 612-624-7461.
An interactive composition by Robert Fraher (MFA Interactive Design candidate) has been selected for inclusion in Accessibility 2009, a juried art exhibition in Sumter, SC. The piece, No Horse in Particular, explores the concept of meaning in visual imagery. The composition is a mixed-media piece combining photography, digital illustration, interactivity, and custom software development.
The University of Minnesota's entry in the US Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon, ICON house, took fifth place overall in the competition. The German team took first place, followed by Illinois, California, and the Canadian team. ICON house was judged to be the top entry in the lighting design and engineering categories and third in appliances and home entertainment. Sharon Schmickle, writing for MinnPost.com, quotes lighting juror Ron Jurtz praising ICON house's lighting design. "'The array of LED lighting in the home and its control system is intuitive and easy to operate,' lighting juror Ron Kurtz said about the U of M's home. 'The team's use of adjustable shading panels provides excellent natural day lighting, with no difference in sunlight entry into the home, from summer to winter.'"
Marc Swackhamer's (Architecture) practice, HouMinn, is holding a competition for students, designers, engineers, "or any other curious, creative people" to design an innovative wall panel, or "app," for its latest wall prototype project, Open Source Wall (OSWall). Submissions from Architecture and other CDes graduate students or teams of students are welcomed. Swackhamer notes that projects from teams that can add an engineering student or a materials science student are "more likely to not only be well designed, but also technically sound." The winners will be paid to prototype their schemes over winter break and their projects will be featured in an exhibition at the Pratt Manhattan Gallery, "Envelop{e}s," curated by Christopher Height, associate professor at Rice University's School of Architecture.
In one of the most extensive articles yet seen on the Solar Decathlon, Jim Dawson and Devin Powell cover the competition for MinnPost.com from Washington DC. The article includes a video interview with Architecture graduate student Shengyin Xu on the design of the University of Minnesota's entry, ICON house. "We've skewed [the roof] to the north for a larger south-facing surface for [the] solar cells," Interior Design senior Shona Mosites, told Dawson and Powell. "And we've build it specifically for Minnesota." The University's entry currently remains in fifth place, even after taking first place in the lighting design category.
Popular Mechanics also has extensive coverage of the Solar Decathlon entries by a variety of authors. The article on the University of Minnesota's ICON house was written by Jennifer Bogo.
WCCO-TV published an article focusing on the lighting design competition. "Ron Kurtz, a lighting juror, noted that the U of M's home featured an array of LED lighting that was both intuitive and easy to operate," writes the CBS affiliate. "He went on to compliment the way the team used adjustable shading panels to provide natural day lighting."
Two College of Design students received Metropolitan Design Center (MDC) scholarships for European travel this summer to work on self-directed research projects. Woody Hanson's research project is entitled "Building a Bi-Communal Bridge: Nicosia, Cyprus" while Austin Lukes researched "Lightrail Public Transportation in Ireland, the Netherlands, and France." The scholarships are sponsored by the MDC with the conviction that exposure to other cultures is essential for reflecting on our own. Hanson and Lukes will present the results of their research on Tuesday, November 3, 2009, 6 p.m., followed by a reception in 225 Rapson Hall. The event is free and open to the public.
A digital work by Beth Koch (UMD Art and Design; PhD candidate, Design; MFA DHA, 2006) is included in a juried exhibition during the International Digital Media and Art Association conference, "At the Digital Edge: Digital Innovations and Challenges," in November, 2009.
Some two-dozen College of Design students and staff posed the provocative question "What if... design reduced our carbon footprint?" to thousands of spectators lining University Avenue Friday evening, October 9, 2009. The occasion was the 2009 parade for "The Ultimate Homecoming," the first since the opening of TCF Bank Stadium. Three gradually smaller houses, hoisted on marcher's shoulders, represented the possibility of a smaller carbon footprint. Mark Lescher (MArch 2007) served as design adviser and undergrad construction foreman Ben VandenWymeleneberg led a team of fellow students in refining the concept and constructing the lit-from-within houses.
College of Design's parade unit for Homecoming 2009.
Henry Fountain, writing for the New York Times, covers a few of the entries in the US Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon competition, including the University of Minnesota's entry, ICON house. Fountain focused on the recycled materials used on the exterior of ICON house, "battens made from pressed paper and wood." As of this morning, ICON house had moved up one place, to sixth, in the overall competition.
The Huffington Post has published ThienVinh Nguyen's photographs and brief overviews of each of the 20 competing entries in the US Department of Energy's Solar Decathlon competition. The publication is also running a poll for readers' favorites; the University of Minnesota's ICON house is currently rated number two among Huffington Post readers.
The US Department of Energy is publishing a frequently updated leaderboard of Solar Decathlon entrants' scores on its home page. Individual scores for each entrant school are also available. Taking a look at the University of Minnesota's score breakout reveals that the University's team is in second place in the appliances category (although scores are quite low across the board) and doing quite well in the architecture and market viability categories (with scores of 81 and 91 out of 100 respectively) but facing fierce competition from the other entrants. The University's entry is currently in seventh place overall.
University of Minnesota Solar Decathlon team leader, and Architecture graduate student, Shengyin Xu was interviewed by WCCO-TV from the Solar Decathlon site on the National Mall in Washington, DC. The University of Minnesota's Solar Decathlon entry, the ICON house, was one of the nine houses cleared to compete in the first day.
Greenlight, the student group, announces another semester of Greenscreen for fall 2009. Every Wednesday, the group screens films addressing a wide range of issues: climate change, social justice, natural disasters, dependence on non-renewable resources, etc.
Wednesdays, 6:00-7:30 p.m., 225 Rapson (125 Rapson on Wednesday, October 7, 2009).
October 7, 2009 Design E2: The Economics of the Environment
October 21, 2009 Earthlings
October 28, 2009 World in Balance: The Population Paradox
November 11, 2009 Manufactured Landscapes
November 18, 2009 Crude Awakening
November 25, 2009 When the Levees Broke
December 2, 2009 Who Killed the Electric Car?
Inquiry into interior lighting for buildings is heating up because of concerns about energy consumption and climate change. 3M has developed films with advanced light-propagating properties it hopes will stimulate new approaches to energy-efficient lighting solutions. Enter 3M's student design competition, "Design with light."
The challenge is to "design a light fixture that will provide functionality as a task light or feature light." Sustainability, emerging technologies, and socio-behavioral implications should all be considered. Priority will be given to creative and unusual solutions.
All undergraduate and graduate students in the College of Design are invited to participate.
Begin by submitting a conceptual sketch (one to three 8.5- x 11-inch sheets). A jury, consisting of Dean Tom Fisher (Architecture), Blaine Brownell (Architecture), and two members of 3M's Display and Graphics business, will select a set of finalists. The finalists will prepare small working prototypes.
The first phase deadline is Wednesday, October 7, 2009, 5 p.m.; the second phase deadline is Friday, October 23, 2009, 5 p.m.
For more information, contact Blaine Brownell, brownell@umn.edu or the flyer linked below.
Daniel Jasper's (Graphic Design) DHA 2351 class, Graphic Design I Text and Image, is undertaking a project to create context-sensitive design strategies for communicating about the H1N1 pandemic. Small groups of three students each develop public health messages and then determine which medium to use to carry the message: banners, posters, flyers, stickers, stencils, brochures, etc. The students then develop an implementation strategy for the message. The first results are beginning to appear throughout McNeal Hall.
The University's primary communication channel regarding the H1N1 virus has been broadcast e-mail with links to the University's Emergency Preparedness Web site. Jasper maintains that information, while "helpful and thorough in both breadth and depth is essentially trapped in both time and place in whatever electronic device you happen to be viewing it on at the moment." What if context-sensitive communications about the virus and preventing its spread were available in addition. "What if we
could alert the viewer to nodes of virus transmission as they encounter them?" asks Jasper. "What if we could communicate preventative measures for virus transmission in the areas where they might occur?"
Continue reading "DHA 2351: Context-sensitive design strategies project" »
The College of Design has received almost 300 student applications for mentors this year, an all-time high.
Mentors are needed in the following fields:
Mentors are matched with students one to one and assist them with career exploration, networking, project critiques, and skill building, based on student needs and interests. This is an excellent opportunity to work with students while sharing advice and professional experience, which is especially valued in today's job market.
The program begins November 4, 2009 with a Kick-off and Orientation event and runs through mid-April 2010. Other meetings and conversations are arranged between mentor and student to suit individual schedules, and average about two hours per month.
Sign up to become a mentor now. Applications are due by Friday, October 9, 2009.
For more information and a link to the online application, visit the program Web site or contact College to Career Coordinator Lucy Reile at lreile@umn.edu or 612-624-1245.
Two CDes students, Erin Lovell and Jillian DeCoursey, are among the 15 students from around the country to present papers at the Fourth Annual Student Symposium on the Built Environment sponsored by the Minnesota chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians (MNSAH) on Saturday, Sept. 26, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The symposium will be held at the University of St. Thomas's 3M Auditorium, Owens Science Hall, and in Room 127, O'Shaughnessy Science Hall. The event is free and open to the public. A light breakfast will be served at 8:30 a.m. in the Owens Science Hall lobby. Parking is available in adjacent lots. See St. Thomas's campus maps for directions and building locations.
Founded in 1973, MNSAH is one of 25 local chapters of the national Society of Architectural Historians. MNSAH's mission is to broaden awareness and appreciation of Minnesota's architectural heritage, to promote research, and to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas related to architectural history.
Incoming freshmen began their college experience with Welcome Week, September 2-7, 2009. The on-campus program included sessions where freshmen met with college representatives. Here are selected images from this year's program.
Image credit: Warren Bruland, except where noted.
Welcome Week 2009: Yarn creativity exercise in Rapson Hall courtyard (Photo by Ghobad Hendessi)
Welcome Week 2009: School of Architecture Head Renee Cheng with students
Welcome Week 2009: Dean Tom Fisher with students
Arthur Chen and Benjamin Ibarra-Sevilla (both Architecture) took a group of students to Zanzibar to complete an inventory of buildings in the World Heritage designated portion of the city known as Stone Town. As part of the efforts of the Center for World Heritage Studies, the team has been invited back to continue their work later this year.
School of Architecture graduate students Darin Duch, Peter Portilla, and Ben Delwiche have received an honorable mention in the 2009 Open Architecture Challenge. The trio's project, "Modular Adaptability," called for the design of a modular, portable classroom that is adaptable to a variety of educational requirements. "When the structure itself is thus integrated into the curriculum, the portable classroom becomes more than just an enclosure to hold class, it becomes a tool for learning," write the students in their project description. The classroom was designed for the Northrop School in Minneapolis. The students' advisor for the project was John Comazzi (Architecture).
Global Brigades, a non-profit organization made up of over 60 university campus clubs in North America, is looking for students to participate in a Global Architecture Brigades (G.A.B.) trip to Panama. As a branch of Global Brigades, G.A.B. is a volunteer collective dedicated to the design and construction of architectural projects that respond to the most essential needs of rural and urban communities in developing nations.
G.A.B. is currently looking to bring students to Panama to assist in the design and construction of community-based projects. The University of Illinois at Chicago Global Architecture Brigade (GAB UIC) was the first North American university club to participate in a G.A.B. project when they helped with the design and building of an agritourism cabin for a Panamanian farmer and his family from January to July 2009.
College of Design students interested in starting a G.A.B. club at the University or participating in a trip to Panama should check out the Global Brigades Web site for more information.
Apparel design and graphic design students are exhibiting juried work at the 2009 Minnesota State Fair in the exhibit "Emerging: 2D and 3D Textile Design." Missy Bye, curator, Barb Martinson, co-curator, and instructors James Boyd-Brent and Anna Carlson are also involved with the exhibit which runs through Sept. 7, 2009, in the Fine Arts Building.
Apparel Design doctoral candidate Monica Sklar's weblog, Worn Through, is mentioned in a new book by Nina Garcia (Project Runway, Elle, Marie Claire). The book is entitled The Style Strategy and features illustrations by Ruben Toledo. It goes on sale August 25, 2009.
The 2009-10 College of Design Mentor Program is an annual program that helps undergraduate and graduate students grow professionally by matching them with a mentor in their field of study. This is an excellent opportunity to work with students and provide advice; especially in tough economic times. The time commitment is approximately two hours per month, but is determined by the mentor and student.
More information and an application are available on the college Web site or contact Lucy Reile at cdesmentor@umn.edu or 612-624-1245. If you have mentored in the past several years, you can login (follow the prompts on the application) to update your past information.
New this year: If you would like more information and/or training on being a mentor, Student Services is offering a training session on Thursday, September 24, 2009 from 8-9 a.m. in 225 Rapson Hall. Coffee and a light breakfast will be served. This will help give you ideas of ways to work with your student as well as a chance to connect with other mentors. Please e-mail Lucy to RSVP at cdesmentor@umn.edu.
The Minnesota Daily is hosting the most recent video update on the progress of the University's Solar Decathlon entry. The Daily's video features Architecture graduate student Joe Messier.
The Solar Decathlon is highlighted in a feature in the Minnesota Daily written by Katherine Lymn. Architecture graduate students Shengyin Xu and Jake Wollensak are both cited in the article.
While the Brave New Workshop may make fun of sustainability in its new show, "The Brave New Workshop Saves the Planet, or Yes We Can, But Do We Have To?," the comedy troupe is serious about greening its own activities. So reports Gradyon Royce for the Star Tribune. College of Design graduate student group, Greenlight, was brought in to "shake out inefficiencies" in the Brave New Workshop's Minneapolis building. Graduate students Katie Dale and Amber Sausen bartered for improvisational training. "Zero waste was a key principle," writes Royce. "So when office walls were torn down to allow more flexibility and natural light, the studs and paneling were used to build tables and bookcases."
As construction on the Solar Decathlon house progresses, the student team needs additional volunteers to help with the remaining work (framing, finish carpentry, painting, logistics, etc.).
Work hours at the University Re-Use Center (28th and Como):
Monday-Thursday, 1-9 p.m.
Friday, 7 a.m.-3 p.m.
Saturday, 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
If there are enough volunteers, a second shift will be added.
If you're interested in volunteering please wear sturdy, closed-toe shoes. Hard hats and eye protection will be provided.
For additional information:
Shengyin Xu (student project coordinator): xuxx217@umn.edu, 240-413-0289
Craig Hohensee (construction coordinator): hohe0041@umn.edu
Ann Johnson (project manager): johns421@umn.edu
Student speaker Yeshi Shrestha (BS Architecture) delivers her speech while Dean Fisher and faculty look on.
Continue reading "Images from the College of Design 2009 commencement" »
Architecture graduate student Shengyin Xu gave WCCO-TV anchor Don Shelby a tour of the University's entry into the Solar Decathlon competition. The competition, sponsored by the US Department of Energy, pits entries from 20 universitites from all over the world to see which one can create the best solar house. This year is the first time the University has competed.
"What we did was we worked with all the engineers, the architects, designers and came up with a shape that integrates both aesthetics and function," Xu told Shelby, "So the shape is actually a great shape for collecting solar power."
[Ed note: What follows is a mostly unedited trip report from Bill Moran (Design Minor) and a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, who leads 2009's M-term travels in typography.]
Hola/Halo/Ciao, because of various internet access challenges you will be receiving trip updates after the fact. My apologies but please read along and enjoy.
Travels in typography is underway again and we're having a fantastic time. The flight and ensuing jetlag have been no trouble and we've embarked on another typographic adventure! Our first stop was Madrid. The city's culture and history are making for a typographic palette that showcases Spanish printing and letterforms at their finest. Our first visit was to the historic city of Toledo. This walled city dates from the third century BC and hosts a rare book library collected by the Cardinals of the Catholic Church (Biblioteca Regional de Castilla la Mancha). We were shown books and manuscripts that dated from the 11th to 16th century including these little gems....
Brad Hokanson (Graphic Design) is currently leading a University global seminar called Design and Society in Copenhagen. Students participating include Brooke Helgerson, Sam Daley, Matt Thompson, Melissa Granlund, Kara Sweeney (all Architecture), Andrew Garcia (Graphic Design), and Allie Klynderud (Housing Studies).
The seminar was open to all University students and examines the role of design across society. It looks at graphic, toy, industrial, architectural, and transportation design with a generalist approach. One central question of the seminar is how design in all forms has reached such a high level of importance in Danish society, common throughout Scandinavia.
One of the small houses in an allotment garden in Copenhagen, a long-running tradition of public gardens provided to renters for food production, and which now serve as weekend homes for much of the citizenry.
Working in conjunction with the Danish International School (DIS), the group has visited Kronborg Slot in Helsingor (Hamlet's Castle), industrial design firms Hay and Stelton, and the Danish Design Center in Copenhagen among other locales.
Examining the reuse of the canal system developed for trade by Christian IV in the 17th century and currently the focus of urban redevelopment efforts.
The course's wiki is available as are images from the seminar. The images and text written by the participants will be included in a book published online in both paper and digital form.
Robert Fraher (MFA Interactive Design candidate) was awarded first place of the screen-based works section of the Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group on Graphics and Interactive Techniques (SIGGRAPH) SpaceTime Works Student Competition for his entry, "Type Space v.1."
The piece is an exploration of typography in three-dimensional space and comprises 10 discreet compositions that create a progression of increased complexity. These compositions are featured in an interactive environment that allows users to experiment with alignments of tension and resolution.
An animal rescue group on the Red Lake Reservation is looking for a student willing to volunteer time to help them adapt an existing log cabin into a feral cat shelter by this fall. The project would have a budget of $1000-$2000 and might need to be done with volunteer labor. If interested, contact Karen Good, keg@gvtel.com.
Existing log cabin on the Red Lake Reservation.
Architecture BS undergraduate student Andrew Sundal is the first College of Design student to complete the Community Engagement Scholars Program (CESP). Students completing the program have completed at least nine credits of service-learning coursework, at least 400 hours of community service, and a series of reflective pieces. They have also completed an integrative community project that results in the creation of a sustainable project for a community organization. Sundal worked with the Wilder Foundation on a Center for Healthy Aging Program initiative with Leslie Van Duzer (Architecture). More information about CESP is available on the University's Service Learning Web site.
Ten graduate and professional degree students were awarded fellowships in 2009 through the Walter H. Judd International Graduate & Professional Fellowships. One of the recipients, Jessica McClurg (MArch, Architecture & Historical Preservation) is from the College of Design. McClurg will study preservation practices in Japan to combat the stress of tourism on heritage sites. Her study will document the physical, economic, and cultural impacts that tourism has had on different heritage sites in Japan through physical measurements and documentation using photographs and detailed drawings. To gain a more rounded view of what is happening at these sites, she will also meet with local heritage experts to discuss the impact of tourism on the more intangible issues like economy and culture. A final photo essay will describe the findings of this exploration using both images and captions to present broader implications.
Landscape Architecture graduate student Karthikeyan Bharath Kumar is part of a team, named Reach Out Water Solutions, that won an award from the Acara Institute for a project they developed to provide clean water to the slums of Mumbai. The team's Slum Water Program combines source water storage with UV water treatment and a novel distribution system to supply 50 liters of clean, low-cost water to community participants and 10 liters of potable water to pay-per-use customers at a reasonable rate.
The Reach Out Water Solutions team will travel to India on May 26, 2009 for two weeks.
A total of 14 University students have received Fulbright grants for 2009-10 to pursue graduate study, research, or creative work in a foreign country. Two of the Fulbright recipients are College of Design undergraduate alumni
Evan Hall (BS Arch, 2008), will spend the coming academic year in South Korea with the support of a Fulbright Full Grant. Hall will study Korean language, city planning, and urban architecture at the Korea National University, and will conduct research on how modern professionals are remolding the urban environment in Seoul.
Vivian Mui (BS Graphic Design, cum laude 2008), will be a Fulbright English teaching assistant in Hong Kong. Mui will help to teach English classes at the Hong Kong Institute of Education, a public university dedicated to the preparation and professional development of teachers. She intends to use and expand her knowledge of international cross-cultural design in the classroom and act as a volunteer for several art and design organizations in Hong Kong.
Several College of Design undergraduates participated in the University's 2009 Undergraduate Symposium on April 8, 2009. They are:
Meghann Coyle, Architecture
Old Eyes on New Buildings
Mentor: Sharon Roe
Jennifer Dens, Architecture
Northrop Memorial Auditorium: Historical Symbol of the University
Mentor: Nancy Miller
Heidi Erm, Housing Studies
Aging-in-Place Policies
Mentor: Ann Ziebarth
Laura Houghton, Housing Studies
Household & Community Response to Annual Flooding in Rural Bolivia
Mentor: Ann Ziebarth
Shing Mei Leung, Architecture
Designing an Urban Landscape
Mentor: John Ross
Nora Ronningen, Architecture
Transmaterial: Materials that Redefine Our Physical Environment
Mentor: Blaine Brownell
During the last week of April 2009, 32 undergraduate research posters were displayed at the state capitol, and 22 students -- including Meghann Coyle (BDA Architecture undergraduate student) -- met with 29 legislators to discuss the value of their research experience. UMNews covered the event and photographs of the event are available on Facebook.
Coyle's Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) project was entitled "Old Eyes on New Buildings." Her UROP mentor was Sharon Roe (Architecture)
Those interested in the state's funding for the University may be interested in a report, "The Lost Decade," produced by the Minnesota Budget Project, an initiative of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits.
The 2009 senior graphic design show, Stone Soup, takes place Sunday, May 17, 2009, 12:00-3:30 p.m., at Harry's Food and Cocktails, 500 Washington Avenue South, Minneapolis. Graduating seniors -- Gina Alianello, Kim Arps, Bobbi Beito, Liz Bub, Andy Erikson, Clair Ganzel, Kari Haven, Hillary Heinz, Jenni Hielke, Heath Ihrke, Stephanie Kaari, Mandy Lange, Audrey Larson, Sarah Mytych, Andy Nelson, Alicia Oestreich, Kaitlyn Pickering, Melanie Ross, Lori Schwartz, Annika Seaberg, and Patrice Soehnlein -- will be exhibiting their portfolios and favorite design pieces from their University years.
The students will be collecting non-perishable food items for Neighborhood House.
For more information, e-mail the students, stonesoup.designshow@gmail.com.
Dislocate, the University's student-run national literary journal, releases its fifth annual issue on Saturday, May 9, 2009, 8-12 p.m., at the Bedlam Theatre, 1501 South Sixth Street, Minneapolis. The event is free and open to the public.
The fifth issue, "Transitions," was designed by Graphic Design undergraduates Patrick Groessel and Meher Khan and features creative work from international writers and artists on the subject of political, social, geographic, and cultural transitions.
The College of Design graduating student exhibition, this year entitled Our Deal: Graduates Ready to Stimulate, runs April 25-May 16, 2009 in the HGA Gallery and ALA Library Gallery in Rapson Hall. An awards ceremony will take place on May 15, 2009, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
The annual event celebrates new graduates and reflects the professional quality of work done by students of the college. The exhibition includes work by students from all programs within the college: apparel design, architecture, graphic design, housing studies, interior design, landscape architecture, and retail merchandising. Sample projects include poster presentations of research, 3-D projects of clothing and architectural designs, and digital presentations of design process.
"New norm" is a multimedia presentation on the University's home page profiling seven nontraditional students across the institution who are pursuing degrees in different ways. Graphic Design junior Eduardo Cortes came to Minnesota from Mexico three years ago and was recently accepted into the School of Journalism to study advertising as a minor. Cortes works as a guide at the Goldstein Museum of Design (and worked on the museum's new logo) and as a translator at the Jane Addams School. He hopes to either pursue a graduate degree or move back to Mexico upon graduation.
MFA graduate student Heba Amin (Interaction Design) and her illustrations for the award-winning children's book, Extraordinary Women from the Muslim World, are featured in a Jeff Strickler article for the Star Tribune.
"I'm very aware of cultural stereotypes," Amin told Strickler. "The image of Muslim women in the United States is of veiled, oppressed people who have no voice. But in fact, Muslim women have a long history of remarkable achievements."
Sarah French (Clothing Design, 2006), Megan Wannarka (Clothing Design, 2006), and current student Stacy Wenzel (Clothing Design) are currently working on a production of William Shakespeare's Hamlet for 3AM Productions.
Hamlet will open on May 8, 2009 and run through May 17, 2009 at the Minneapolis Theatre Garage at 711 West Franklin Avenue. Show times are Monday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m.
Tickets go on sale April 20, 2009 at 612-339-0207 or 3amproductions@gmail.com. Adult tickets are $16; students/seniors are $12; groups of 10 or more are $10; and all tickets are discounted $2 with a Fringe button.
Student staff members of the College of Design's THERE Journal of Design are currently finalizing content for the the fifth issue of the publication, "Border Crossings." The anticipated publication date is May 10, 2009 and it will be available from Amazon. Submissions for this issue were received from design professionals all over the world and numbered nearly twice as many as previous issues. Submissions included a wide variety of subjects, including a UNESCO World Heritage site and historic preservation of a significant cultural landscape, a utopian village in Antarctica, and graphic design of packaging to make consumers more aware of a product's manufacturing "story."
Student staff members were all M.Arch students and included Angela Boersma (managing editor), John Steingraeber, Simona Fischer, Kyle Veldhouse, James Thompson, Hans-Christian Karlberg, Erin Lilli, Federico Lammers Garcia, Michelle Ney, Andrew Salveson, and Kirk Mazzeo.
Six undergraduate students from the College of Design will present their creativity, research, and scholarship at the U of M Undergraduate Symposium on Wednesday, April 8 at Coffman Union's Great Hall. Sessions will be held between 11:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
The selected students are Meghann Coyle and Jennifer Dens, both Arch BDA students; Heidi Erm and Laura Houghton, both Housing Studies students; and Shing Mei Leung and Nora Ronningen, both Arch BS students.
For the first time in the history of the University of Minnesota, the Minnesota Daily will be publishing a graduation issue with yearbook-like components, including student group profiles, parent shout-outs, outstanding campus leadership awards. and gradlines. Matt Cummins, marketing communications coordinator for the student newspaper, says the special issue will reach 35,000 students, staff, and faculty. To participate, visit the Ski-U-Mah section of the Minnesota Daily Web site. For more information, contact Matt Cummins, 612-627-4080 x3256 or mcummins@mndaily.com.
Greenlight, the College of Design's student group focused on ecological issues, has launched Greenscreen, a weekly film screening of environmental films. The series begins on Wednesday, March 4, 2009, 6 p.m., in 225 Rapson Hall with a showing of The Yes Men. Future screenings will take place on Wednesdays at 6 p.m. in 225 Rapson Hall.
Freshman retail merchandising student Molly Oberstar is profiled by Christa Lawler in the Duluth News Tribune as one of four finalists in a Mpls. St. Paul magazine modeling contest.
Morgan Hertzfeld (Architecture undergraduate student)'s model chair has been named one of the winners in the Design Within Reach Champagne Chair Contest (Hertzfeld's entry is labeled "Desk Chair Extraordinaire." Contestants were required to create an original miniature chair using only the foil, label, cage, and cork from no more than two champagne bottles. The chair must fit within a four-inch square box.
"The influence of need for my design came from the average and dreary desk chairs this country is so often stuck with," Hertzfeld said of his entry. "I think with a bit of good design and a bit of time something as common as a desk chair or waiting room chair or even a lounger could become something so much more appealing and satisfying. This Desk Chair Extraordinaire is my attempt to fulfill said need."
College of Design interior design students present the Building Ties 09 exhibit at the Hennepin History Museum, February 8-March 8, 2009. An opening reception will be held Sunday, February 8, 1-3 p.m.
The exhibit showcases culturally sensitive housing designs for Mexicans and Somalis developed by interior design students under the direction of Tasoulla Hadjiyanni (Interior Design).
The College of Design presents the 41st Annual Senior Fashion Show, "Exposed." The event showcases 12 up-and-coming designers graduating from the Clothing Design program who are ready to make their mark on what we wear. The senior class will present their original collections that include wearable ideas for the office, avant-garde designs, sustainable clothing, and theater costumes. This event will also feature a standing exhibition of work by the sophomore class and a pre-runway show from the junior class.
"Exposed" will have two shows on February 21 at 5:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. It will be held in the Rapson Hall courtyard. After each show, and meet-and-greet will be held with the designers and their models. Alumni are invited to a reception between the two shows.
Tin Box Art Show is a design exhibition presented by graduating graphic design students. The exhibition will be held on December 20, 2008, 7-10 p.m. at the Weisman Art Museum.
The assignment: fill the McNeal Hall arium -- all four stories of it -- any way possible. On December 15, 1:30-3:30 p.m., five groups of Brad Hokanson's (Graphic Design) DHA 1111 "Creative Problem Solving" students will have 15 minutes each to address that creative challenge for their final exam.
Yesterday, during the class's session, the McNeal Hall atrium was filled with all 87 of Hokanson's students dancing under the instruction of a professional zumba instructor. Zumba is an aerobic exercise combining aspects of mambo, salsa, rumba, cumbia, reggae, and calypso dance movements.
DHA 1111 zumba dance participants in McNeal Hall atrium. Photograph by Brad Hokanson.
"The zumba dancing is meant to be a preview for the final, to get students to start thinking about creative ways in which they can fill the atrium," Hokanson told the University's news service. "This is the first time I've ever tried this final exam project idea... Dancing is just one of the ways we've found we can fill that space, but it could also include things like objects, sound, smell, or even laughter."
DHA 1111 zumba dance participants in McNeal Hall atrium, from first floor. Photograph by Brad Hokanson.
Design Apparel doctoral candidate Jae-Eun Kim has received a thesis research grant from the Graduate School for her thesis, The Influence of Moral Emotions in Young Adults' Moral Decision Making: A Cross-cultural Examination.
Several graduate students in the apparel design program have received scholarships and recognition from the International Textiles and Apparel Association (ITAA). The scholarships were announced at the association's annual meeting.
The Graphic Design Student Association (GDSA) is hosting a gallery show sale featuring a diverse range of graphic design material, from photography and collage to screenprinting and illustration. Hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be served. Monday, November 17th, 6-9 p.m., 22 McNeal Hall. $2 for students; $4 for general public.
The College of Design is hosting two undergraduate student panels as part of International Education Week on Monday, November 17, 2008, 12:15-1:00 p.m. and Friday, November 21, 2008, 10:30-11:15 a.m. The student panels highlight the experiences of the college's returning study abroad and international students. The November 17 Rapson Hall session is geared toward undergraduate architecture and environmental design students. The November 21 McNeal Hall session is geared toward clothing design, graphic design, housing studies, interior design, and retail merchandising students. All faculty, staff, and students are welcome to attend. Light refreshments will be served at both sessions.
MFA graduate student Heba Amin (Interaction Design) provided all of the illustrations for Extraordinary Women from the Muslim World, a book that has recently won two awards.
Extraordinary Women from the Muslim World has won a USA Book News National Best Books 2008 Award in the Religion: Islam category.
The book also won the Moonbeam Peacemaker Award, established to honor the best children's book for promoting world peace and human tolerance in memory of Mattie J.T. Stepanek (1990-2004), whose poetry and messages of hope and peace have inspired millions of people around the world. The Moonbeam Children's Book Awards are designed to honor the best children’s books, authors and illustrators, and to support childhood literacy and life-long reading.
Image note: Al-Khansa, 20in. x 16in., oil and mixed media on canvas.
Students in the Apparel Design Studio 3 class, taught for years by Missy Bye and taught this year by Lucy Dunne, are participating again in the Twin Cities Chocolate Extravaganza Fashion Show. The show takes place November 15-16, 2008, 1:30 and 3:30 p.m., at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
A set of get out the vote screenprinted posters by James Boyd-Brent's (Graphic Design) Spring 2008 DHA 3312 students is currently on display in the Wilson Library. Today (Tuesday, October 7, 2008), from noon-1 p.m. in the Wilson Library's fourth floor lobby, the students will speak about their posters.
Architecture undergraduate students Laura Schlifer and Daniel Carlson won the first 2008 Berkeley Prize Architectural Design Fellowship in celebration of the Berkeley Prize's tenth anniversary. Schlifer and Carlson won for their project, entitled "Baby Boomers: A New Take on the Old." They were also finalists for the essay competition. The pair were awarded $1,250 each plus $3,500 to host a School of Architecture competition based on their entry.
The Berkeley Prize educates undergraduate architecture students through essay writing and a travel fellowship that "the smallest act of building has global implications: that design can and does play a major role in the social, cultural, and psychological life of both the individual and society at large."
Schlifer and Carlson's entry embeds a competition in the School of Architecture's curriculum, a strong factor in their winning the prize. The pair's proposal calls for re-envisioning the traditional senior center to better meet the needs of the baby boomer generation, focusing on the need for boomers to remain self-sufficient and continue to be contributing members of society. The competition -- which will take place during a semester-long studio course during the spring 2009 semester -- centers on reintegrating the generational divide of the Uptown neighborhood in Minneapolis. The site, according to the Schlifer and Carlson proposal, "should be no larger than a quarter of a city block and should be within three blocks of Hennepin Avenue."
Schlifer and Carlson were shocked to learn they had won the fellowship. "We thought we might try it and learn from the experience since neither of us had entered a competition before," said Carlson. Schlifer echoed Carlson's sentiment and added, "Daniel and I thought we had a topic that isn't really discussed with people our age, and I think, I hope, that it will be a competition that produces fascinating results."
Continue reading "Architecture undergraduates win Berkeley Prize" »
Graphic Design senior Michael Diener created the official 2008 Welcome Week design (.pdf; 3.8Mb) which was used in various forms for publications and shirts for students, volunteers, and Welcome Week Leaders. The concept was based on the Welcome Week schedule and depicts the highlights of each day in pictures. It also served as a helpful reminder of what was happening each day of Welcome Week.
Amanda Olson (M.Arch.), Malea Jochim (M.Arch.), and Laura Kamin-Lyndgaad (MLA) have won the 2008 American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) student awards in the collaboration category for their project, "Remediation as Catalyst: Transforming an Industrial Landscape." The students were part of last year's collaborative M.Arch. and MLA studios taught by Lance Neckar (Landscape Architecture) and John Comazzi (Architecture).
Apparel Design seniors Stacey Wenzel (second place for her design, "Kid's Hunting Coveralls") and Laura Musekamp (third place for her design, "Cold Weather Sailing Outfit") are award winners in the 2008 Industrial Fabrics Association International Student Design Challenge. The designs were created in Karen LaBat's (Apparel Design) spring 2008 Functional Clothing Design Studio. Students and the Apparel Design program will be given cash awards and the designs will be shown at the Industrial Fabrics Association International Conference and Exposition, Charlotte, North Carolina, October 21-24.
The University's Solar Decathlon team has scheduled a design progress review for 4-7 p.m. on Friday, September 5, 2008 at 100 Rapson Hall.
In May and June, Leslie Van Duzer (Architecture) traveled to Malawi in southeast Africa with five undergraduate students and a teaching assistant. The University of Livingstonia invited the group to design site plans for their two campuses and remodeling plans for a dormitory. Additionally, the architecture students worked closely with leaders in the local community to design a new hospital administration building and a tourist map of Livingstonia, a turn-of-the century mission station located on a beautiful high plateau overlooking Lake Malawi. The M-Term was part of a University-wide effort initiated in 2007 by John Ziegenhagen, director of strategic projects, and now has the support of the School of Architecture and the dean's office in the College of Design. Van Duzer will return to Livingstonia in May 2009.
Continue reading "Van Duzer travels with students to Malawi" »
Architecture student Theresa Chan has been recognized by the International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience (IAESTE) for her work in assisting international interns.
[Ed. note: What follows is the second installment of a mostly unedited in-progress trip report from Bill Moran (Design Minor) who leads this spring's design minor M-term study abroad.]
Hello all,
Our trip continues it's way through Europe and things are going smoothly. We've just finished three days of touring and printing in Mainz, Germany. As in Spain we've met the most amazing artists and craftsmen/women who've made us feel right at home.
[Ed. note: What follows is a mostly unedited in-progress trip report from Bill Moran (Design Minor) who leads this spring's design minor M-term study abroad.]
Hello/hola/hallo
Our trip has been going smoothly so far (with a few minor hiccups). We had an amazing visit to Imprenta Artesenal in Madrid. For three days we were treated like visiting royalty by the staff. They receive many visitors but few people come to actually print. It was a true thrill to watch my students who range in age 20-25 work with master craftsmen/women who dedicate themselves to preserving the art of letterpress.
The following graduating students were recognized with awards during the graduating student exhibition earlier this month.
Deans' choice award -- Best of show (gold)
Chris Wingate and Wesley Stabs
The Urban Lung
Friends of the Goldstein award (silver)
Wesley Martin
Annika Dress
Alumni Society award (bronze)
Sarah Huener
Bambini Integrated Campaign
Senior show people's choice award
Amanda Zanski
Master of Landscape Architecture capstone award
Brian Douchette
Laura Baker
American Institute of Architects (AIA) Henry Adams medal; first-ranked Master of Architecture professional degree student
AIA/AAF scholarship program
David Jonathan Wilson
AIA Henry Adams certificate; second-ranked Master of Architecture professional degree student
AIA/AAF Scholarship Program
Allison Fritz Salzman
Richard Morrill memorial Master of Architecture thesis awards for design excellence
Whitney Ann Parks
Daniel L. Yudchitz
Aaron C. Squadroni
Student choice Master of Architecture thesis award
Jessie Bauldry
Alpha Rho Chi award for leadership
Shengyin Xu
Architectural Research Centers Consortium (ARCC) Jonathan King student medal
Catherine R. Sandlund
University of Minnesota College of Design graduate student exhibition 2008 people's choice award
Whitney Parks
CDes/Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs graduate student Adam Maleitzke received a Community-University Outstanding Partners in Engagement Award during the Community-University Partnerships open house on Tuesday, April 22, 2008.
A group of 10 architecture students, organized by Caroline Engel, will be doing volunteer work on the Kris Nelson home on Saturday, May 3, 2008. The students' work on the Dayton's Bluff, Saint Paul home is part of Change the World week in partnership with HGTV.
The students -- Caroline Engel, Angela Bateson, Ken Weber, Brianna Frandrup, Tyler Westfield, Rebekka Roos, Ryan Lodermeier, Mike Sather, Joe Krummel, and Andrew Tisue -- will be doing a full exterior remodel including new windows, new siding, and new paint as well as some interior remodeling.
The students of DHA 2613 -- Lighting Design & Life Safety present the third annual light fair on Wednesday, May 7, 2008 from 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. in 233 McNeal Hall.
The graduating students exhibitions party will be held on Friday, May 16, 2008 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. throughout Rapson Hall. The awards program will be held from 7:30-8:00 p.m. in 100 Rapson. The event includes the Roots of the Future senior show, the Architecture thesis awards exhibitions, and the Landscape Architecture capstone exhibitions.
The capstone project is the culmination of an honors student's experience and reflects substantive understanding. Successful completion of a capstone project requires research, creative thinking, and good writing skills. This year's honors presentations include one architecture student, one retail merchandising student, three graphic design students, and four interior design students. The presentations are open to the public.
Monday, April 28, 2008
9 a.m. 146 McNeal Hollie Marx (Retail Merchandising): The People's Republic of China: A Case Study in Global Trade
Gloria Williams, capstone adviser
1:15 p.m. 15 Rapson Mariah Marshall (Architecture): Frank Lloyd Wright's AD German Warehouse -- A History and Building Condition Report
Kate Solomonson, thesis adviser
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
9 a.m. 274 McNeal Sarah Huener (Graphic Design): Shades of Grey: Exploring the Intricacies of Good and Evil in Children's Book Illustration
James Boyd-Brent, capstone adviser
10:15 a.m. 274 McNeal Mandi Zanski (Interior Design): Research Brief on Culture and Design
Denise Guerin, capstone adviser
1 p.m. 274 McNeal Rachael Rodeck (Interior Design): Architecture and Interior Design Connections: Understanding Licensure
Caren Martin, capstone adviser
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
9 a.m. 146 McNeal Amanda Ward (Graphic Design): 25 Million Reasons: A Creative Campaign Aimed at Increasing Youth Involvement in Politics
Steven McCarthy, capstone adviser
2 p.m. 144 McNeal Tyler Stevermer (Interior Design): Spatiality of Illegality: Researching the Special Housing Needs of "Illegal" Mexican-Americans
Tasoulla Hadjyanni, capstone adviser
3:15 p.m. 144 McNeal Katie Kaiser (Interior Design): Analysis of the Legislative Process: The MN Interior Design Practice Act
Denise Guerin, capstone adviser
4:30 p.m. 144 McNeal Tyssa Erickson (Graphic Design): Now Playing Outside a Theater Near You
James Boyd-Brent, capstone adviser
