CDes MEMO Archives

A bi-weekly electronic newsletter for the faculty and staff of the College of Design.

The deadline for submissions is noon on Wednesday prior to Thursday of publication. Send submissions to Michael Fraase <mfraase@umn.edu>. The next issue comes out September 28.

Read CDes Memo online on the College of Design Web site.

February 22, 2007

Editor: Michael Fraase, mfraase@umn.edu

Next two weeks

Today, February 22, 2007, 4:00-5:30 p.m., Dorsey & Whitney, 50 S. Sixth St. #1500, Minneapolis
The Young and the Restless: The Different Faces of Sustainability
Presented by the Young Leaders Group of the Urban Land Institute, and curated by David Motzenbecker, this panel discussion addresses sustainablity from perspectives other than the traditional "green" and "environmental" points of view. Hoping to pave new avenues of thinking about sustainability -- how it relates to fashion, logistics, and even vodka for example -- the panel will discuss approaches to creating environments that attract and retain young people. The panel -- moderated by Susan Szenasy, editor in chief of Metropolis magaine -- includes Gene Kahn, General Mills vice president of sustainable development; Brenda Langton, founder Cafe Brenda, Spoonriver, and Mill City Market; Dean Phillips, chief executive of Phillips Distilling; Richard Murphy, chief executive of Murphy Warehouse; and Scott Kuhlman, chief executive of Kuhlman Company. More information is available on the Urban Land Institute Web site.

February 24-March 11, HGA Gallery, Rapson Hall
Fall 2006 Design Excellence Awards exhibition

February 28, March 7 and April 2, 9 a.m.-noon, 45 Rapson Hall
Making the Mississippi seminar series
Join Pat Nunnally, coordinator of the University's Mississippi River Initiative, and local experts on riverfront design, planning, and policy for a series of discussions on the changing Twin Cities Mississippi River waterfront.

Steve Johnson (February 28) is chief of resource management at the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, a unit of the National Park Service that stretches along the Mississippi for 72 miles through the heart of the Twin Cities. Johnson will discuss the unique opportunities and challenges of preserving nationally-significant landscape resources in a thriving urban area, paying particular attention to the inter-governmental relationships necessary to perform this task successfully.

Gregory Page (March 7) is director of special projects at the St. Paul Riverfront Corporation. Page will review the city of St. Paul's work in devising design guidelines and zoning ordinances for the city's critical area plan along the Mississippi.

Ann Calvert (April 2) is senior project manager in the Community Planning and Economic Development department at the City of Minneapolis. Calvert will review three decades of development work in the Minneapolis Central Riverfront, especially the relationship between public investment and private sector development.

Each program starts as a session of the undergraduate course, "Making the Mississippi," and will feature a presentation and discussion over the broad themes of the topic at hand. After a brief break, at 10:45 a.m., the discussion will continue (moving to 225 Rapson Hall) in a more interactive mode that allows for a more detailed analysis of that day’s particular subject. The program will end around noon.

March 1-5 (for times and locations, contact School of Architecture)
Between Image and Architecture
Amy Landesberg, Liquid Inc. and Amy Landesberg Architects, Atlanta
Assignment 1 (Thursday, March 1) What is glass anyway?
Assignment 2 (Friday, March 2) The math of the haze.
Assignment 3 (Saturday, March 3 and Sunday, March 4) Design and make.
Presentation (Monday, March 5, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.)

March 1, 7 p.m., Continuing Education and Conference Center
Arts & Cultural Policy in the 21st Century
Ann Markusen (Humphrey Insitute); sponsored by the College of Continuing Education, tickets are $10.

News and announcements

Want to stay in touch with important CDes announcements? Consider setting your Web browser's home page to the College of Design Announcements page. It's updated frequently between issues of CDes MEMO.

Digital Collections and Archives
The Visual Resources Collection will be taken offline March 19 and replaced by the Digital Content Library (DCL), a resource for digital content production and discovery, is available to all CDes faculty, students, and staff. Contact Jodie Walz (612-624-4080, jwalz@umn.edu) if you would like a training session on the new database. The Digital Content Library is a collaboration between the College of Design and the College of Liberal Arts. 50,000 of our 300,000 35mm slides have been scanned and cataloged and are available for searching and download at the Digital Content Library. All images are available for educational use consistent with the fair use provisions of U.S. copyright law. Log-in using your X.500 username and password in order to download presentation size images. The collections continue to grow via requests so please drop off your images and copywork orders in the Digital Collections and Archives offices at 65 Rapson or 244 McNeal.

Upcoming Metropolitan Design Center program deadlines
Faculty fellow applications are due May 1. Student undergraduate travel fellowship applications are due March 7. Faculty minigrants for urban design and community engagement activities have rolling deadlines.

Goldstein mini-exhibitions in McNeal changing
As you walk around McNeal Hall next week, please take time to check out three new "mini-exhibitions." The lobby of 32 McNeal will feature a colorful display of silk-screened scarves designed by legendary designer Vera. The Design, Housing, and Apparel office will feature items of Moroccan costume. A radiant red aluminum bowl by Louise Rauh that was etched with acid to create a lace-like effect will be featured in the Goldstein main office (364 McNeal).

Eames Demetrios lecture
The February 8 lecture by Eames Demetrios in conjunction with the Goldstein Museum of Design's current exhibition, Design Redux: Eames as Paper, attracted 110 guests. The lecture was videotaped and will be available for viewing at a date and time to be announced. Eames also spoke to students in DHA 4321 Design Process: Photography and in DESI 3061 (Un)wrapping It Up: New Materials for Design, Design for New Materials.

The Goldstein hosts a Minnesota Association of Museums "sampler"
On February 15, 18 members of the Minnesota Association of Museums visited the Goldstein Museum as part of their monthly museum sampler program. After a tour of the current exhibition led by curator Patrick Grace, members visited the research center, where 30 objects from the collection were on view. Through a light-hearted paper and pencil activity called "Objects Speak: Scavenger Hunt," members attempted to identify objects based on clues.

The Theatre Historical Society of America invites submissions of original research papers on aspects of American theatres relevant to architecture, decoration, equipment, history, or operation for its Jeffrey Weiss Literary Award competition. The submission deadline for this year's competition is December 31, 2007.

Logo Cities: A Symposium on Signage, Branding, and Lettering in Public Space
Concordia University Montréal, Québec, May 4-5, 2007

A two-day symposium presented by the Logo Cities project.

Cities are awash in "public lettering:" street signs, newspaper mastheads, road signs, high-rise corporate logos, store/shop/restaurant signs, engravings on buildings and monuments, etc. The Logo Cities symposium draws together scholars, designers, artists, and artisans to foster an informed, critical dialogue about signage, branding, and lettering in public space. The project's organizers invite expressions of interest and proposals for scholarly papers, presentations, and screenings that critically and/or creatively interrogate the intersections of signage, branding, and lettering in public space. The organizers are especially interested in historical case studies, design and typographic studies, activist, artistic, and new media interventions, and critical cultural analyses that offer new and adventurous insights into these phenomena.

Informal inquiries and formal proposals to Matt Soar, Department of Communication Studies, Concordia University 514-848-2424 x2542, logocities.symposium@gmail.com. For more information and continual updates on the symposium, including speakers and special events, please visit the Logo Cities project Web site.

The deadline for formal proposals is February 28, 2007.

CDes in the media

The following CDes activities and expertise have been featured in the media. Contact Laura Weber, communications director, at l-webe@umn.edu if you have news to promote through the media.

"What's new exhibitions" -- By Kim Yeager, Star Tribune, February 7, 2007
Yeager recommends the current Goldstein Museum exhibit, Design Redux: Eames as Paper.

Todd Melby mentions the CDes spring lecture series in his building minnesota weblog, sponsored by the Minnesota chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

"U of M Clothing Design students make some 'Noise'" -- By Staff, University News Service

This year, "Noise!" debuts as the first show of students from the new College of Design and will showcase the talent and variety of fashion concepts in a visually exciting and entertaining show.

"Walk this way: University seniors display their passion for fashion at a runway show this weekend" -- By Megan Kadrmas, Minnesota Daily, February 15, 2007
The fashion show also represents the changes each designer has undergone to get to this point in his or her education and career. Each has experienced a personal shift in career goals, in addition to the administrative shift in the program.

"U of M moves design to center stage" -- By Lois Josefson, Prairie Business, February 2007.
Recognizing the breadth and pervasiveness of the role of design today and in the society of the future the U of M has taken a nation-leading step in creating a new College of Design. Quotes Dean Fisher and discusses how design and community development issues get addressed in small towns and regional centers across western Minnesota and the Dakotas.

Congratulations and kudos

A team of graduate students competed in the national Urban Land Institute's Student Urban Design Competition. The multidisciplinary team represented three different colleges: College of Design, Hubert Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, and the Carlson School of Management. Team members included Kristin Raab, team lead (Landscape Architecture), Laura Baker (Landscape Architecture and Urban and Regional Planning), Whitney Parks, (Architecture), Ben Schein, Business, and Ellison Yahner (Urban and Regional Planning). Rebecca Krinke (Landscape Architecture) was the faculty advisor. CDes faculty members Ann Forsyth (Metropolitan Design Center), Lance Neckar (Landscape Architecture), and Bob Sykes (Landscape Architecture) provided review. The team's proposal, "Re Generate," consisted of an urban plan for a piece of land in downtown Los Angeles bisected by the Los Angeles River and a development proposal for a smaller area of the site. Their design can be found online for a limited time.

Joanne B. Eicher (DHA) has been appointed to the Scholarly Advisory Council of The Bead Museum in Glendale, AZ.

An exhibition of paintings by Joon Mornes (Architecture and Landscape Architecture Librarian) is being shown at the Gallery Lounge, College of St. Benedict, St. Joseph, MN. The exhibition, Colors of the Wind: Paintings by Joonja Lee Mornes, is a part of the 2006-07 visual arts series of the St. Benedict and St. John’s fine arts program. The selected works were done between 2004-06 and are on view until April 13, 2007. A sample image and detailed information are available on the Benedicta Arts Center Web site.

On February 21, the Landscape Architecture urban design studio, led by Clint Hewitt and Kristine Miller worked with fine art, geography, and theater graduate students to explore the Dania Hall site in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood of Minneapolis. Students developed and recorded their impressions of, and ideas about, the Dania Hall site -- and its environs -- an important historical multi-use building in the Cedar Riverside community that burned down several years ago. Their work will be used by theater arts students to create a performance about the site's history and future. The project was created by Christine Bauemler (Fine Arts), Sonja Kuftinec (Theater Arts Fine Arts), Kristine Miller (Landscape Architecture), Karen Till (Geography), and Maren Ward (Bedlam Theater). The project was sponsored by the Art Design and Social Engagement Collaborative, Space&Place, and the Institute for Advanced Study.

Design, Housing, and Apparel interior design students won five of the eight national awards in Target's "Design Me" competition. The competition focused on designing a dorm room. Entries were judged on creativity, unified theme, and use of Target product categories. Rachel Bickel and Chiharu Miller were grand prize winners; Laura Hennings and Stephanie Volberding won first place prizes. All four are seniors in Caren Martin's DHA 4607 (section 1) class. Sarah Theisen, a senior in Mike English's DHA 4607 (section 2) class won a first place prize.

Publications

Steven McCarthy (DHA) has had a refereed paper, "Curating as Meta Design-Authorship," published in visual:design:scholarship, the research journal of the Australian Graphic Design Association.

Joanne B. Eicher (DHA) has published two book reviews in the Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute: "Arctic Clothing, London: British Museum Press" and "Clothing as Material Culture."

Future events

March 8, 10 a.m., Minnesota Population Center, Willey Hall
Neighborhood Effects
Stefanie Deluca, Johns Hopkins University

March 9, 9-11 a.m., 180 Hubert H. Humphrey Center
Beyond the Open House and Focus Group: Community Engagement Methods that Really Work
Wendy Sarkissian
More information is available on the Metropolitan Design Center Web site.

February 24-March 11, HGA Gallery, Rapson Hall
Fall 2006 Design Excellence Awards exhibition

March 19, 5:45 p.m., 100 Rapson Hall
Shared Space -- A Fresh Approach to Reconciling People, Places, and Traffic
Ben Hamilton-Baillie, Hamilton-Baillie Associates

March 20, 8:00-10:30 a.m., Campus Club Conference Room ABC, Coffman Memorial Union
Active Transportation and Facility Planning
Ben Hamilton-Ballie and James Charlier
More information is available on the Design for Health Web site.

March 20, 6-8 p.m., Campus Club Conference Room ABC, Coffman Memorial Union
Cars and Communities
Ben Hamilton-Ballie
More information on the Hamilton-Ballie talks is available on the Metropolitan Design Center Web site.

March 28, 5-8 p.m., Great Hall, Coffman Memorial Union
Architecture, Environmental Design, Interior Design, and Landscape Architecture Career Fair
More information about the fair is available on the CDes Web site.

April 4, 3:30-5:30 p.m., reception follows, 140 Nolte Hall
River Runs Through All of Us symposium
A symposium sponsored by the University of Minnesota Mississippi River Initiative
Speakers:

Seitu Jones, City of Minneapolis, CPED
Ruth Murphy, East Side Conservation Corps, St. Paul
Kathee Foran, Heart of the Beast Theater, Minneapolis
MaryLynn Pulscher, Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board

Response: Paul Labovitz, Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, National Park Service

April 12, 4 p.m., 125 Nolte Hall
The Mississippi River Over Time
Carrie Jennings (Minnesota Geological Survey), Dan Engstrom (St. Croix Research Station), and Deb Swackhamer (Institute on the Environment) will discuss the natural history, recent history, and future prospects for the Mississippi River. How was the river formed, what are its habitat and biological communities, and what is our legacy for the river and future generations? Part of the "Thursdays at Four" series hosted by the Institute for Advanced Study.

April 21, time TBD, location TBD
A Women's School of Architecture
Leslie Weisman, New Jersey Institute of Technology

April 29-May 1, Minneapolis Convention Center
Fifth Annual International Greening Rooftops for Sustainable Communities Conference, Awards, and Trade Show
The conference will consist of plenary and specialized sessions focused on three green roof topic areas: Policies and programs; design and implementation; and research and technical papers on performance. Those planning to attend are also encouraged to check out the various training courses and workshops offered, as well as the conference trade show. Information is available at the Greening Rooftops conference Web site. Nina Ebbinghausen, Peter MacDonagh, and Virajita Singh (Center for Sustainable Building Research) serve on the "Green Roofs Meet Minneapolis" host committee.

April 30, 8:00-10:30 a.m., Campus Club Conference Room ABC, Coffman Memorial Union
Accounting for Health in Planning Policy and Site Design
Jonathan Levine, University of Michigan
More information is available on the Design for Health Web site.

Colophon

CDes MEMO is published by the College of Design at the University of Minnesota bi-weekly, every other Thursday, September through May, on the Web. Please send comments, questions, or submissions to Michael Fraase, mfraase@umn.edu.

Submissions are due by noon Wednesday prior to Thursday publication. Spring semester publication dates are: January 25, February 8, February 22, March 8, March 22, April 5, April 19, and May 3.

This e-mail was sent by: University of Minnesota, College of Design. 32 McNeal Hall, 1985 Buford Avenue, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA.