"Not Just a Fashion Show"

Wednesday, April 27, 2016 - 1:30pm

I just wanted to share with you what a wonderful night the “Not Just a Fashion Show” was on Friday. The show featured 100 wearable art forms made by twenty-three students from all three undergraduate faculties and across 12 of OCAD U’s programs! The show was sold-out and the energy was palpable! 

This student-led project was developed and curated by Ali Haider (GD) and Jasmine So (ID) with strong support by MAAD Instructor Tarah Burke, myself, and generous funding from the Office of the President.

Here is the list of students who showed work (many more students modeled and volunteered):

Aine O'Neill, Industrial Design                                                                                                             

Amie Blechta, Drawing and Painting                                                                                                    

Arpanaa Logedas, Illustration                                                                                                                         

Ava Cochrane, Photography                                                                                                                    

David Yun, Industrial Design                                                                                                             

Elizabeth Aguilar, Drawing and Painting                                                                                                    

Hatley Walker, Material Art & Design, Fibre                                                                                      

Hillary Dube, Material Art & Design, Fibre                                                                                      

Ilan Max, Industrial Design                                                                                                             

Iman Khan, Graphic Design                                                                                                                

Julia Yeh, Material Art & Design, Fibre                                                                                      

Kaitlyn Smith, Graphic Design                                                                                                                

Kevin Dela Cruz, Industrial Design                                                                                                             

Kristi Chen, General Arts                                                                                                                     

Madeleine LeBlanc, Material Art & Design                                                                                                   

Miranda Victoria, Material Art & Design, Fibre                                                                                      

Mudassir Iqbal, Digital Futures                                                                                                                 

Rachel Clarke, Industrial Design                                                                                                             

Suki Lai, Material Art & Design, Jewellery                                                                              

T'mikah Fridal, Advertising and Wearable Technology                                                                  

Sheldon Storey, Sculpture and Installation                                                                                            

Ali Haider, Graphic Design

Jasmine So, Industrial Design                                                                                                             

Our thanks to President Diamond, Tarah Burke, Daniel Drak, Robert Pisano, Mary-Ann Lee, Laurie Wassink, Brent James, Lance Straun, Michelle Jelsma, Katie Browning, Security, Christine Crosbie, and many more!

See some photos here: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/notjust/

Our hope it to mount the show again next year!

Best wishes,

Dorie

DORIE MILLERSON, AOCAD, MFA

CHAIR, MATERIAL ART & DESIGN

FACULTY OF DESIGN

Wearable art show attracts capacity crowd

Woman modelling a dress with LED lights
Wide shot of auditorium fashion show
Male model
Three models
Tuesday, April 26, 2016 - 4:00am

OCAD University’s auditorium was transformed into a quasi-catwalk on Friday April 22 for Not Just a Fashion Show. The event spotlighted 100 wearable works of art created by 23 students from 12 programs. Mirrored masks, sparkling crystals and LED-infused fabrics added a glow to the outfits, which ranged from whimsical to highly functional.

The high-energy student-led project was developed and curated by Ali Haider (Graphic Design) and Jasmine So (Industrial Design) with support from faculty members Tarah Burke and Dorie Millerson and funding from the Office of the President.

Student models wore the outfits by designers from across all three faculties:  

  • Aine O’Neill, Industrial Design
  • Amie Blechta, Drawing & Painting
  • Arpanaa Logedas, Illustration
  • Ava Cochrane, Photography
  • David Yun, Industrial Design
  • Elizabeth Aguilar, Drawing & Painting
  • Hatley Walker, MAAD
  • Hillary Dube, MAAD, Fibre
  • Ilan Max, Industrial Design
  • Iman Khan, Graphic Design
  • Julia Yeh, MAAD, Fibre
  • Kaitlin Smith, Graphic Design
  • Kevin Dela Cruz, Industrial Design
  • Kristi Chen, General Arts
  • Madeleine LeBlanc, MAAD
  • Miranda Victoria, MAAD
  • Mudassir Iqbal, Digital Futures
  • Rachel Clarke, Industrial Design
  • Suki Lai, MAAD, Jewellery
  • T’mikah Fridal, Advertising and Wearable Technology
  • Sheldon Storey, Sculpture/Installation
  • Ali Haider, Graphic Design
  • Jasmine So, Industrial Design
  • Yovska, MAAD, Fibre

Why is ceramic art making a trendy comeback?

Award-winning ceramic artist Steven Heinemann talks about why ceramic art is making a popular comeback. Learn more about studying ceramics in OCAD U's Material Art and Design program. 

Embed Video: 

Professor Emerita Beth Alber honoured with lifetime achievement award

Photo of two women, Beth Alber, award recipient
Monday, December 7, 2015 - 5:00am

OCAD University Professor Emerita Beth Alber is the 2015 recipient of Craft Ontario’s John and Barbara Mather Award for Lifetime Achievement. This is one of the most prestigious markers of exceptional commitment to the development of craft in Ontario.

Alber is a celebrated master maker, in both silversmithing and public art. She is also an influential instructor and mentor who began teaching at the Ontario College of Art in 1979. From 2002 to 2009, Alber served as chair of OCAD U’s Material Art & Design program. She was appointed associate dean of the Faculty of Design in 2010 and, after 33 years of service, retired from OCAD U in 2012.

A member of the Royal Academy of Art, the Society of North American Goldsmiths, Women’s Art Resource Centre and CARFAC, Alber has exhibited her work widely across Canada. Her best known project is the commission of public art for the Women’s Monument Project in Vancouver, BC. Alber served as a board member at the Ontario Crafts Council from 1986 to 1988 and 1995 to 1997, and was president of the Metal Arts Guild of Ontario from 1985 to 1987.

Since 1981, the John and Barbara Mather Award has been presented to individuals who are “truly outstanding in their fields and have displayed exceptional commitment to the further development of craft in Ontario and throughout Canada.”

A New Dawn: Recent Work

Thursday, October 29, 2015 - 3:00pm to Sunday, November 22, 2015 - 11:00pm

MAAD Instructor Van McKenzie's show entitled A New Dawn: recent work

Venue & Address: 
David Kaye Gallery 1092 Queen Street West Toronto, ON
Website: 
http://www.davidkayegallery.com
Email: 
info@davidkayegallery.com
Phone: 
416-532-9075

Virginia San Fratello

Earth objects
Friday, November 6, 2015 - 8:00pm to 10:00pm

"Full Scale Study Models”

Virginia San Fratello is a designer, artist and educator. She is a partner at Rael San Fratello and in Emerging Objects, which is a pioneering design and research company that specializes in 3D printed materials and products for the built environment. Her research focuses on the convergence of digital, ecological, and creative material explorations. The research is applied through the design and fabrication of innovative building components, furniture designs, jewelry and object design and site specific installations that look at material resources and have political consequences.

Venue & Address: 
OCAD U Auditorium Room 190
Cost: 
Free
Poster

Chung-Im Kim - Solo Exhibition

Image of a fossil-like object
Thursday, October 1, 2015 - 3:00pm to Sunday, October 25, 2015 - 10:00pm

MAAD Faculty Chung-Im Kim will have a solo exhibition called living geometry.
Grand Opening October 3rd. 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm
October 1 - 25, 2015
Gallery Hours:
Monday & Tuesday -- by appointment
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday -- 11:00 am to 6:00 pm
Saturday & Sunday -- 11:00 am to 5:00 pm

Venue & Address: 
David Kaye Gallery 1092 Queen Street West
Website: 
http://www.davidkayegallery.com
Email: 
info@davidkayegallery.com

MEET GRAD EX 2013 MEDAL WINNER, COLLEEN MCCARTEN (MATERIAL ART & DESIGN)

Colleen McCarten at Grad Ex 2013. Photo by Christina Gapic.
Part of Colleen McCarten's project, Fabricate. Image by Colleen McCarten.

Colleen McCarten’s medal award-winning project, Fabricate, is a multimedia textile investigation. Here’s how she describes it:

Fabricate is a body of work that investigates the intersection of textiles and assumed value. Across a variety of mediums, this project employs a recurring technique of line and repetition to signify the basic components of textile construction. Through these decontextualized representations of textiles, this exploration asks: “does changing the material, scale, or technique alter the value of the piece?” If so, is it a sexist devaluation of a medium, or merely about the ability to understand the time and effort put into another process? 

What inspired you and motivated you to do this project?

Textiles have always been a large part of my life — from working in a fabric store throughout high school, studying fashion design at college, and then finishing my undergrad in Material Art and Design at OCAD U. I have always found it interesting how important textiles are in our daily lives, yet they are so often unnoticed or under appreciated.

What part of the process of creating this project did you learn the most from?

Material exploration is usually a recurring theme in all of my work, and is typically the part of creating that I learn the most from.

What part of the process of creating this project are you the most proud of?

I was proud of my ability to have enough obsessive compulsive tendencies to be able to finish the Drawing/Weaving piece. Repetition is a large theme in my body of work and I am glad to have had the patience to follow through with the repetitive actions involved in creating each piece.

How did you react to the news that you won a medal for your work?

I received the phone call while I was walking in the rain, and I felt really honoured! There were a lot of strong artists in the graduating class this year and I was happy to be among them.

What’s your fondest memory from your studies at OCAD U, and what will you miss the most?

The 16 hour days in the studio with fellow class mates always lead to the goofy/loopy/sleep deprived nights filled with new creative energy and random spouts of laughter. I will miss those nights along with having access to all of the different studios that OCAD U offers.

What are you planning to do next?

I am currently working at the Design Exchange for the summer, and I will be showing some work at the Guild Shop in the fall as well as participating in Hard Twist at the Gladstone in January. 

Find out more about Colleen McCarten:

Portfolio

LinkedIn Profile

2014 MEDAL WINNER BRI CLEARY, MATERIAL ART & DESIGN

Bri Cleary. Photo by Christina Gapic.
Pop dot pattern from TODOT: Urban Infographic Pattern by Bri Cleary.

Bri Cleary’s medal-award winning project TODOT: Urban Infographic Pattern communicates the relationship between people and the urban environment with a collection of patterns inspired by urban data such as weather patterns and transit rhythms. Here’s how she describes it:

TODOT: Urban Infographic Pattern is a surface design collection that communicates the architecture of everyday life in the City of Toronto. These designs are a reflection of the urban experience and the fluctuating relationship between humans and their metropolitan environments. TODOT is to mark, trace, record and connect the dots — to find the meaning in a mass of data. In our urban environment, data is all around. It lives in the flow of traffic, the beat of a neighbourhood and the vast network of people who are the pulse behind it.

The TODOT collection is a representation of this information and includes five infographic patterns that are each paired with a legend to read the data within the design. It creates a visual and tactile experience that makes everyday urban information meaningful

What inspired you and motivated you to do this project?

My passion for surface design combined with the desire to use data visualization to push the boundaries of pattern into a forward thinking and ever-evolving realm was my project’s fundamental motivation.

What part of the process of creating this project did you learn the most from?

I learned the most from my research on infographics and data visualization since, prior to this project, I had never incorporated those practices into my work.  And I’m so happy that I took the time to delve into a totally unfamiliar subject for my thesis project because I think my knowledge and understanding of graphic representation will continue to inform my future work.

What aspect of this project are you the most proud of?

I am most proud of my project’s concept — to develop a thesis that was both forward thinking and original was very important to me and I am proud to have been able to achieve that.

How did you react to the news that you won a medal for your work?

When I got the voicemail, I couldn’t believe it. The news that I had won the medal was surreal to me! Celebrating with my mom and boyfriend over a great dinner at one of my favorite restaurants in Toronto, made it feel a lot more real. I couldn’t have asked for better people to share my good news with!

What’s your fondest memory from your studies at OCAD U, and what will you miss the most?

My fondest memories from OCAD U and something that I will miss a lot are the many hours spent late at night in the fibre studio (somewhat sleep deprived) with some great friends. Those were the times when everyone really got to know each other and things always managed to get a little silly.

What are you planning to do next?

Currently, I am a design intern at UMBRA in Toronto and I was recently offered a full-time position there as a graphic designer. I’ll be working with a great team of industrial designers to develop custom products.

Contact Bri Cleary.

Craft Awards Ceremony 2013

 Craft Awards Ceremony 2013
Wednesday, October 2, 2013 - 11:30pm

Save The Date! Material Art & Design alumni Annie Tung, Fillipa Pimental, Heba Kandil and faculty Megan Price

Every year recipients of the Ontario Crafts Council awards program are honoured with a special event: the Craft Awards Ceremony. It's a night dedicated to makers and objects, and to celebrating the very best of contemporary craft.

Please join us in finding out who of the below 2013 award recipients has won which award, and to celebrate their achievement!

Special thanks to this year's jury: Beth Alber, Brad Copping, Lars Dressler, Noa Bronstein, Sarah Quinton, Steven Heinemann and Susie Osler.

We couldn’t make this program possible without the generous support of so many donors, and we’d like to extend our deepest thanks to the following organizations and people: RBC Royal Bank, the OCC Volunteer Committee, the One of a Kind Spring Show & Sale, Kingcrafts, The Pottery Supply House, Tuckers Pottery Supplies Ltd., the Women’s Association of the Mining Industry of Canada, A & M Wood Specialty Inc., Lacy and Co. Ltd, and the Copeland, Walker, Gregor, Yung, McPherson, Robertson and Diamond Butts families.

2013 Craft Award Recipients:
Aaron Oussoren
Amanda McCavour
Annie Tung
Bettie Cott
Chiho Tokita
Dayna Gedney
Grace Eunmi Lee
Filipa Pimentel
Heba Kandil
Janet Macpherson
Jennifer-Lyn Fife
Jie Yang
Kate Jackson
Lana Filippone
Lizz Aston
Meghan Price
Rachael Wong
Roger Wood
Tomas Rojcik
Vanessa Yanow

Refreshments will be served with a cash bar
Dress: Business/formal

RSVP to awards@craft.on.ca

 

www.craft.on.ca/Programs/Craft_Awards_Ceremony

 

 

RSVP

Venue & Address: 
Edward Day Gallery 952 Queen Street West Toronto, Ontario

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