The Manifesto Project - Photos

Micaelan Davis ( MFA ‘09 FURN)

In the envelope: I have never been one for concluding statements; even my physical work resists being neatly summed up. I see each piece as a moment in time, a specimen of work performed and ideas made real, a stop on the continuum of its evolution. I look at each piece and see the next step I would take or the next piece I would design. I am a gray thinker who longs for the black and white. I use knowledge and facts to get me a little closer to the truth, whatever that may be. When the answers don't make sense I am intrigued. I am interested in the connections between things, why we behave like we do.

Currently on view in the RISD Public Engagement Gallery: The Manifesto Project

Artwork by 11 RISD grad students from the Furniture, Textiles and Jewelry + Metalsmithing departments explore their personal creed as they pertain to being makers of things.

Here are some photos from the exhibition which will be up through Friday May 15th:

Sooyeon Kim (MFA ’10 J&M)

installation view
(l-r) Peter Hedstrom (MFA ’10 FURN), Mary Gagne (MFA ‘10 TX), Erin Scully (MFA ’10 J&M)
foreground Martin Goebel (MFA ’10 FURN)

Tuesday, May 12 at RISD | Public Engagement

The Manifesto Project: A one evening exhibition of 11 RISD grad students’ work for the seminar Contemporary Production Practices
Tuesday, May 12 from 6-8pm in the CIT Building, 2nd floor

Instructor: Liz Collins
Students: Micaelan Davis (MFA ‘09 FURN), Debra Folz (MFA ’10 FURN), Mary Gagne (MFA ‘10 TX), Martin Goebel (MFA ’10 FURN), Phillip Grass (MFA ’10 FURN), Peter Hedstrom (MFA ’10 FURN), Minwon Kim (MFA ’10 J&M), Sooyeon Kim (MFA ’10 J&M), Antonio Manaigo (MFA ’10 FURN), Matthew Perez (MFA ’10 GLASS), Erin Scully (MFA ’10 J&M)


Come see this diverse representation of ideas concerning the creative process of 11 brilliant artists and designers from RISD’s graduate program. In addition to showing the fruits of this exciting project, they class will be celebrating the end of the course and would love to have a drink with you!

Project description:
We seek to define ourselves within the world of art, design and production. This exhibition is a means of establishing that footing. The manifestos that will be presented will explore our personal creed as they pertain to being makers of things.

Course Description for Contemporary Production Practices:
In this course, we examine the multitude of models for the manufacturing of goods, from products to projects. What is the relationship between the designer/artist and the factory? What defines a factory and what constitutes an "industrial process?" How do things get made? Who makes them? These are some of the questions that guide us through the complex world of small to high volume production of consumer goods and the global marketplace. We also look at artists who manufacture and examples of creative projects where making multiples through outsourcing of labor is the means by which large pieces, collections, editions, and bodies of work are realized. Each week we focus on a particular aspect of manufacturing and production, with lectures by the instructor and guests, discussions, student research presentations, and field trips. Topics such as the designer/technician relationship, global trade, the supply chain, and the artist as laborer are touchstones for our in-depth conversations and study of this multifaceted concept. Alongside of weekly readings, written work and research, students are asked to develop a component of their studio work that addresses the idea of a manufactured object.