James Carpenter ‘72 IL and President Maeda are currently participating in the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Thanks to James for sending in his impressions of the Forum’s themes thus far.

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“Rethink, Redesign and Rebuild” are key organizational words for the programs at the WEF in Davos this year and there is a clear desire to foreground the importance of culture as an essential component of the discussions. To that end, I was delighted to be on the panel “Culture, Art and the Digital Age,” with John Maeda on the first day of the conference. On a panel of four, two of us have RISD roots - I think speaks to RISD’s relevance on these critical issues.

John’s message specifically was quite clear in outlining the essential connection between the creative, innovative thinking at the core of the RISD education to the fields of science, technology and business. This vision that creative thought influences the core of what are often thought of as unrelated fields, I find, is extraordinarily exciting and points the way towards the remarkable potential for the RISD experience.

My presentation, “Constructing the Ephemeral,” focused on my own interests in the phenomenology of light and its deployment in the built environment.

It is an exciting week here, and I am reminded that much of our work as designers and artists addresses only a slim percentage of the world population - we must all seek, in our own ways, to apply our talents to the broadest issues that affect us all.

- James Carpenter

Great news for glass artist Mary Shaffer ’65 IL: she’s one of 50 people nationwide to win a United States Artists (USA) Fellowship for 2009. The USA Fellows program awards unrestricted grants of $50,000 each to artists from all disciplines and at all ages and stages of their careers.

Mary pioneered the art of slumped glass – a process she appropriated from the auto industry and made her own since falling in love with the medium in the late ’60s. Though RISD’s glass program didn’t get off the ground until a few years after she graduated from Illustration, she picked up everything she could about glass by hanging around the hot new hot shop and learning from gurus like Dale Chihuly MFA ’68 CR and Fritz Dreisbach.

Recognized for the caliber and impact of their work, the most recent USA winners were were announced in December at an awards ceremony in Santa Monica. Alumni Tanya Aguiñiga MFA ’05 FD and Liz Collins ’91 TX/MFA ’99 (who’s also an assistant professor of Textiles at RISD) won USA Fellowships in 2006.

An interview with Allison Druin ’85 GD, director of the Human-Computer Interaction Lab at the University of Maryland, aired on NPR’s Weekend Edition last Saturday. She spoke about the recent Google-supported research HCIL did to look at the way kids search for information online. She’s also quoted in a recent New York Times article about the same study.

Last week alumni Asher Dunn ‘08 ID (second from right) and Andrew Mau ‘09 FD (a current intern, shown to the far right) hosted nine RISD students at Keeseh Studio, a woodworking collaborative in Pawtucket, RI, founded by Asher, Nick Holcomb ‘08 SC and Shane Richards ‘08 FD. The visit was part of the Wintersession Studio Crawl series, which takes students off campus to meet with alumni “artrepreneurs” in the area. Students reported learning a lot and having a fantastic time, and appreciated the sneak peek they got of the great line Asher will be showing at this year’s ICFF (May 15-18 in NYC).

The 2010 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland is currently underway. This is the third time I’ve had the honor to participate in this unique gathering of global leaders and thinkers. I am presenting in a variety of sessions here at the forum from roughly 200 offerings on the global situation:

1. Wednesday/ Arts, Culture, and the Digital Age
   Digital technology, online platforms and mobile devices expand across the world at an incredible pace. How will they impact the production and experience of arts and culture? I’ll be speaking on a panel with Paola Antonelli (MoMA), James Carpenter (RISD alum), Maurizio Seracini (UCSD).
2. Wednesday / The Art and Science of Imagination
   Developmental psychologists suggest there is a trade-off between the ability to generate ideas and the ability to apply what we know and put it to use. How do successful leaders stimulate and maintain their imaginative edge? With author Paolo Coelho and faculty from Harvard and UC Berkeley.
3. Thursday/ Rethinking Leadership Development
   “Go to the people. Learn from them. Live with them. Start with what they know. Build with what they have. The best of leaders when the task is accomplished are those of whom the people will say: ‘we have done it ourselves’.” — Lao Tzu
   What are the secrets of successful leadership development? With faculty and deans from Yale, London Business School, INSEAD, and Wharton.
4. Thursday/ Design for Change
   In today’s fast-changing and competitive environment, we need new ideas, methods and strategies to address the complexities facing us all. What can we learn from the design community about the principles of design thinking to help develop solutions to today’s complex problems? With Tim Browne (CEO of IDEO), Alice Rawsthorn (International Herald Times Tribune), Cameron Sinclair (Architecture for Humanity), and other key design leaders.
5. Friday/ IdeasLab with Harvard University
   I’ll be moderating a session with Harvard President Drew Faust and key Harvard faculty and deans on the latest creative solutions in healthcare. I’m especially excited about this one as I know artists and designers have so much to lend to the future of healthcare.

Will try to blog and tweet things that I see and hear. -JM

Photo by the United Nations Development Programme / CC BY 2.0

Please visit risdhaiti.wordpress.com for complete information on how RISD students, faculty, staff and alumni and the broader Providence community are mobilizing in support of Haitian earthquake relief efforts.

I had the opportunity to meet with one of our most distinguished alums, Mr. Peter Yang ID ‘50. Peter was an active leader in the early days of the Industrial Designers Society of America. In addition to working at GM during its heydays in the 50s, Peter designed one of the most iconic elements used in kitchens of the 60s and 70s: the Salton Food-Warming Tray.

Talking with Peter’s experiences working as a designer at GM sounded a lot like the world of AMC’s Mad Men with the proper dress of suits and a hat, and also a time when the word “design” was still stuck in a time of being synonymous with the less-attractive word of “styling.”

Listening to his times at Cranbrook (where he got his MFA) when he engaged with Eero Saarinen and Ray and Charles Eames was absolutely delightful conversation. -JM

Our brand new RISD Hong Kong Alumni Association has officially kicked off, and I was honored to be there for their launch. Thanks to Donald Choi ‘82, Frank Chow ‘92, and Rex Wong ‘03 for their leadership in this landmark venture for RISD in Asia! Also it was great to see current RISD parents come out for the gathering and festivities! -JM

PS There I met alumna and “artrepreneur” Alice Zhang who has launched a new venture in Hong Kong called Mischmasch Gallery — a new online platform where you can stay in touch with the heartbeat of emerging artists in China.

President Maeda took off today to bring the RISD IDEA of Intuition, Design, Emotion, Art all over Asia and Europe. Beginning in Hong Kong, he will speak tomorrow at a forum for youth, give a public lecture, and celebrate the launch of the RISD Hong Kong Alumni Club with parents and alumni. (Leaders of the club beginning the planning in June, above.)

Trustee Michael Spalter has arranged for a group of interested friends to meet John in Geneva, as he makes his way to the World Economic Forum in Davos.  At the WEF, a gathering of over 2,000 leaders from business, government, the arts, and nonprofits focus on everything from rebuilding Haiti to art, design, and creativity. John will present with Tim Brown, Paola Antonelli, and Cameron Sinclair on design as a method of social change, and will lead an “IdeaLab” with Harvard President Drew Faust.

The following week includes a public talk at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London (tell your friends!) and many more conversations with RISD friends. Look around you, RISD is everywhere.

More good news just out for UP, Pixar’s latest coup and one for supervising animator Scott Clark ’96 IL, too, who oversaw the efforts of the dozens of animators involved. In addition to winning a Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film of 2009, [UPdate 02.02.10…] it has been nominated for five Academy Awards – for Best Picture, Best Animated Feature, Best Music (Original Soundtrack), Best Sound Editing and Best Writing (Original Screenplay)!