Varied design-related programs explore art with a purpose, offering rich connections to design education for all ages to complement Good Design: Stories from Herman Miller, on view through April 3 at the Woodson Art Museum.
Samuels Group | Environments opens its showroom doors to demonstrate six distinct office settings at an open house, The Art of the Office, March 10, 5-7 pm, at the Samuels Group, 311 Financial Way, atop the 17th Avenue hill, south of Bridge Street. Those who visit all six office environment stations can be entered in a drawing to win a Herman Miller chair. RSVP by March 4, 715-841-1905, for this free event.
Architecture and design professionals are invited to an Architecture and Design Event, March 24, 4-7 pm, to view Good Design and related exhibitions and interact with UW-Madison furniture design students whose pieces are featured in It’s Herman Miller Time. Architects and designers from throughout Wisconsin will have the opportunity to attend a program by Carole Syse of Herman Miller, Inc., and receive continuing education credit to help meet professional requirements.
Night Out @ the Woodson, when the Museum stays open until 7:30 pm on the first Thursday of each month, features two different sculptors, drop-in art making for all ages, and gallery viewing. Art History 101 After Dark, March 3, 5:30-6:30 pm, focuses on American sculptor, designer, architect, and craftsman Isamu Noguchi, known for his Akari lamp and free-form coffee table. In Hands-on Art: Organic Shapes, 5:30-7:30 pm, participants design and create a biomorphic sculpture. Art History 101 After Dark, April 7, 5:30-6:30 p.m., examines sculptor Deborah Butterfield and her works of iron, bronze, and scrapyard metal. Craft wire and stick horses in Hands-on Art: Stick Sculpture, April 7, 5:30-7:30 p.m. Each Art History 101 program is repeated during the noon hour on the third Wednesday of each month.
Adults block print a table runner and four linen napkins during Studio Art: Block Print Fabric, March 12, 9 a.m.-Noon. Call 715-845-7010 to register; $10 for members; $15 for non-members.
For children, the array of programs is equally expansive. Youngsters design a graphic t-shirt and mouse pad in Little Masters: Play with Pattern (5-7 years), Feb. 22, 4:30-6 p.m., and Young Artists: Go Graphic! (8-12 years), Feb. 24, 4:30-6 p.m.; $5 fee. In March, children construct Teddy bear-sized chairs in monthly programs Little Masters: Mini-Me Chair (5-7 years) and Young Artists: Emerging Designers (8-12 years), March 22, 4:30-5:30 p.m. and 5:30-7 p.m., respectively. Call 715-845-7010 to register.
Area teens gather for an evening of furniture design fun creating cardboard chairs and meeting UW-Madison students in residence. TLC3 = Teens Love Customized Cardboard Chairs also features food and music, March 25, 7-9 p.m., at the Museum. Area high school students are invited to attend a Teen Art Council meeting to plan fun events for teens, March 20, 3:30-5 p.m., at the Museum.
Families and all ages experiment with art materials in Art Park Open Studio, March 5 and April 2, 1-3 p.m., during this free, drop-in program held the first Saturday afternoon each month.
Other monthly programs for little ones include Art Babies (birth-23 months) Feb. 25 and March 25, 10:30-11:30 a.m.; Art Time for Tots (2-4 years) Feb. 24 and March 24, 9:30-10:30 a.m. Call 715-845-7010 to register. Toddler Tuesday, a monthly drop-in program for 2-4-year-olds and accompanying adults, occurs next on March 15, 10:30 a.m.-Noon.
Good Design: Stories from Herman Miller was organized by the Muskegon Museum of Art, Michigan, in collaboration with The Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan, through the support of Herman Miller, Inc. Good Design is curated by John Berry, Holland; coordinated by Timothy Chester, Grand Rapids; designed by Judy Hillman and Barb Loveland, Hillman Associates, Saugatuck; and fabricated by Vincent Faust, Kalamazoo.
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