Bruce Thomas, Nikolai Nikolov, Amy Forsyth, Hyun-Tae Jung, Marilyn Jones, Berrisford Boothe, Ricardo Viera, Lucy Gans, Wes Heiss, Christine Ussler, Anna Chupa, Jason Travers, Nicholas Sawicki, Anthony Viscardi

Panel Discussion and Reception: April 15 at 4:30 pm

ART was fundamental to the founders of Lehigh University.  From the institution’s beginning in 1865, drawing and painting were included among those subjects which all students were encouraged to study.  In 1927, the Department of Fine Arts was established within the College of Art and Sciences.  It consisted of a single faculty member, Professor Gareth Howland, who was also the first department chairman.  Originally housed in Coppee Hall, the department relocated in 1976 to Chandler-Ullmann Hall, where it still resides. With the addition of a pre-professional major in architecture, the department was renamed the Department of Art and Architecture in 1979.

Over the last decade, an additional emphasis on design has evolved from various initiatives within the department and the university.  As a result, in 2009 the department was renamed Art │Architecture │ Design  to reflect the nature of an additional commitment to design education and to better serve students in the College of Arts and Sciences.  In conjunction, the Wilbur Powerhouse was renovated to accommodate new facilities for the expanded department. The Art │Architecture │ Design  Faculty Exhibition of 2010 celebrates the department’s continuing tradition as well as its new vision and new voices of the department programs.  The fourteen artists in the exhibition comprise the department’s full-time faculty.  Each installation is evidence of a commitment to individual creativity, while collectively the show reflects the faculty’s work as educators.

The Lehigh University Art Galleries/Museum Operation is a visual laboratory and inspirational tool for students and community at large. The exhibition is curated, designed and installed by the LUAG curatorial team: Ricardo Viera, Curator, Mark Wonsidler, Coordinator of Exhibitions,  Jeffrey Ludwig, Preparator, and Interim Collection Management Assistant Amy Hussey.  The catalogue is a team effort from conception to final documentation. Our museum intern and graphic designer, student Nadia Fristensky, was a key player.  Photography was by internationally known local photographer and LUAG collaborator Theo Anderson.  Many thanks to our administrative staff: Denise Stangl, Operations Administrator, Patricia Kandianis, Coordinator/Editor, and the Supervisors of Volunteers:  Carolyn Abel, Mary Jo Hill, and Patricia McAndrew, as well as our students of Art 275: Susan Wigodner and Charrell Mack.  Thanks also to A│A│D  Coordinator Pam Mongi.

Finally, we acknowledge with appreciation the gracious contribution and collaboration of the faculty in being a part of our team in this endeavor.

AAD Mission Statement

Art │Architecture│Designundergraduate programs at Lehigh University prepare students for a broad range of future opportunities.  The department of Art │Architecture│Designas a pre-professional program, integrates art, architecture and design methodologies.  It weaves both traditional hands-on design strategies and digital technologies together in a curriculum that encourages personal expression and experimentation while also preparing students for client focused careers.

The primary element that carries through all of our program activities is design.  Design thinking is the essential process and language that is integral to understanding all of our individual programmatic goals and it is one of the key messages we want to communicate to our students.  Studio culture: a home for the spirit of creation, Intellectual culture: an atmosphere that encourages creative dialogue, and Material culture: the art of making are the three over-arching themes common to all our programs.  These three themes encompass what we want our students to derive from their educational experience within our departmental programs at Lehigh University.

PANEL DISCUSSION: Lehigh Art, Architecture, and Design Faculty Exhibit: Spring 2010

EXHIBITION: “Art | Architecture | Design Faculty Exhibition” : 2010

VIDEO: Ricardo Viera: “White Gloves” : 2010