The William O. Steinmetz ’50 Designer-in-Residence program is MICA’s most prominent annual design event, named after MICA alumnus, faculty member and trustee William Steinmetz (1927–2016). This year, MICA is honored to bring together three generations of cultural activists, including two MICA alumnae, to discuss the crucial issue of racial justice in art and design and to celebrate the achievements of Black creative professionals.
Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is honored to bring together three generations of cultural activists—including two MICA alumnae—to discuss the crucial issue of racial justice in art and design, and to celebrate the achievements of Black creative professionals in an event supported by the William O. Steinmetz ’50 Designer-in-Residence program. In light of racial injustice felt across the country, topics this year will focus on graphic design history and why Black representation matters.
This year the event is split over two days, and features four Steinmetz Designers-in-Residence, including Cheryl D. Miller ’74 (Graphic Design and Illustration BFA), Tasheka Arceneaux-Sutton, Maurice Cherry and Deyane Moses ’19, ’21 (Photography BFA, Curatorial Practice MFA).
On April 6, Miller will discuss the legacy and future of Black graphic design in conversation with Cherry and Moses. On April 15, a second lecture will occur with Miller and Arceneaux-Sutton, who will present an intimate look at the Black woman in design’s hidden history.
“The needle can’t be moved without history and scholarship. We can’t decolonize design education without something to decolonize with. The challenge with Black design history online is that it has missing pieces; it’s missing important voices,” Miller said. “Many of our stories are sealed away in card catalogs, our memory banks and our oral traditions. So many weren’t digitized and didn’t make the leap across the technological divide.”
Miller, Cherry, Moses and Arcenaux-Sutton are all working to bring this history to the surface.
“MICA is proud to present the voices and ideas of these four outstanding creative professionals. Through their work as activists, curators, artists and scholars, each has amplified the contributions of Black designers and artists to the field,” MICA’s inaugural Betty Cooke and William O. Steinmetz Design Chair Ellen Lupton said.
About the William O. Steinmetz ’50 Designers-in-Residence program:
Named after the late MICA alumnus, faculty member and longtime trustee William Steinmetz (1927 – 2016), the Wm. O. Steinmetz ’50 Designer-in-Residence program was established in 2009 to enhance MICA’s design culture by bringing outstanding practitioners to campus to share their valuable experiences and perspectives with students, faculty and the public. The residency was created thanks to an endowment fund established by Steinmetz’s spouse, Betty Cooke '46 (Art Education), as well as gifts from others in honor of him.
Past Steinmetz Residency recipients include Tobias Frere-Jones, Lisa Strausfeld, Zachary Liberman, Jon Rubin, Dawn Weleski, Richard Niessen, Amy Franceschini, Karin Fong, Chip Kidd, Teddy Cruz, Eddie Opara, Topher Delaney and Cameron Sinclair.\