Pratt Show Success: Beyond the Tap

It’s not every day that we see students that are affecting real, direct change and assistance to those in need with their design. Carolyn Schaeberle (M.I.D. ’09), traveled to Honduras for her graduate thesis, “Beyond The Tap,” and has developed several innovative, yet simple, ways for improving water transport and maintenance in developing countries, for whom availability of water could be a matter of life and death. Carolyn’s globally-conscious vision with a perspective rooted in local Honduran culture has made this project a success bigger than your average eco-trendy products, and we think she’s a superhero!

Check out Carolyn and the sustainable happenings at Pratt at the (beautifully-designed) Center for Sustainable Design Studies (CSDS) website!

Want to see more Graduate Industrial Design and other sustainability projects?

Come to THE PRATT SHOW - May 12-15, 2009

Public Show Hours:

Tuesday, May 12 / 9 AM-9 PM

Wednesday, May 13 / 9 AM-9 PM

Thursday, May 14 / 9 AM-1 PM

Friday, May 15 / 9 AM-1 PM

The Manhattan Center / 31 W 34th St. (@ 8th Ave.), New York, NY

Want a ticket to the VIP Industry Reception? Visit www.pratt.edu/show for more info!

Posted by Annie Beth Ericsson

Pratt Show Success: Senior Jewelry

The Peer Counselors got a sneak peek at the work of Pratt’s Jewelry majors at their Senior Thesis Show, held March 26th – April 8th in the Design Center Gallery on campus. One of the most striking trends among the best of the entries was the use of elements from nature. In the midst of this Brooklyn environment, it was refreshing to see so many designers draw from details of living things.

The senior to best utilize elements of the natural world was Carrie Bilbo, in her series “The Attachment of Fear.” Headdresses and necklaces from the branch of a tree or the pattern of a cicada wing created stunning negative shapes across the face and figure. The insects and trees were meant to seemingly wrap themselves around the human body - one that instinctively is afraid of them. We, however, found the jewelry much too beautiful to fear.

Another artist who combined precious metals with living subjects was Julia Seltzer. She not only drew inspiration from plants, but used live samples growing within her designs. These tiny miniatures proved that less is more - the temporary materials make a unique visual statement, while still remaining the most delicately wearable.

Rachel Schuster’s “Trans-Plant” stood out in concept as well as craft. Schuster illustrated themes from nature in a more social context, such as genetically modified foods, DNA, and cloning. Pea pods, and other everyday objects, were repeated and transformed into necklaces and other jewelry. We especially loved that red velvet was used to line the inside of a bloody tomato, a box resembling a quartered pig, and a "cash cow" money clip. Not only did we want to wear Schuster's designs, but we wanted to talk about them.

Missed the show and want to see the jewelry in person?

Come to THE PRATT SHOW - May 12-15, 2009

Public Show Hours:

Tuesday, May 12 / 9 AM-9 PM

Wednesday, May 13 / 9 AM-9 PM

Thursday, May 14 / 9 AM-1 PM

Friday, May 15 / 9 AM-1 PM

The Manhattan Center / 31 W 34th St. (@ 8th Ave.), New York, NY

Want a ticket to the VIP Industry Reception? Visit www.pratt.edu/show for more info!

Review by Annie Beth Ericsson

Jacob Gossett, EastOne Gallery

Review by Cat Metayer

Jacob Gossett is in his junior year as a painting major. He combines his interests of film and painting in his recent show at East One Gallery in East Hall. The show features immense canvases with differing degrees of paint application. Like a patchwork design, the geometric shapes feature painted segments; some striped, some with paint applied solidly as if with a butter knife, some where the bristles of the paintbrush have left their trail with purpose, some where the brush has barely touched the white background, and some with Tetris shapes, fitting into the layered geometry . The resulting manifestation is a dimensional, static, and wholly engulfing wall of shapes and colors. The bright colors and vast array of painting styles and techniques make practically each square inch different from its neighbors. Each painting takes close examination to appreciate every painstaking tier; the different patches of color and direction have differing levels of paint, the layers apparent at each segment edge where they meet, and one is generally significantly taller than the other, creating a tangible dimension. Gossett says of his own work:

“…when examined at a close distance the hand in the painting shows itself. This serves as a metaphor for the complex relationship between technology and man, the synthetic and the organic. The paintings in their totality allude to vast fields of digital noise, a mess that surrounds us that is constantly being tweaked in search of perfection.”

The paintings themselves are severely reminiscent of the ‘digital influence.’ The show has been described by viewers as similar to the fractured and brightly colored stalled images of a scrambled digital cable feed, or the television test pattern bars combined with the snowy static. Gossett’s work and information about his upcoming shows can be seen at www.jacobgossett.com.

This exhibition is part of the Student Exhibition Spaces Program coordinated by the Center for Career and Professional Development at Pratt Institute.  All current students can submit work for inclusion in future exhibitions by emailing ccpdprograms@gmail.com for more information.