Quad: LSU College of Art & Design Magazine | Summer 2018 by LSUA+D

2018 Summer

Contents F E AT U R E :

Preservation A R T CO N S E RVAT I O N F R O M I TA LY TO LO U I S I A N A

F E AT U R E :

Innovation

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A L U M N I H E L P I N G TO T R A N S FO R M LSUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S CAMPUS

Designing for the Screen I N T E R I O R D E S I G N E R S O N H G T V ’ S S H OW H O M E TOW N

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Technology Over Time A LO O K AT T H E C O L L EG E O F A R T & D E S I G N ’ S

Letter from the Dean O L D WO R L D S A N D N E W

T EC H N O LO G I C A L A DVA N C E S OV E R 3 0 Y E A R S

Did You Know? WHAT HAPPEN S WH EN SO M EO N E PA S S E S AWAY W I T H N O O N E TO C L A I M T H E M , WITH KRISTINE THOMPSON

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I Made That

C R E AT I N G C O C H I N O W I T H E L I S EO C A S I A N O

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Class Notes A L U M N I N E WS A N D U P DAT E S

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Four Minutes on . ..

Equipped T H E M AT E R I A L S O F J O L I N DA W E B B

A R C H I T EC T U R A L P R E S E RVAT I O N I N W E T L A N D S , W I T H L U D OV I C O G E Y M O N AT

Doctor of Design: Meet Our First Class T H E F I R S T S L AT E O F C U LT U R A L P R E S E RVAT I O N

EDITORIAL

ART DIRECTION—GDSO

EDITOR/WRITER Elizabeth Mattey, Communications Coordinator

FAC U LT Y A DV I S O R Courtney Barr, Associate Professor

CONTRIBUTORS Eliseo Casiano, MFA 2018 Ludovico Geymonat, Assistant Professor Kristine Thompson, Assistant Professor Jolinda Webb, BFA Candidate

ART DIRECTOR Luisa Restrepo Pérez, Instructor D E S I G N & I L L U S T R AT I O N Sarah Alexander, BFA Candidate Dakota Baños, BFA Candidate Rachel Hurt, BFA Candidate

COVER DESIG N Rachel Hurt, BFA Candidate LSU PHOTOG RAPHERS Christopher Burns, MFA candidate Johanna Warwick, Assistant Professor Jolinda Webb, BFA Candidate

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SCHOLARS

COPY EDITOR Ellen Mathis, Director of Development 1

“PITY THIS BUSY MONSTER, MANUNKIND” Pity this busy monster, manunkind, not. Progress is a comfortable disease: your victim (death and life safely beyond) plays with the bigness of his littleness --- electrons deify one razorblade into a mountainrange; lenses extend unwish through curving wherewhen till unwish returns on its unself. A world of made

LETTER FROM THE

DEAN

is not a world of born --- pity poor flesh and trees, poor stars and stones, but never this fine specimen of hypermagical ultraomnipotence. We doctors know a hopeless case if --- listen: there’s a hell of a good universe next door; let’s go - e.e. cummings

Cummings’ poem and the prophetic novels like Huxley’s Brave New World and Orwell’s 1984 that followed predict a world where, in the name of progress, science and technology deprive humankind of its humanity. This “world of made” is in some ways our reality today, but is it dystopia – yet? And how do we prevent it from becoming one? And even more, how do we use the tools of progress to keep humanity and the “world of born,” to make Eutopia – an ideal place. It is this concern that has, and will continue, to form the ethos of the College of Art & Design. Creativity and innovation in the service of preservation and progress! This is the ethos that pervades our research, our creative work, our scholarship, as well as our curricula and our methods of teaching and learning. This is the ethos that guides our relationship with the world around us. This issue of the Quad gives a glimpse of the different ways our students, faculty, and alumni are working to fulfill their Eutopian mission: • Examining the culture of creating and the artistic community’s role in society • Preserving treasured historic art and architecture for the coming generations • Designing with the aim of planning for the future Let’s go!

DEAN ALKIS TSOLAKIS

Did You KNOW? WITH KRISTINE THOMPSON

I became interested in this question after reading sociologist Eric Klinenberg’s book Going Solo, which examines the sharp increase in the number of people living alone in the U.S. and the cultural impacts of this trend. One of the effects that he explores is people living alone at the ends of their lives. This led me to look into what happens in various cities when individuals pass away with no family or loved ones to claim them. While scholars such as Klinenberg are examining the sociological and economic underpinnings of these issues of loss and living alone, it is a topic that I’m interested in exploring through photography and video. I began my research in Los Angeles where the scale of the issue is greatest; nearly 3,000 people there die each year and are “unclaimed.” When this happens, the city intervenes. City workers search through belongings with the hope of finding any link or contact information for those close to the deceased. If they are unsuccessful, the individuals’ belongings are auctioned off and they are cremated. Remains are held for three years in case someone comes forward. Those who are still unclaimed after three years are interred together in a mass burial that takes place every December at the LA County Cemetery. The only visible marker from each of these burials is a 2x4” metal plate placed in the ground indicating the year. As one walks through this portion of the cemetery, there is no indication of the number of people buried annually, nor of any specific identities.

Kristine Thompson is an assistant professor of photography. She holds the Dixon Smith Professorship for creative research. Her work considers how contemporary photographic imagery circulates and addresses representations of death, memorial practices, and mourning.

The solitary way in which many of these individuals lived the ends of their lives follows them in the virtual anonymity of their subsequent burials. I have started to photograph inside the auction warehouses, in the cremation storage facility, and on the cemetery grounds with the hope of drawing attention to the scale of this issue and to the individuals who might otherwise be forgotten. The ripple effect that these deaths have on others, namely the city employees who administratively and physically handle what is left behind, is also of interest to me. In particular, I’m drawn to Albert Gaskin, LA County Cemetery’s caretaker. For over thirty years, he has been the primary person to handle all of the bodies that pass through the cemetery. The dedication that Albert has for his job, and the reverence he has for the individuals he handles, is remarkable. This research that started in California continues to expand. I am looking into how this issue is handled in other geographic locations and am beginning to explore other forms of labor that are linked to death and mourning.

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What happens when someone passes away with no one to claim them? And what does it have to do with art?

Four Minutes on... PR E S E RVI N G VE N I C E

W I T H L U D O V I C O G E Y M O N AT

S A BARGE WAS CARRYING ME ALONG A WATERWAY IN THE BARATARIA SWAMPS on a late winter morning this past January, the way the water mirrored the sky reminded me of other wetlands, far from Louisiana. Lake Cataouatche and Lake Salvador made me think of the Venetian lagoon, not so much around the city of Venice, but out east, towards Mazzorbo and Torcello. It was not just the natural landscape in the winter light and how one goes through it on a slow-moving barge – like on the public vaporetti that ferry around the few inhabitants still left living in the outskirts of the Venetian lagoon – but the way a landscape dominated by water affects building. People who settle wetlands connected by waterways use space differently from those who live in lands connected by roads.

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The upper Adriatic, the largely enclosed sea that borders the Venetian lagoon, is much smaller and calmer than the Gulf of Mexico, at least in terms of waves and weather. And yet some of the issues involved in the maintenance of buildings, such as those concerning the foundations on embankments and sandy grounds, and the erosion that rising damp and salt crystallization cause on stones and bricks, are similar in all wetlands.

The city of Venice began with a handful of constructions, mostly made of timber, built at various sites in the lagoon sometime in the 6th century. In 811, this confederation of small settlements connected by waterways transferred the ducal seat, the center of government, from Malamocco to the Rialto: from a site on the sandbar along the coast to the shallow waters, islets, dunes and sandbars, barely above sea level and crossed by winding canals, located at the center of the lagoon. In 828, two Venetian merchants stole the body of the Evangelist Saint Mark from Alexandria, Egypt, and brought it to the Rialto. A new church was built as a shrine to the Evangelist next to the Doge’s Palace. Soon after, Venice started to develop as a major trading and pilgrimage center. In the following centuries, the city boomed with the construction of countless palaces, churches, squares and bridges, the digging of canals and the reinforcement of the banks along them, the implementation of a complex system of tanks and wells for the storage of drinkable water; in short, the transformation of a natural swamp into an urban landscape. The extraordinary city that still mesmerizes visitors today was mostly built between the 11th and the 16th centuries. Architectural decoration reflects all of the many changing styles, from Romanesque arches and rich Gothic tracery on windows and portals to elegant Renaissance and Baroque facades. Architects, sculptors, and craftsmen display boundless

Ludovico Geymonat is an assistant professor of art history in the LSU School of Art. His research includes a focus on medieval sculpture, with an emphasis on early Gothic sculpture in San Marco, Venice.

inventiveness in the design and decoration of buildings of all kinds, from private palaces to factories, from commercial warehouses to markets, from churches to apartment buildings. Yet, the very conditions of the site, the sandy ground along the canals, meant that buildings needed to remain light, especially vaults and roofing, capable of withstanding the shifting and settling of walls built on foundations that were never too deep. The preservation of Veniceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s treasures, first among them its buildings and urban landscape, has been a concern of its inhabitants for quite some time. Foreign artists and writers have played an important role in both the appreciation of the landscape and the efforts to preserve the city, as the paintings and watercolors by William Turner and John Ruskin in the 1830s and 40s show so well. According to Ruskin, decay and modernization were putting Venice in danger, restoration was a form of destruction, while only preservation and conservation could offset the relentless passing of time.

Nor th west porch of St. Ma rks, Ve n i c e, b y J o h n R u s k i n

Modern industrial pollution has wreaked havoc on the architectural decoration of Venice. Alarms raised by local authorities as much as visitors were fundamental in pushing for the technological and financial efforts needed for the safekeeping of the sculptures that adorn the portals of the Basilica of San Marco and the capitals of the Dogeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Palace. The issue, however, goes beyond the major monuments of Venice. Hundreds of buildings in all corners of the city and in smaller towns and villages all over the lagoon need to be monitored for conservation. Venetian building techniques and architectural decoration were employed on a large scale not just in the city but by communities spread over a vast region. Limiting preservation to the major sites means obliterating for future generations a historical landscape whose range and richness can be fully appreciated only in its entirety.

One can only hope that investment and innovation will keep up with the relentless and destructive work that nature, time and humidity perform everywhere, especially in the wetlands.

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Architectural preservation involves a variety of different fields, from engineering to architectural history, from chemistry to geology, from history of technology to history of art. Interdisciplinary efforts are always complicated. A solid tradition of knowledge about ancient building techniques and the development of new technologies for the preservation of architecture and sculptural decoration in wetlands characterize a large team of experts operating in Venice. Their efforts to spread specialized knowledge and preserve those treasures is impressive, but the task is enormous. L o g g i a o f T h e D u c a l P a l a c e, Ve n i c e, b y J o h n R u s k i n

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IS THERE A DOCTOR OF DESIGN IN THE HOUSE?

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The LSU College of Art & Design’s Doctor of Design in Cultural Preservation highlights the many ways in which the study, preservation, and enhancement of cultural initiatives and resources benefit the economy of communities and the quality of life for their residents. The multidisciplinary degree was created to meet increasing demands for advanced training and experimentation in the management and preservation of cultural heritage.

Cultural resources are one of the state’s—and the nation’s—top engines of economic development. LSU’s Doctor of Design in Cultural Preservation serves a market of interdisciplinary professionals by building on the strengths of faculty across the university, integrating expertise to address contemporary issues in four areas of specialization. The 60-credit-hour program encompasses six semesters of study: 45 hours of course offerings specific to the curriculum and its advanced nature, mostly devoted to individual, supervised research, requiring students to work one-on-one with faculty with the remainder of the credits capitalizing on interdisciplinary expertise in other disciplines at LSU.

One of the few public university programs of its kind in the country. As an advanced academic degree, the DDes program will generate graduates prepared to fill leadership positions in numerous professional and academic fields related to the cultural economy and thereby make significant contributions to the advancement of cultural preservation in Louisiana and throughout the country.

A R E A S O F S P E C I A L I Z AT I O N HISTORY & THEORY OF MATERIAL CULTURE The History & Theory of Material Culture specialization includes studies in the production and history of art, architecture, cultural landscapes, interiors, and representation, with explorations through different lenses of environmental consideration, geographical location, national/international movement, and corresponding examples from related cultures.

ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY The Environmental Policy specialization includes investigations of policy and technical expertise arising from environmental and social sciences, law, and public policy to build on candidate’s previous academic training and professional experience in the design and planning disciplines (architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, regional planning).

FABRICATIVE CULTURES: MATERIAL S & TECHNOLOGY

MUSEUM STUDIES The Museum Studies specialization combines academic study of art history with training in administration, conservation, and interpretation skills through a blend of managerial, presentation, and technical skills.

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The Fabricative Cultures: Materials & Technology specialization covers the inquiry and exploration through digital design as a research tool contributing to the analysis, understanding, and improvement of the built environment at new levels of scale and complexity, culminating in an experimental design project that develops new methods, material systems, or technologies in digital design and fabrication through production of a large-scale artifact and a critical thesis.

Meet Our First Class F E AT U R E D S T U D E N T

C O U R T N E Y T AY L O R

Courtney Taylor has a vision that museums can be agents of change. Gone is the antiquated notion of museums that are silent tombs of ancient art and artifacts that no one can touch, places to observe art and history without connection to the surrounding community. Instead, Courtney sees museums as social institutions with the ability to create social change – and the curator as the instigator. Over the last few decades museums have progressed to become social institutions, she says, as the art field is developing into a social practice: more than ever before, artists are engaging other artists to spark and create societal change. “Museums have evolved,” Courtney says. “They are no longer simply object repositories; now they are sites that instigate conversation.” As the curator of the LSU Museum of Art, which holds one of the largest university-held art collections in the south, Courtney is responsible for developing and overseeing all exhibitions. In less than two years she has overseen over a dozen new exhibitions, bringing in a wide variety of art forms to the museum in downtown Baton Rouge.

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AREA:

History and Theory of Material Culture / Fabricative Cultures: Materials and Technology

PROJECT FOCUS: Using museum exhibition design as a social practice in itself

B A C KG R O U N D : Courtney is the curator for the LSU Museum of Art, with curatorial experience in numerous museum settings

I care about creating experiences that inspire people to step out of everyday life.

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A Creative Vision Courtney’s approach to curating has evolved throughout her experiences in different museum settings. She has come to view her curatorial role as possessing a social responsibility to the community surrounding the museum. Thus far, her curatorial practice has included ample interdisciplinary education and community engagement. Previously, she managed a museum’s education department, which focused on facilitating traditional art learning as well as “maker-movement”/STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) activities. There she gained insight into how museum activities could engage visitors through multiple disciplines. Through these different interpretive experiences, she became increasingly interested the design of interdisciplinary, participatory engagement within art exhibitions and how curators design and produce these experiences. “I’m interested in art exhibitions’ role in civic and community engagement, how museums are social institutions: how their collections, exhibitions, and programs can contribute to social change,” she says.

Since Courtney became the curator, the LSU Museum of Art has featured numerous innovative exhibitions. For example, the Broken Time sculpture exhibition by Martin Payton featured interactive components: a “sculpt in metal” space in which museum visitors could create their own mini sculptures out of magnets and metal hardware, and a “touch and feel” wall in which visitors were invited to touch different materials used by the Louisiana sculptor. These exhibition designs engage museum-goers of all ages and interest levels, physically bringing them into the artistic process. These innovative exhibitions are all part of Courtney’s creative vision: as she leads the design process for each installation, she seeks to transform the museum space with each new show. Courtney is ever-mindful in her artistic selections, driven to bring new art forms to the Baton Rouge community and provide interactive opportunities whenever possible. And Courtney is involved in nearly every aspect of the museum, from writing text for gallery guides, overseeing the design of programs for exhibitions, and working with museum partners. She aims to engage the public and inspire reflection, she says. “I won’t tell them what to think. I want to inspire people to contemplate and make their own meaning.” QUA D • SUM M ER 2018

Courtney has always had an interest in visual culture and art, and has been building her own path to where she is today. She studied history and art history for her undergraduate degree, then completed a master’s program in museum studies. She worked for various art galleries in her home state of Arkansas, contributed to curatorial teams at Gilcrease Museum and Philbrook Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and then went to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Jacksonville, Florida. Next she was curator of the Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas, where she helped organize 12 exhibitions per year. She became curator of the LSU Museum of Art in 2016.

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Why the Doctor of Design Program? Courtney liked that her Doctor of Design thesis can be a project with real-life applications rather than a standard academic paper. For her thesis she intends to curate an exhibition that will illustrate her study of cultural preservation. She will conduct case studies to research how to develop programs and exhibitions that take community input into consideration, rather than simply advancing one curatorial voice. Through community engagement, she aims to study culture in the context of social institutions. Her work will culminate in an interactive, interdisciplinary art exhibition. Exhibition design is a social practice in itself, she hopes to illustrate through her study, and museums are sites of meaning-making. “Cultural preservation doesn’t have to be historic, necessarily. If we focus on preserving our current culture, not only is it relevant to public interests, it also builds a better society.”

academic study will positively impact my curatorial practice at the LSU Museum of Art, and allow me to grow professionally.” She recognizes that some may see her approach – and her curatorial selections – as controversial, but that’s all part of the conversation that she hopes to inspire. If the exhibitions she curates continue to make us think, then she has done her job. To see upcoming exhibitions at the LSU Museum of Art, visit www.lsumoa.org.

Courtney expects that her ongoing coursework at LSU will enrich and benefit her work at the museum. “I think the theoretical side of my

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“Broken Time” by Martin Payton. LSU Museum of Art.

Meet Our First Class F E AT U R E D S T U D E N T

PETROUCHKA MOISE

Petrouchka Moise studies the identity of the Haitian artist. “Haiti has always been presented as an island of ‘self-taught’ artists; however, the lens used to see and define ‘the Haitian Artist’ has never been in focus,” she explains. “I myself am a self-taught artist and consider myself an outsider to the artistic establishment,” Petrouchka says. “I struggled with my identity of being a creative, and there existed no platform where I could analyze how my Haitian background influenced my artistic growth. Through my work in Haiti and the States, I have met other Haitian creatives that are working through similar shared spiritual and emotional upheaval as they try to find cultural validation within the diaspora.” With a successful long-standing career in government and education, she uses her expertise in urban planning, project management, and disaster recovery to learn how the arts mend the effects of loss and affirm the need for hope in the rebuilding process of a community.

AREA: History and Theory of Material Culture / Museum Studies

PROJECT FOCUS: The role of the artist in Haitian society, culture, and identity

B A C KG R O U N D : Petrouchka is an artist and has managed Louisiana state government disaster services

Visual arts are the first step in how a community tries to remember the impact of a disaster, and all forms of art are utilized in the collective healing of trauma. “I witnessed this firsthand in my work with the Louisiana Office of Mental Health and the Governor’s Office of Community Programs during the recovery and the rebuilding of Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina,” she says. “Unfortunately I also witnessed, during the aftermath of the 2010 Haitian earthquake, that the contribution of the Haitian art community was appreciated, but not seen as a form of healing or revitalization to the nation as a whole, unless through the means of tourism.”

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From Louisiana to Haiti

DOCTOR OF DESIGN: PETROUCHKA MOISE

Unlike Louisiana, the populace in Haiti still does not see the arts as a vital part of reframing the infrastructure. Since the earthquake, Petrouchka has worked with several diaspora-based organizations to affect change and maintain a collective dialogue. As a member of the Louisiana-Haiti Task Force and Cultural Crossroads, Inc., she questions how to use the arts as a means of sustainability. “Haitian visual heritage is now reduced to a commodity for tourist attractions,” she says. “For the past 75 years, the U.S. and European tourist markets have influenced the labeling and identity of Haitian artists and their work.”

The Haitian Artist “As I research the condition of the Haitian artist in the state of ‘otherness,’ I hope to illustrate how Haitian creatives are people whose vocation of dissent enables us to glimpse some possibility in ourselves and in others,” she says. Petrouchka decided to pursue this topic of study after she travelled to Haiti to celebrate Carnival (“Kanaval” in Haitian Creole/Kreyol) last year. During her stay, she began networking with local artists and community leaders to see how the artistic community in Haiti is sustained, and how artists are using social media to communicate with the global market.

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“Karbon Print” by Petrouchka Moise. Jacquard French Dye on Habotai Silk.

While there, she visited a number of arts and education organizations, and learned that the Haitian government and public do not generally support the studies of humanities or the arts. “I realized that my ancestral home is made up of disenfranchised artists who are isolated once they identify themselves as creatives,” Petrouchka says. Due to cultural norms and the education system structure in Haiti, there is no infrastructure to build awareness or develop an appreciation of the arts. “To effectively address the need for change, I needed to understand who we were, how we chose to illustrate ourselves, and how did our cultural identity become fragmented,” she says. “I wanted to analyze how my Haitian background and living in the diaspora community influenced me and other Haitian creatives. Could there be a collective definition that we could all subscribe to in order to change the stigma and bridge the disconnect?”

DOCTOR OF DESIGN: PETROUCHKA MOISE

The LAKAY Project In the Haitian Kreyol language, “lakay” means home. To many from Haiti and Louisiana, the sense of home is built on the familiarity of a community in which you are known and recognized. Through exile, migration, or disaster, many have had their definition of home challenged. Petrouchka plans to create the LAKAY Project: LAKAY is an acronym for “L’ Étude d’Art, Kreyol, Ayisen, Ye ak Jodi” (the Study of Haitian Kreyol Art from Yesterday and Today). LAKAY is designed to bridge the identity of Haitian art and culture within Haiti and the diaspora with the use of collaboration, education, and technology. The definition and identity of the Haitian creative and their work is a complex and robust evolution that is ever changing and adapting to its environment within Haiti, the Caribbean, and throughout the global diaspora.

For the development of the future Haitian community and its creatives, the LAKAY Project will develop a platform and online community with artists, cultural centers, schools of learning, and other stakeholders to develop an artistic ecosystem for the Haitian and Caribbean diaspora community to contribute to the digital landscape. “Through the Doctor of Design program I hope to connect with the cultural, academic and artistic organizations, and institutions that focus on the Haitian / Caribbean identity to develop the LAKAY Project,” she says. The ultimate goal: to give Haitian artists a home.

“Ezuli – Louizian” by Petrouchka Moise. Jacquard French Dye on Habotai Silk.

Turner Family Support s the Doctor of Design Program Suzanne Turner, professor emerita of RRSLA, together with her family, gave a generous gift to provide robust start-up support for the Doctor of Design in Cultural Preservation Program, funding graduate assistantships and operational support. Thanks to the Turner family’s support, the LSU College of Art & Design offers Doctor of Design students a vibrant, well-rounded experience with a variety of academic and research opportunities. This donation will also establish an endowment that supports the program in perpetuity.

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My vision is to design a digital environment to build awareness of the artistic contributions made by people of Haitian descent.

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PRESERVING A RT H I STO RY

Elise Grenier, Art Conservator

he Italian word for foreigners is “stranieri.” Spoken aloud, you hear the echo of the word “stranger” – to Italians, that which is foreign is strange. But after years immersed in the rich Italian culture, Elise Grenier (MFA ’87) is no longer a stranger in their midst. Her mouth forms the shapes of the melodic romance language, her hands flutter to punctuate her points, as the Italians do. She has been an art preservationist in Florence, Italy – a city steeped with art and history, whose people honor the past with reverence.

And she is no stranger here either, having returned to Louisiana, the state of her birth, after years living and working in Italy. She brings with her the many years spent toiling over centuries-old frescoes in Italian villas, studying the fading brushstrokes and filling the tiny cracks that cut through the paint that was first applied hundreds of years ago. No – Elise is no stranger to these disparate places, and she is no stranger to this art: the art of conservation. “There is a lot of mystery around art restoration,” Elise laughs when asked what she does, exactly. “My goal is to demystify the process of restoration.” Elise, founder of Grenier Conservation, has spent three decades as a preservationist of historic art – both in Florence, and her home state of Louisiana. In vastly different locales, she has restored public art with tremendous historical significance, paintings that provide glimpses into the past.

Elise’s philosophy of preservation has come from years of experience working in Italy. Over the years she has come to realize that often the proper course of conservation of a work of art is to monitor the deterioration of the piece, but not actually perform action. Higher quality artwork often doesn’t require intervention, she asserts; it’s the natural “wear and tear” of the aging process that lends history to the piece. The question she always asks herself when approaching a new preservation project is: “Does it really need restoration?”

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She is careful when she uses the word “restoration,” which might imply the conservator is retouching the artwork. The goal of restoration is not to retouch, she explains. To properly conserve art, she works to preserve the original artist’s work without changing its nature. “If I can get away without doing any retouching, I have won,” she says.

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Sometimes the answer is no, despite the protests of those who would prefer that the artwork be cleaned and repainted to appear brighter, flashier, more obviously changed.

I ask myself, ‘Is this art being restored for the right reasons?’ The preservation process typically begins with physical assessment of the piece and its restoration needs, often including chemical analysis of the materials. Elise thoroughly researches the history, from the original artist to the (often many) restorers that added to the piece over the years. She then gives her “diagnosis” of what the art needs, providing a full conditions report and making recommendations for the best methods of conservation for the art in question. If she does deem physical restorations necessary, Elise follows a careful ethical code to ensure that she maintains the integrity of the work. Her criteria for restoration must pass these basic principles: •

The materials she uses must be reversible for future conservators, as the practice of preservation evolves in the years to come.

•

Her work on the piece has to be recognizable as a conservator’s intervention to show that it is separate from the original artist.

•

She never retouches anything that is not actually missing from the piece.

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It is the responsibility of a conservator to preserve art in a reversible way, she explains, so that as preservation methodologies advance, they can always be improved upon. Elise is a member of ArtWatch International, an organization that monitors the preservation processes of public art; its goal is to monitor and campaign for better practices in the conservation of art works.

Art conservation is a relatively new science, Elise says. She believes that the 1966 flood of Florence was a catalyst for the modern practice of preservation, which rose out of necessity when the city flooded, and much of the historic art along with it. Elise compares the flood to the effects of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans – so much water sat in the city after the deluge that many buildings suffered from damage, and art historians scrambled to save priceless art and artifacts from ruin. “The flood triggered the practice in the sense that there was a critical need for practical solutions to preserve the important art in Florence,” Elise describes. Elise at New Orleans Lakefront Airport, Louisiana

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It was unbelievable to work closely with the art by the Italian Renaissance masters, she says. “Works that aren’t meant to be seen up close, such as the cupola of the Duomo. Up there on the scaffolding you can see incredible detail that you can’t see from the ground: every little eyelash, every beard hair, perfectly indelible.” Growing up, Elise was always interested in art, her love of drawing and painting fostered by her father (Charles Grenier, professor emeritus in LSU School of Social Work), and she went to LSU for her B.A. in fine arts and art history with a minor in Italian. She comes from an “LSU family,” she explains, having grown up in Baton Rouge and often visited the campus where her father worked. On a trip to Europe for her father’s work – the family accompanied him to international conferences – Elise witnessed a man working on a restoration project in the San Marco Basilica in Venice, and she was

utterly fascinated. (She later realized that it was likely conservator Dino Dini, whose work she would later come to know well.) Elise was hooked. After graduating with her M.F.A. in art history from LSU she moved to Florence for advanced study of fine art restoration and conservation, earning degrees from the L’Universita Internazionale dell’Arte e Restauro and the Associazione Intercommunale Fiorentina. There she learned the methodologies of preservation. Over the years she worked on dozens of projects including the Church of Santa Croce, the Bargello Museum, and the Palazzo Pitti. “I’m very proud that I’m Florence-trained,” she says, citing the Italian city as the source of conservation best practices. Now Elise has brought her years of experience restoring the artwork of the Italian masters – alongside the Italian master preservationists – back to Louisiana. Her preservation process for Renaissance frescoes is exactly the same as when approaching Art Deco murals in the United States. Bringing her expertise home feels like she has come full circle. In Louisiana, Elise has restored murals at the Lakefront Airport in New Orleans, the Louisiana State Exhibit Museum in Shreveport, and paintings in several South Louisiana churches and plantations, including the historic Whitney Plantation.

Elise works on Palazzo Gondi in Florence, Italy

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Elise came to Florence in the 1980s as a young art restoration student, and worked for two of the most prestigious conservation firms in the city before forming her own company, Grenier Conservation. Elise had the opportunity to work on renowned art in the UNESCO World Heritage site, including in Renaissance churches and villas, historic palaces, and none other than the Santa Maria del Fiore, Cupola of Brunelleschi of Florence, commonly known as the Duomo. She was part of the team that conducted the restoration project of the frescoes of the Last Judgement by Giorgio Vasari and Federico Zuccari (1572-1579).

P R E S E R VAT I O N F E AT U R E : E L I S E G R E N I E R

T H E M U RA L S O F LSU ALLEN HALL R E S T O R AT I O N

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

In 2001 Elise worked on the comprehensive conservation campaign of the murals of Allen Hall at LSU. Allen Hall, now home to the Department of English and University College, is one of the buildings that form the historic central core of LSU campus. Fresco murals were done in the 1930s on the interior walls by students of Professor Conrad Albrizio, LSU art professor and fresco artist. (Albrizio was a creator of the Fresco Guild, the American contingency of the international art movement that included influential muralist Diego Rivera.)

The historic murals in Allen Hall depict scenes of Louisiana — and LSU — in the 1930s. Portions of the paintings had faded from their original vivid colors, and Elise performed a non-invasive cleaning methodology to remove 70 years of dust accumulation. During the restoration work the student artists’ theses were consulted, and another fresco was discovered to have been part of the original project – over the years it had been completely covered by layers of latex paint. Testing the portico wall established its continued existence, and after the paint layers were removed, the large painting was recovered completely intact. Elise remembers walking through Allen Hall years ago herself as an undergraduate student, never knowing that there was art silently waiting to be uncovered. “I was proud to be a part of the project on LSU’s campus, preserving that legacy and honoring an important moment in American art history.”

Most recently Elise has worked on the restoration of the artwork in the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge, which was painted in the Art Deco art style during the Huey Long administration. The murals in the Capitol Annex, painted by Conrad Albrizio, were commissioned as part of the New Deal public arts programs during the Great Depression when the new State Capitol building was constructed in 1931. Elise likens this period in the 1930s when federally sponsored public artworks were created for public consumption to “the art Renaissance for the United States – it was a time when public art was meant to reach audiences, convey messages, and it was a very important moment for U.S. art history.” As a former student of art history, Elise appreciates the historical significance of the work she works to preserve, even if the physical process is often taxing. Many of the paintings she restores, such as the Louisiana Capitol ceiling art, are 35 feet up in the air; thus, Elise spends a lot of time working on elevated platforms, looking up. But it’s absolutely worth it. She describes every artwork she has preserved in vivid detail. Her work at the Whitney Plantation, an important site of historic art in the U.S., for example: “I studied the site and saw that the gold on the wainscoting was abraded,” she said. “But that tells a story: of the home’s usage, of the passage of time.” And Elise, as the conservator, becomes a part of that story. It is extremely satisfying to be part of an artwork’s health and history, she says. “The art will be around long after I’m gone – the work will live on, and I’m glad to be a part of it.”

Innovators ALUMNI HELPING TO TRANSFORM LSU’S CAMPUS

Master Planners N 2016, LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY embarked upon the Comprehensive and Strategic Campus Master Plan process, an ambitious strategic planning initiative that included developing a master plan for the university.

The LSU Comprehensive & Strategic Campus Master Plan was completed in October 2017, prepared by NBBJ Master Planning, in collaboration with EDR leading the Architectural Design Standards and Sustainability plans; other firms specialized in the areas of landscape architecture (Reed Hilderbrand), academic planning, storm water management, and more. The university master plan will guide the physical growth and development of the university campus for the next twenty years and beyond. The new College of Art & Design master plan fits into the broader university strategic plan, while focusing on addressing the specific needs of the college. The EDR team reviewed existing programs, evaluated academic facilities in use, and developed

recommendations for the future. The team assessed how the college uses its spaces, and proposed how to upgrade the existing historic core buildings on campus in meaningful ways.“All three of our firm’s named partners – Allen Eskew, Steve Dumez, and myself – were proud graduates of the LSU College of Art & Design,” Mark Ripple (BArch ’79) said. “Over the last four decades, have committed our time, energy, and resources to helping it achieve its noble mission. As such, we were honored to be involved in the development of a new master plan that will guide future development of the college for years to come.” Mark serves as partner and director of operations at EDR. As director of design for the practice, Steve Dumez (BArch ’82) oversees the award-winning design of all projects. Allen Eskew (BArch ’71), who passed away in 2013, was a founding principal of the renowned firm that he started in 1989. In 2013 he was the College of Art & Design’s Distinguished Alumni Award recipient and our commencement speaker. “They walked these buildings, they know these buildings, they studied in these buildings,” said Alkis Tsolakis, Dean of the College of Art & Design. “They have a particular understanding and appreciation of the campus makeup, a genuine familiarity with the spaces because they have been members of the LSU community for years. In a sense they are professionals remodeling their own home.”

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The New Orleans architectural firm Eskew+Dumez+Ripple (EDR) was chosen by the LSU strategic planning committee to develop the architectural aspects of the master plan, an aspirational proposal to advance and renovate the university’s flagship campus in Baton Rouge for the future. The firm’s three named partners Allen Eskew, Steve Dumez, and Mark Ripple are LSU alumni themselves, all graduates of the School of Architecture. EDR was subsequently selected to assist with the master plan for the College of Art & Design.

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Campus Wildlife: Mike the Tiger Habitat

HE WILDLIFE HABITAT FOR MIKE THE TIGER, the beloved LSU mascot, sits proudly by the towering “Death Valley” Tiger Stadium on a state-of-the-art wildlife habitat; it is one of the largest and finest tiger habitats in the United States. Not only is it a popular, lush landscaping pervades the habitat, which is framed by a promenade of graceful live oak trees, and in spring the azalea bushes are in bloom, blazing color.

A waterfall cascades over climbing rocks, spilling into the stream that cuts through the grassy space and empties into a shallow pool. Trees provide shady spots to rest on a hot day, and a large naturalistic rockwork tree trunk stands in the center, imitating a tiger’s natural environment and supporting the mesh dome that caps the large exterior space. The mesh enclosure isn’t there to keep the tiger in, the habitat’s designer Ace Torre explained – it’s to keep the students out. Adjacent to the habitat’s outside space is an interior structure designed specifically for the needs of the Bengal tiger, serving as a house of sorts for Mike to sleep at night, and a medical room for veterinary visits. The small campanile tower on top mirrors the iconic Memorial Tower on campus, declaring Mike’s home turf as an honored entity of the university. On a sunny afternoon, students, campus visitors, and nostalgic alumni come to greet Mike. Children peer in awe at the tiger as he lazes in the pool, admiring the noble beast up close. Sometimes he swims up to them, eliciting hoots of gleeful laughter. The open-air habitat is spacious, a piece of wildland transplanted on to a university campus.

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

The home of the treasured tiger, the symbol of Louisiana State University, is a state-of-the-art wildlife habitat created for a Bengal tiger; it is one of the largest and finest tiger habitats in the United States. Not only is the Mike the Tiger Habitat a popular tourist destination, listed on TripAdvisor as #4 of the 81 things to do in Baton Rouge and a “most frequently visited place in Louisiana,” it serves to teach its many visitors about tigers. The aspirational design aims to educate people about conservation and the plight of tigers in the wild.

Ace Torre (BLA ’71), CEO and principal of Torre Design Consortium, is one of the College of Art, & Design’s distinguished alumni award recipient and is a well-known expert in zoological design. In over 35 years, Ace has completed zoological planning and exhibit designs totaling more than $1 billion, located around the country and internationally. The zoos Ace designed are frequently ranked in the top 10 in the United States. Trained in both landscape architecture and architecture, which he calls the foundations of zoo design, Ace started his career in city planning and fell into zoo design by chance.

To date Torre Design Consortium has designed over 50 zoo exhibits all around the U.S., and in Canada and China. Ace sees zoos as a place to raise environmental awareness and create change. In the early 2000s LSU sought to improve Mike’s habitat, which at the time served as a functional space for the mascot to live but had sparse wildlife design elements. University administration requested that Ace create “the best tiger exhibit that could be done,” and Ace and his team rose to the challenge. In 2005 a $3.7 million 15,000-square foot environment was completed. The goal was to create a space for an endangered species that would be both comfortable for the animal, but also educate exhibit viewers about protecting tigers in the wild. Adhering to modern zoo design standards, the naturally styled setting meets contemporary zoo status while being uniquely situated on a university campus. Torre Design Consortium created numerous features for Mike to enjoy. Ace travels around the world and studies many wildlife species in their natural habitats, and always works to emulate these natural environments in the exhibits he designs.

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Dr. David Baker, LSU’s attending veterinarian and professor at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, said the habitat design benefits the tiger’s health. “Mike the Tiger’s spacious enclosure is not only aesthetically pleasing, it also includes several features that promote his health and well-being, including the waterfall, stream, pool, rock formations, heating and cooling rock, and a modern night house,” he said. These seemingly decorative elements are purposeful for Mike. Ace compares his wildlife exhibits to movies, in the sense that they show a scene into another setting, an exotic world. “I hoped to create an emotional bond by presenting Mike in a luxurious exhibit to show the nobility of this animal.”

“Tigers love to go in the water, so we created the stream that Mike could go into in the hot summer and stay cool,” Ace said, describing the stream that flows into the pool where Mike can swim for activity.

The tiger habitat at LSU also showcases educational signage to explain man’s impact on these noble animals. In our lifetime, up to two types of tigers could go extinct, due primarily to poaching, retaliatory killings, and habitat loss. The endangered species has been declining rapidly for the past century, with approximately 3,890 tigers estimated currently remaining in the wild, according to the World Wildlife Fund.

During the exhibit development process Ace dove into researching the many needs of Bengal tigers to inform the design choices. “I had a desire to present this incredible animal in a naturalistic habitat that highlights all his fantastic inherent attributes – he can jump, climb, swim, live naturally in a comfortable environment,” Ace said. “There were aspirational aspects of the design, but the result was tremendous.”

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Ample space consideration went into the design of the night building, meeting U. S . environmental protection standards. Further enhancements were made to the habitat in 2017; Mike now also has a “comfort” rock that has a heating and cooling system (using glycol) to help regulate his body temperature: in the summer it is cool, and in winter it warms up. The rock is also situated in a prime viewing spot when he chooses to sit there, Ace explained.

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Ace hopes to be a part of rectifying the problems that have been created for tigers in the wild by protecting and preserving them as much as possible. Acquainting people with unfamiliar animals and showing how they live in nature is the first step in environmental awareness. The habitat allows for cutting-edge technologies, research, conservation, and husbandry programs, as well as educational, interpretive, and recreational activities. The facility complies with USDA and EPA animal welfare regulations, and the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine takes pride in caring for Mike.

Mike the Tiger Habitat, LSU Campus

Mike’s home is a tranquil atmosphere and favored place on campus, showing that universities can have living mascots if they provide a thoughtfully designed environment for them to thrive in. As with all of Ace’s work, above all, the exhibit is meant to illustrate the importance of all living things. “And it was a lot of fun to work on.”

THE LSU TIGER

CONSERVATION FUND

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

The Tiger Conservation Fund campaign is part of LSU’s involvement in the U.S. Tiger University Consortium. Through the consortium, LSU has teamed up with the other “Tigers” of the SEC – Auburn, Clemson, and the University of Missouri – to help save wild tigers from extinction.

The LSU Tiger Conservation Fund aims to help save tigers in the wild, through conservation efforts funded by public support. Tiger fans, and anyone who loves and appreciates these majestic animals, can contribute to the fund through the LSU Foundation to help make sure tigers aren’t lost to extinction. www.lsufoundation.org/tigerconservation

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House of History: LSU French House Renovation

SU SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE ALUMNUS KEN TIPTON, (BArch ’81) has led Tipton Associates architectural and planning projects since 1983. In 2016, Tipton Associates completed a comprehensive interior renovation and modernization of the LSU French House, a nationally registered historic building.

Originally built in the 1930s as a dormitory for French language and cultural immersion, the French House is now the educational center of the LSU Roger Hadfield Ogden Honors College. Designed in the style of a Norman French chateau, the French House stands out among LSU’s architecture, an iconic campus landmark.

To renovate the building, Tipton Associates worked with Preserve Louisiana and the Office of Historic Preservation. The overall goal of the renovation and preservation project was “to honor the historical integrity while breathing new life into the facility,” according to Tipton Associates. A team with numerous LSU alumni worked on the project, including architects Ken Tipton, Shane Higdon (BArch ’99) and Lori Prochaska (MArch ’04), designer Josh Peak (BArch ’08), and interior designer Fabie Derbigny (BID ’11). The design team sought to retain and preserve the historic character of the exterior while reimagining the interiors to meet the needs of a growing modern campus. Building study and needs assessment workshops led by the design team prioritized the goals to restore and protect the building exterior, renovate the interior to enhance building use, and accommodate growth.

from the original character. With light and transparency as a design goal, they added a patterned glass film inspired by a prominent original door to provide privacy for faculty without losing the sense of openness, Lori said. “Light from the original dormer windows, which were once concealed behind solid walls, is now able to fill the corridor and create a sense of accessibility between student and faculty.” The French House renovation project is one of many examples of former LSU architecture students returning to campus to help make improvements, said Alkis Tsolakis, Dean of the College of Art & Design and professor of architecture, who was involved in the campus master planning process. Tipton Associates welcomed the opportunity to work with LSU, Lori said. “We have a longstanding relationship with the university and will continue to strive to bring excellence to our higher education facilities.”

“The relocation of major circulation paths affords daylight an opportunity to penetrate once dark closed-off spaces, while at the same time allowing larger educational spaces to emerge,” said Lori Prochaska, AIA, Senior Associate Architect. “The result is an optimum learning environment that can adapt to the needs of tomorrow’s students, all while respecting the legacy of the historic building.” The Tipton team incorporated modern design elements without detracting

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

DESIGNING

FOR THE SCREEN

Interior Design Alumni Work on HGTV Show Home Town

Amanda is a design producer for the home renovation television program. More than 16 million viewers watched the first season of Home Town in 2017, reflecting the rising popularity of home design programming. The debut episode alone attracted 2.2 million viewers, the second-highest number in HGTV’s 23-year history. The show has been featured in Southern Living Magazine, Country Living, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, and “The Today Show.” Season 2 premiered in January 2018, with over 9 million viewers to date. HGTV’s Home Town is set in Laurel, Mississippi, featuring home renovation projects around the small southern town. Cohost couple Ben and Erin Napier use creative solutions to re-design historic houses into new homes for incoming inhabitants; they aim to restore homes in a way that honors their history while creating spaces that reflect the personal tastes of the new owners. Following the format of other popular “house flipping” television shows, each episode introduces different couples searching for a home in the area. The “big reveal” moment showcases the renovated rooms complete with new interior design, fully furnished and decorated. “Home Town has been a special opportunity to fully conceive and realize a design down to the tiniest details of the table linens and silverware,” Amanda said.

Lights, Camera, Action Amanda is lead interior designer of Shotgun Design Group, and New Orleans district chair of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID). She had no prior television experience when she learned of the opening at HGTV. Amanda and her business partner Blake Erskin received a tip from a fellow New Orleans ASID member who had received a notice that there was a new HGTV series production team looking for an interior designer/production designer. “After researching Erin’s style and the pilot episode, which months prior I had seen and loved, we knew we could work with her aesthetic,” Amanda said, referring to Erin Napier, show co-star. “We met with Erin and Ben in a face-to-face interview, and were impressed with the direction of the show.“

They were willing to take a chance on two interior designers without any television experience. Amanda and Blake appear in the second episode of Season 1, helping Erin to set up rooms in a newly renovated home. As a design producer, Amanda collaborates with Erin and the rest of the design team to make interior design choices for the houses featured on the show. She helps select furniture, fixtures, and equipment, assists with space planning and “dresses” the houses for reveals. The interior design team supports the stars in the design process for all houses featured on the show. Fellow LSU alumna Tracy Manuel (BID ‘15) joined the team as a design associate for Season 2 of the hit show. Tracy is principal and lead interior designer of T3M Studios in Florence, South Carolina. Marsha Cuddeback, director of the LSU School of Interior Design, said she was contacted by RTR Media in June 2017 when they were searching for a recent graduate to be a design associate for the HGTV show. “When I received this inquiry I immediately knew who to contact: Tracy Manuel,” she said. “Our school prepares students to enter the profession of interior design, but they also emerge with diverse skills and interests applicable to a variety of career paths. Tracy is just one example of our highly adaptable and accomplished students.” Within a week Tracy had a phone interview and 24 hours later she was hired and bound for Laurel, Mississippi for the next six months.

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EW ORLEANS-BASED INTERIOR DESIGNER AMANDA CONNOLLY (BID ‘00) always enjoyed home design shows. So when she had the chance to work for Home & Garden Television (HGTV)’s program Home Town, she jumped at the prospect to showcase her skills on television.

Fr o m l e f t : A m a n d a C o n n e l l y , E r i n N a p i e r ( H o m e To w n s t a r) , a n d B l a ke E r s k i n

I N N O VAT I O N F E AT U R E : D E S I G N I N G F O R T H E S C R E E N

Tracy was not a “traditional” student when she studied interior design at LSU; she decided to pursue the degree after 16 years at home focusing on her three children. She received numerous scholarships and awards to support her tuition, including interior design scholarship competitions. While still at LSU, she had an offer from Gensler, an international architecture, design, planning, and consulting firm, in their Houston office. She went on to found her own interior design firm in 2017. But when she received the offer to join the show’s design team, she didn’t hesitate. The experience on Home Town has been unlike any other that Amanda and Tracy have had as interior designers. It was a challenge at times to pull things together under tough time constraints and tight budgets, and with cameras in the mix. Season 1 was a baptism by fire, Amanda said. “With an amazing production and design team we pulled it off to complete ten houses within six months.”

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

Tracy agreed it was an incredible challenge. “Working on a television show is like juggling a design for a board of directors,” she said. “There are lots of people to please, never a [clear] budget, and never enough time. It’s the perfect storm to learn exactly what you’re capable of doing under pressure.”

As a design associate, Tracy was the “boots on the ground” during the construction phase. She was responsible for making sure all designs were correctly implemented on site, along with managing finish schedules and design budgets. “We did everything - project management, sketching designs on sheet rock, cleaning, staging, purchasing items - you really do everything,” she said. Since they had as many as five houses undergoing renovation at a time, the interior design team always had to multitask. With each episode, new spaces and homeowners led to different challenges, and the designers had

to adapt to each scenario. In the case of one house that had a tight budget, for example, Tracy asked a friend to carve a wooden stamp that could be pressed in paint and stamped onto plain wallpaper, giving blank walls an original blue and white pattern. A low-cost DIY solution transformed the room’s style for the big reveal.

Behind the Scenes Being on the other side of the screen was an enlightening experience for the interior designers. They witnessed off-screen processes, saw the renovation projects’ development in real time, and learned how to design for television. On Home Town, craftsman / woodworker Ben builds furnishings for the individual spaces, often using wood salvaged from the construction process. The interior designers also incorporate the homeowners’ personal items and furniture into the newly designed spaces wherever they can, to reflect their real life needs and personal styles. “The beautiful part of it all was that we were able to pull it off,” Amanda said. “Each time we revealed a house to homeowners and they were emotionally moved because the home was a true representation of them, we knew we had done our jobs. For me the thrill of interior design is watching a project that begins in concept be brought to life.” One interesting behind-the-scenes aspect of producing a home renovation show is that when the house is revealed to the homeowners, it takes

I N N O VAT I O N F E AT U R E : D E S I G N I N G F O R T H E S C R E E N

H o u s e d e s i g n s f o r H o m e To w n ( I m a g e s c o u r t e s y o f Tr a c y M a n u e l )

“Some people think of Southern design as a very formal kind of plantation-style home. But that’s not indicative of most of the South,” Erin said in an interview with Los Angeles Times. “I would say it’s a collected style. As Southerners, we’re storytellers, very nostalgic, and I like every house to tell a family’s story.”

Home Town

“It’s like watching someone open the best Christmas present ever, one inch at a time!” Amanda said. “It’s agony but also the greatest reward.” Tracy had no preconceived notion of the “big reveal” moments in home makeover shows before she came to work for Home Town. “I had never watched home design shows before working with HGTV,” Tracy admitted. “I had no idea what to expect, which was part of the reason why I was so eager to take the job.” Working on a television show is an extremely communicative and collaborative experience, Tracy explained. Every day was jam-packed with many different tasks to do in a short time frame, and the design team often had to solve problems resourcefully. “It is my personal assessment that architectural salvage as wall art was born out of necessity when filming home design shows,” Amanda said. Artwork is a challenge to display on television since each individual piece requires a copyright release, while items such as a piece of iron fencing or clock face do not, she explained. To minimize the number of copyright releases for each episode, the interior designers created new pieces from salvaged materials to decorate the homes on the show. At the same time, Erin’s aesthetic is very layered and collected, featuring eclectic art and photography, Amanda said. “We spent a lot of time researching and obtaining releases for all art, which could be upwards of 20+ pieces per house. I believe it is one of the elements that sets Home Town apart from other home renovation shows, resulting in a more natural and lived-in interior.”

Home Town has helped to revitalize the economy of the small town of Laurel, Mississippi, where the show is filmed. The once-booming 1890s lumber town (current population: 18,000) has seen economic decline in recent decades, and has undergone a transformation in part because of the show’s popularity. It has been wonderful to witness the rebirth of a town, Amanda said. She described Laurel as a gem with beautiful homes, art and history, oak tree lined streets, and a downtown that is now developing rapidly with new shops, boutiques and restaurants. This southern smalltown charm is a key theme of the show, and the interior design style on Home Town. “Laurel is the third character in Home Town and just as important as the homes we are renovating,” Amanda said. “It is a testimony for us all to get out there and make our own change happen, and I have been especially proud to be a part of it.”

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hours to film. Each room is a separate scene that needs to be filmed one at a time, so the homeowner does not get to walk from room to room in one fluid motion as it seems when viewing the edited final episode.

Erin and Ben chose to feature Mississippi artists on the show so that the home styling would feel more authentic to the community. “There is so much talent in Laurel, and I am so glad that through Home Town we are able to showcase these artists and tradesmen,” Amanda said. “It was what attracted me to work on this show.”

LSU COLLEGE OF ART + DESIGN

• Communication Across the Curriculum (CxC) Studio created to focus on improving the written, verbal, visual, and technological skillsets of its future designers and artists. • First Mac-based computer classroom created.

• LA Board of Regents “IDEA” afforded: RED camera, 3D Systems Cube X Printer for CxC.

‘14

‘13

• LSU Student Technology Fee (STF) afforded CADGIS Lab upgrades.

• Louisiana Education Quality Support Fund Grant “The Dialogues of Architecture: Prioritizing & Orchestrating Diverse Areas of Knowledge” brought computers, scanners, and printers to studios and faculty offices for the first time.

‘08

• Foundations Lab replaced.

• LA Board of Regents Equipment Enhancement Grant “Preparing Students for Next Generation of Visual Research and Design: 3D Scanning and Digital Fabrication” afforded 3D scanner & more.

‘17

‘16 ‘18

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

• STF “Indiegeauxgeaux,” an initiative to encourage entrepreneurial applications of digital fabrication.

• LA Board of Regents Equipment Enhancement Grant “Melding the physical and virtual through Emerging Technologies in the Arts (META)” afforded stop motion equipment and software.

• 3D asset portal 3d.lsu.edu created, the first of its kind at LSU. A website centered around digital fabrication, 3D scanning, video tutorials, and open access to 3D scanned model datasets.

• STF proposal “CoAD Fabrication Factory & 21st Century Studios” afforded: 3D printer, CNC router, CNC plasma cutter, plasma displays for studios, 18 projectors for studios, 4K Flatscreen (now in Motion Capture or MoCap Studio) + DJI drone.

• Foundations Digital Documentation Video Tutorials created and disseminated to help CoAD students learn photographic techniques for documenting their work.

‘15

‘12

‘96

• CADGIS Research Laboratory, a collaboration with Geography and Anthropology, was designed to provide high end computing capabilities for digital drafting, mapping, and computational research.

‘09

‘84

TECHNOLOGY OVER TIME

• STF for proposed “Mixed Reality Garage” to house a suite of virtual reality and augmented reality headsets, workstations, software, and tools. The acquisition of this technology will complete the rebranding of CADGIS as the Visualization Lab, or “VizLab,” a space dedicated to teaching and research in cutting-edge and experimental visualization techniques for designers.

• META LA Board Grant upgraded Mac lab. • STF “3-Dimensional Data Acquisition” afforded a FARO x330 for large-scale 3D scanning, specifically architecture and interiors, and to create large point clouds, one-click dimensions and flythrough animations.

Field Notes S N A P S H O T S F R O M O U R T R AV E L S

In 2018, architecture students are designing a proposed immigration facility at the United States/Mexico border in San Diego/Tijuana. On their site visit, students hiked two miles to their design site at the Pacific Ocean Border Fence. “As part of the Integrative Design Studio for graduate students, the course begins with an immersive site visit/field excursion. It is important for the students to understand the climate, geography, the natural and constructed landscape, and the physical and infrastructural systems they must design for.”

Ceramics students travelled to the 2018 National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts conference in Pittsburgh. Over 6,000 creative individuals gathered in Pittsburgh for the annual conference, the world’s largest ceramics arts event. “LSU ceramics students visited one of Pittsburgh’s iconic yellow bridges while exploring the city during the trip to the 2018 NCECA conference.” Associate Professor Andy Shaw, Ceramics Area Coordinator

19 students from the School of Interior Design attended the American Society of Interior Designers National Student Summit in Los Angeles. Students visited downtown LA design firms, had the opportunity to hear from local designers and tour top-notch design projects. “The National Student Summit made me, and the other students who went, excited about the future of interior design.” Emily Phillips, BID ’18, LSU ASID chapter president

Graduate landscape architecture students at the Museum of Anthropology, Chapultepec Park in Mexico City. Students had the opportunity to experience the culture, history, design, and urban life in Mexico. “The field trip enabled students to conduct field studies of the studio project site, gaining a familiarization of the history, culture, and social attributes of the Mexican people and their relation to their natural and urban environment. During their fieldwork students formulated relevant design ideas specific to the site, which would not be possible in their LSU classroom.”

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A. Hays Town Professor Ursula Emery McClure

Professor Bruce Sharky 31

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

1 E L I S E O C A S I A N O, M F A 2 0 1 8 creates paintings that use vibrant color and surreal images to express themes of deep-rooted family love and confronting adversity. Eli and his family have started a scholarship in conjunction with his thesis exhibition Yes We Can. The Nora Marie Casiano Scholarship is awarded to a woman or non-binary person of color at his alma mater East Central University, located in Ada, Oklahoma to help support artistic expression. Eli is a 2018 LSU recipient of the Michael Daugherty Memorial Fund and Dean’s Medal. Here, Eli shares his process for his recent piece Cochino. M AT E R I A L S

H A R D WA R E

• Photographs

• Photoshop

• Acrylic soft body &

• Canvas Stretcher

flow paint

Frame

• Gesso

• D-rings

• Sandpaper

• Sable Brushes

• Gel mediums • Varnish 32

My process for creating a painting begins by sorting through a personal index of reference materials, including family photographs, books, and computer screenshots. I choose a grouping of images to construct a visual narrative for the specific painting.

The selected images are transferred and arranged in Photoshop by layers. I cut, copy, and paste the imagery into multiple composite sketches to create a proper painting composition. I print the file to paint and draw on top of the surface. This step provides a blur between the physical and digital qualities of collaging an image.

3 4

After the reference painting file is complete, I prep my painting materials. My stretched canvas is brushed with gesso seven times and sanded between each layer, creating a smooth surface. I project the Photoshop file onto the canvas to map out and transfer the composition.

I begin painting after several color studies. I work dark to light with acrylic paint and gel mediums. About halfway through a painting, I no longer use the reference Photoshop image; this action allows for spontaneity and re-adjustments in the composition.

The finished painting sits for two weeks, allowing all moisture to release from the canvas. I cover the painting with a protective UV gloss varnish to enhance and protect the surface. The sides are cleaned and hardware is adhered to the back of the frame for installation.

QUA D â&#x20AC;˘ SUM M ER 2018

Ph otos by: Ch ris B u rns

Class Notes L A K E D O U G L AS , BLA 1972, coauthored the book Buildings of New Orleans, published by the University of Virginia Press in April 2018. Co-written by Karen Kingsley, Professor Emerita, Tulane University, it is “a handy insider’s guidebook to the unique built and natural environments of one of America’s most interesting places.” Lake is Associate Dean of Research & Development at the LSU College of Art & Design.

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

P E R CY “ R E B E L ” R O B E RTS , BArch 1976, a design partner at Stantec, a global design firm, has been appointed the discipline lead for design. Recent endeavors include projects with Dr. Paul Sereno, world renowned paleontologist. Rebel has begun conceptual design work on two projects in Niger: the National Museum in Niamey and a Cultural Center in Agadez.

K E I T H L E B L A N C , BLA 1979, is principal of LeBlanc Jones Landscape Architects, an award-winning landscape architecture firm in Boston. Recent awards for the firm include Bulfinch Awards in 2018 and 2017, a 2017 BSLA Honor Award in Design, and numerous BSLA Merit Awards and NYASLA Merit Awards. In 2017 Boston Magazine named the firm “Best Landscape Architect” and awarded the Best of Boston Home in landscape architecture design.

KEEPING UP WITH ART & DESIGN ALUMNI LO R I E W E ST R I C K , BArch 1981, AIA, LEED AP, is the managing principal of RdlR Architects, a Houston-based design firm. She has served as principal since 2001, and since then the firm has earned numerous design and firm awards including the Texas Society of Architects Firm Award. Lorie’s public work includes low-income housing, educational facilities, transit projects, parks, and streetscapes. Noteworthy projects include: Houston Food Bank (recipient of five local, state and national awards); Sam Houston Tollway NE Main Lane Plaza (TSA Design Award); and Reagan High School Renovations (GHPA design award). Lorie married her college sweetheart H OWA R D M E R R I L L , BArch 1980, principal, RdlR Architects. K E N N E T H BA H L I N G E R , BLA 1985, received the American Society of Landscape Architects 2017 LaGasse Medal for his significant contributions to the management and conservation of natural resources and public landscapes. Kenneth is an awardwinning landscape architect who has worked for the state of Louisiana restoring coastal wetlands for 26 years. He led the Coast Vegetative Planting Program and the Christmas Tree Program. He is currently project manager at the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority. E L I ZA B E T H “ BO O ” T H O MAS , MLA 1989, announced her retirement in January 2018. Boo retires from a long career in city planning and redevelopment in Baton Rouge, leaving a legacy of successful planning ventures. She championed the 1998 Plan Baton Rouge master plan that ushered in a new era of downtown growth; the 2007 Louisiana Speaks Regional Plan for statewide hurricane recovery; and the creation of the Center for Planning Excellence (CPEX), Louisiana’s only non-profit planning organization. Baton Rouge Mayor-PresidentSharon Weston Broome thanked Boo for her “visionary leadership” in her decades of service to the capital city.

M I C H E L E C L E M E N T , BID 1996, is principal at Kugler Ning Lighting (KNL) in New York City. Michele has been a leader in the architectural lighting design industry for over twenty years. Prior to joining KNL in 2017, Michele was a partner with notable award-winning lighting design firm Schwinghammer Lighting. Michele recently completed: Bergdorf Goodman in New York City, 45 Park Lane Hotel in London, MoMA Expansion Tower and Ralph Lauren’s Polo Bar in New York. She is currently working on: The Masterplan for World Resorts Casino in New York, a private residence in New York City, Tom Ford Flagship on Madison Ave and D&D London brasserie at Hudson Yards and TWC. H U N G N G UY E N , BArch 1996, is senior architect / QC at Huckabee, an architecture and engineering firm in The Woodlands, Texas that specializes in education design.

DAV I D W I E S E N DA N G E R , BArch 2000, AIA has been elected principal and vice president of BOUDREAUX, a Columbia, S.C. architecture, planning, preservation, and interior design firm. He has been with the firm since 2012, and his recent projects include University of South Carolina’s School of Law and Hamilton College Renovation, along with Richland County Recreation Commission’s award winning Gadsden Community Center. A N D R E W SA LU T I , MFA 2002, is an assistant professor of museum studies in the Syracuse University School of Design, College of Visual and Performing Arts. He recently published the paper “Politics on Paper: Exploring the Marriage of Art, Activism and Printmaking,” presented at the 2017 PCA/ACA National Conference in San Diego, CA. His wife J E N N I F E R SA LU T I , MFA 2002, is director of recruiting and admissions at Syracuse University College of Visual and Performing Arts. Both specialized in printmaking while at LSU. J O H N STO K E R , BArch 2005, is vice principal of design at Fifth Dimension Architecture & Interiors in Austin, Texas. John has significant experience in retail, higher education health and science facilities, K-12 new construction and renovation projects, single family residences, affordable and market-rate multi-family projects, offices, mixed use developments, religious, and large food manufacturing facilities.

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ST E P H E N MC L AU G H L I N , MLA 1994, is responsible for overseeing the site planning and landscape architecture of one half of the United States’ diplomatic facilities around the world. He currently supervises the site design and/or landscape installation for a dozen new embassy compounds (Brasilia, Guatemala City, Harare, Lagos, Lilongwe, Mexico City, Nassau, N’Djamena, Niamey, Nouakchott, Riyadh, and Tegucigalpa) and various expansion projects at existing embassy compounds, plus several new or expanded consulate compounds. He enjoys traveling internationally, but his greatest pleasure in this work comes from collaborating with leading architecture and engineering firms, and developing working relationships with some of America’s most talented landscape architects.

C H R I ST I N E B R U N O , BLA 1991, as a shoreline planner for the City of Seattle, has worked to mitigate the impacts of urban development on shoreline ecosystems and endangered marine species in the Pacific Northwest for over 18 years.

Duvall Decker Architects, P.A. is proud to announce CO DY FA R R I S , BArch 2006, AIA is an associate and studio design director in its Jackson firm. With twelve years of experience at Duvall Decker Architects, Mr. Farris is one of the firm’s most versatile designers and project managers, fulfilling activities that include design, research, detailing, systems coordination, and construction administration.

L SU COL L EGE OF A RT & DE SIGN

Sizeler Thompson Brown Architects is pleased to announce the promotion of J E N N I F E R H A R R I S M I TC H E L L , BID 2006, from director of interior design to associate at the New Orleansbased firm. Her interior design projects include work at the Slidell Memorial Hospital, Chronos MediSpa, St. Charles Community Center, and St. Bernard Hospital.

DAV I D N E WMA N , BLA 2008, is an associate at MESA Design Group, an award-winning landscape architecture, planning, and urban design firm based in Dallas, Texas. His portfolio includes projects such as master planned communities, park development, corporate office, urban design, and high-end residential design. DAV I S L AC H I N , BArch 2009, became a partner in the New Orleans firm Lachin Architects, APC in early 2018. David has served as a project architect on projects including: J. Garic Schoen Chapel, Trist School Additions, Chalmette High Athletic Facilities Complex, and Arlene Meraux Elementary School.

A I N S L EY D R E H E R , BID 2010, is president and owner of Design Innovations in Birmingham, Alabama. Ainsley purchased the interior design firm, which specializes in healthcare design, in 2017. Her notable projects include Madison Hospital, the Montgomery Cancer Center lobby, UAB Medical West, and Russell Medical Center in Alabama.

MA R C U S J . W I L L I AM S , BArch 2005, AIA, NCARB is the CSRS|Tillage program director of the East Baton Rouge Parish School System (EBRPSS)’s program management and grants management contracts. He joined the initiative to improve EBRPSS in 2017 after previously working at Remson|Haley|Herpin Architects and then Grace Hebert Architects. Recent projects include Baton Rouge High School and Lee High School, the region’s first 21st-century school.

B R E N DA N BO U D R E AU , BArch 2014, is WHLC Architecture’s newest professionally licensed architect, having joined the WHLC firm in the summer of 2017. His work has included working on the project team for the new Baton Rouge General Ascension Micro-Hospital. LY D I A G I KAS CO O K , MLA 2014, is a designer at Reed Hilderbrand LLC in Boston. Lydia is project designer for the New Orleans Museum of Art Sculpture Garden, the Phillips Academy Campus Master Plan, and Baton Rouge City Hall Plaza. G R E G DA H I K E , BLA 2015, is a junior landscape associate for Mass Design Group, a nonprofit architecture firm based out of Boston and Kigali, Rwanda. Greg works to manage and educate about environmental impacts in Rwanda.

Equipped WI T H J O L I N DA WE B B

5 ROLLS OF 35MM FILM

DIFFUSER FOR F LAS H If you must use flash, a diffuser is necessary.

2 0 1 9 B FA C A N D I D AT E

So I never run out on a long shoot.

You can’t get much done with a dead computer.

EXTERNAL CAM E RA F LAS H

WIDE ANGLE CAM E RA LE N S

LAPTOP CHARGER

C A M E R A B AT T E R Y CHARGER

I rarely use flash, but when you need it, you need it.

I never leave home without a spare battery!

No one lens fits all situations; this one is great for architecture and interior shots.

PHONE CHARGER

N OT E BOO K, PEN, and PENCIL For when inspiration strikes.

Nobody wants a dead phone.

GUM

THUMB DRIVE Because there’s no easier way to get your files to the teacher. BUBBLE LEVEL This handy bubble level attaches to your camera so you can be sure your photo is level.

CAM E RA CA R D R E A D E R An essential for the digital photographer. EXTERNAL HARD-DRIVE Because So. Many. Pictures.

HEADPHONES

R E M OT E CAM E RA SHUTTER

Long hours in the studio go by a little faster with your favorite music.

A necessity for night photography and longexposure shots. L E AT H E R M A N M U LT I - T O O L

QUA D • SUM M ER 2018

Fresh breath is essential.

You never know when you might need a tool. 37

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