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  Welcome to the Doll House

  Francie Latour and RISD XYZ

  From the Barbie dresses he made as a boy to his first splash in the New York art world, Martín Gutierrez 12 PR is working to perfect what he has always done naturally.

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  Interweaving Media

  Chris Quirk and RISD XYZ

  Five artists working in wood, glass, clay, metal and fiber collaborate with Pollack’s design team to create a new line of fabrics. Pollack, the NYC textile design firm founded by Mark Pollack 76 TX, embarked on a two-year project with Rachel Doriss 99 TX, to collaborate with five artists and designers working in different media. The goal? To create a line of newly released fabrics—called simply The Makers Collection.

  In the end, Pollack selected knit designer Liz Collins 91 TX/ MFA 99 TX in Brooklyn, ceramicist Nathan Craven MFA 08 CR in Roswell, NM, glass artist Katherine Gray MFA 91 GL in Los Angeles, furniture designer Matthias Pliessnig 03 FD in Providence and jewelry artist and former RISD faculty member Klaus Bürgel, who divides his time between New York City and Massachusetts. Each artist was chosen based on clear evidence of individual expertise in his or her preferred medium.

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  Rediscovering the Wheel

  Brooke Hodge and RISD XYZ

  What does architecture have to do with pottery? For Adam Silverman BArch 88, these two seemingly disparate creative practices are inextricably intertwined.

  Brooke Hodge, director of exhibitions and publications at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, writes frequently about architecture and design for major publications. This text is excerpted from a longer essay in the new book Adam Silverman Ceramics, published this fall by Skira/Rizzoli.

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  Graphic and Gutsy

  Liisa Silander and RISD XYZ

  Some people just can't help themselves. They've got an indefinable restlessness—a drive to do things most people don’t. By the time she was 26, Jessica Walsh GD 08 had pushed the proverbial envelope enough that esteemed designer Stefan Sagmeister (who had been in the business since before she was born) invited her to become a partner in his NYC-based firm.

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  Divergent Thinking | RISD President

  John Maeda and RISD XYZ

  "Innovation happens when convergent thinkers—people who march straight ahead towards a clearly defined goal—combine forces with divergent thinkers, those who may wander professionally but who are comfortable being uncomfortable and who look for what is real. RISD harbors a lot of divergent, agile thinkers. . .". – John Maeda, RISD President 2008-13

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  RISD XYZ Fall/Winter 2013/14: Out of Bounds | Full Issue

  Liisa Silander

  ARTISTS AND DESIGNERS TEND TO QUESTION, PUSH, CHALLENGE, take risks—as part of the pure pleasure of making. These are things you’re expected to do, just as you’re expected to think outside the box, color outside the lines, question the rules, defy expectations. The freedom of thought art and design offer may be what has inspired people to make objects of beauty and wonder since well before we began writing and recording our own history. Yet, as liberating as it sounds, that freedom is also a challenge. As alums you know how to probe and ponder, and deliberately work with materials and processes to make your thoughts tangible in ways that others can see, feel and connect with. That urge to push your own expressive powers often leads. . . . From the editor's message by Liisa Silander