MARIA BLAISSE: MOVING MESHES

Exhibition on Pioneering Dutch Designer is Focus of
Parsons Fellowship Program at Domaine de Boisbuchet

Marie Blaisse: Moving Meshes, photo credit: Enrique Mellado

Lessac, France, July 17, 2012—Domaine de Boisbuchet, a country estate in the Southwest of France that is renowned as an international site of experimentation in design and architecture, presents Moving Meshes, an exhibition of the work of the Dutch designer Maria Blaisse. The exhibition is being presented in collaboration with Parsons The New School for Design.

Maria Blaisse works at the forefront of research, education and design of textiles and flexible materials. Engaging art and design practice, Blaisse's career mixes performance, fashion and architecture, including collaborations with contemporaries such as fashion designer Issey Miyake and choreographer Michael Schumacher. This exhibition, which includes five delicate bamboo works and a video projection, lies at the intersection of design and movement. As a narrative, Moving Meshes leads the viewer through a sculptural experience exploring the body as a critical element in the animation of material and form.

Through a fellowship program, Parsons students Oscar Trujillo Amezquita, Laura Jane Kenny, Elizabeth Parker and Santiago Peraza assisted exhibition designer Mikaël Baillairgé in the design and installation of the exhibition, which opens the 2012 season at Boisbuchet. Set within 300 square meters of space in the Boisbuchet chateau, Parsons students worked with the exhibition team to install objects, images, text, sound and video; construct, paint and arrange backdrops for display; and create way-finding maps.

The fellowship program was developed by Parsons in collaboration with the Centre International de Recherche et d'Éducation Culturelle et Agricole (CIRECA), the organization that oversees cultural activities at Boisbuchet, which is headed by Alexander von Vegesack, co-founding director of the Vitra Design Museum. It is in its second year—in 2011, students helped design an exhibition of Japanese household objects entitled Naked Shapes.

The collaboration between CIRECA and Parsons was initiated by Bridget O'Rourke, director of Parsons Europe, and Alexander von Vegesack. Parsons Europe is a network of academic initiatives, exhibitions, cultural and industry partnerships, government and NGO-supported projects throughout Europe.

About Maria Blaisse
Blaisse studied textile design at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam and has since participated in major exhibitions in Kyoto, Paris, New York, London, Perth, and Amsterdam. Blaisse has lectured widely, sharing her works on material, form and movement. She has participated in numerous collaborations with contemporaries from disciplines including dance, fashion, art and design. For more information, please visit www.mariablaisse.com.

About Parsons The New School for Design
Parsons The New School for Design is one of the leading art and design schools in the world, and builds on The New School's legacy of progressive ideals, scholarship, and pedagogy. For over a century, the school has pioneered art and design education, establishing the first programs in fashion, interior design and communication design in the nation. Based in New York City but active around the world, the school offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the full spectrum of art and design disciplines. Parsons graduates are leaders in their respective fields, with a shared commitment to creatively and critically addressing the complexities of life in the 21st century. For more information, please visit www.parsons.newschool.edu.

About Domaine Boisbuchet
The Domaine de Boisbuchet, an idyllic country estate in the Poitou-Charentes and Limousin region, features a large landscaped park with pavilions designed by internationally acclaimed architects, temporary exhibitions in its uninhabited, 19th-century chateau, and a bistro with a small design shop located in a historic mill on the banks of the river Vienne. In cooperation with the Centre Georges Pompidou and Vitra Design Museum, a series of workshops are organized in the summer months under the direction of internationally recognized artists, designers and architects. For more information, please visit www.boisbuchet.org.

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COMMUNICATIONS AND EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

Media Contacts:

Deborah Kirschner, Parsons
212.229.5667 x4310
[email protected]

Catherine Aknin, Boisbuchet
+33 (0)5.45.89.67.00
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