parsons festival 2017 celebrates next generation of artists and designers

The annual festival — part of NYCxDESIGN — features exhibitions and sales of work by students at The New School's Parsons School of Design

Held April 20-May 22 at Parsons galleries and studios, and spaces throughout New York City, including Milk Studios and Westbeth Artists Community

This year's festival features work by the first graduating class of students who completed Parsons' innovative undergraduate curriculum launched in 2013

Parsons Festival 2017, a celebration of the leading art and design school, features exhibitions and sales of student work, public programs, interactive installations, workshops, and special events.

NEW YORK, April 13, 2017 — The New School’s Parsons School of Design presents Parsons Festival 2017, a celebration of the leading art and design school featuring exhibitions and sales of student work, public programs, interactive installations, and workshops.

Parsons Festival will be held April 20-May 22 at The New School’s Greenwich Village campus and at venues throughout New York City, including Milk Studios in Chelsea and Westbeth Gallery in the West Village. This year’s festival is once again part of NYCxDESIGN, New York City’s official citywide celebration of design.

Parsons Festival kicks off April 20 with the opening of Second Nature, a multimedia exhibition of work by MFA Fine Arts students, at Westbeth Gallery, and concludes with The New School's commencement ceremony on May 19.

Highlights of this year’s Festival, many of which are free and open to the public, include:

• Second Nature — A multimedia exhibition of work by MFA Fine Arts students exploring the anthropocene — an era that began when human activities started to have a significant global impact on Earth’s geology and ecosystems. Through their works, artists represent and mediate the world around them, turning what seems to be natural situations or things into strange objects and vice versa. Opening Reception: Thursday, April 20, 6-8 p.m. On view daily, 6-8 p.m. through April 29. Westbeth, 55 Bethune Street.

• Spectrum — An exhibition of cutting-edge technology projects — games, virtual and augmented reality, and physical products — by students in the MFA Design and Technology program. Opening Reception: Tuesday, May 16, 6:30-10 p.m.; Performance and Screening: Tuesday, May 16, 8-10 p.m. On view daily, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., May 16-19. 6 East 16th St, 12th Floor.

• Photography Senior Thesis Exhibition — Works by BFA Photography students ranging from the reprsentational to the abstract that incorporate non-traditional photographic media such as video, sculpture, and installation. Opening Reception: Friday, May 12, 6-9 p.m. On view weekdays, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and weekends, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Milk Studios, 450 W. 15th St.

• Street Seats — A pop-up seating area for the public to relax, converse, and interact with the city, designed by students from Parsons' School of Constructed Environments (SCE) in collaboration with NYC Department of Transportation. On view May 16-21. Corner of 13th Street and Fifth Avenue.

This year's festival features work by the first graduating class of students who completed the innovative undergraduate curriculum that Parsons launched in 2013. A pivotal event in Parsons’ evolution, the launch of the new, four-year undergraduate curriculum brought into focus the defining characteristics of the school: its storied history as a pioneer in design education; its rigorous interrogation of the current state of art and design; its status as a large, comprehensive art and design school housed within a vibrant, research-driven university; and its place within the broader context of New York City, an immersive art and design laboratory and world of creative practice.

The work created by Parsons students — a diverse group of artists, designers, architects, photographers, filmmakers, technologists, scholars, and strategists — captures the school's commitment to using design to confront real-world issues and address human needs.

“Parsons students are rigorous, aware, and engaged practiioners who are making the world better, more sustainable, and more beautiful,” said Joel Towers, executive dean of Parsons. “We are thrilled to share their extraordinary work with the larger art and design community in New York City.”

Parsons School of Design, founded in 1896, is one of the leading institutions for art and design education in the world. Based in New York but active around the world, the school offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the full spectrum of art and design disciplines, as well as online courses, degree and certificate programs. Critical thinking and collaboration are at the heart of a Parsons education. 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.

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