Author Archives: Rachel Ellner

Toy Design’s Susan Adamo Baumbach on Whimsy, Twists and Tech

by Rachel Ellner Posted on March 22, 2023

Professor Susan Adamo Baumbach, longtime faculty member, is now acting chair of FIT’s high-profile Toy Design department. Thriving in the fast-moving world of design, refinement, production and sales of toys and games, is a challenge she meets. While she’s a … Continue reading →

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The Radical Act of Repair: Artful, Visible Mending

by Rachel Ellner Posted on March 15, 2023

It may be a radical idea, but you don’t always need to hide your mending. Your stitching can be admired. Students and faculty members recently participated in “Radical Acts of Repair,” a workshop featuring noted textile artist Celia Pym remotely … Continue reading →

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From Graffiti to Cornfields, Sarah Merenda Has Customers’ Walls Covered

by Rachel Ellner Posted on February 17, 2023

Sarah Merenda’s Fine Arts teacher, Prof. Marcy Rosenblat, told Merenda that she really needed to “work big.” Prof. Rosenblat was right, but she had no idea how big. Merenda entered FIT as a graffiti artist and skilled wallpaper hanger. Indeed … Continue reading →

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Deconstructing Knitwear into New Designs

by Rachel Ellner Posted on January 13, 2023

What’s old can be cut up, re-stitched, and combined with other garments to create complex, fascinating designs – in other words, made new again. Students in Fashion Design Professor Tom Scott’s Intro to Knitwear class (FD357) were assigned to upcycle … Continue reading →

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The spider, the pig, and the child in all of us: How FIT students spun a web for Charlotte

by Rachel Ellner Posted on December 9, 2022

For the past month, people walking by FIT on 7th Avenue between 27th and 28th Streets have been caught in Charlotte’s Web. Students in Prof. Glenn Sokoli’s Advanced Store Window Design class transformed the Colin Burch Window in the Pomerantz … Continue reading →

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Two Jewelry Design students win Cultured Pearl Association awards

by Rachel Ellner Posted on November 28, 2022

Two FIT second-year students, Victor Rouesné and Luna Gwak, have won the Cultured Pearl Association of America’s design competition, student division. This was the first year that student work was judged separately. Students had to sketch (by hand or with … Continue reading →

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FIT Adjunct Cal Freundlich Makes Good Music!

by Rachel Ellner Posted on November 14, 2022

Music has always played an important role in film, starting with silent movies accompanied by pianos played in theaters. Interesting plot twist: FIT has been making a bit of noise lately when it comes to this. Cal Freundlich, who teaches … Continue reading →

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Fine Arts Professor Nick Lamia’s wilderness experiences captured in two artistic mediums

by Rachel Ellner Posted on October 12, 2022

Fine Arts professor Nick Lamia began photographing and painting abstract landscapes during an artists’ residency at the prestigious MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire over a decade ago. He would ride his bike along the countryside and come back and paint … Continue reading →

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Mia Murphy’s photography soars on Times Square

by Rachel Ellner Posted on September 27, 2022

Photographic skill, an overwhelming attention to detail, and persistent desire combined to land a dream assignment for recent Photography grad Mia Murphy. Her art appeared on a digital billboard installation at Times Square during New York Fashion Week 2022. It … Continue reading →

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Prof. Jake Friedman and the Mouse Animators Who Roared: The Great Disney Strike of 1941

by Rachel Ellner Posted on September 13, 2022

There’s a technical and conceptual revolution – in fact, multiple revolutions – taking place in the animation industry today. In an age that has fostered unique national styles, content ranging from shorts and feature-length narratives to games, animation almost indistinguishable … Continue reading →

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