TRANS-ID


What a treat it is to experience the many visually stunning, large-scale exhibits on our campus.

Right now, the “Pink” and “Fashion Unraveled” exhibits at The Museum at FIT beckon to passersby on Seventh Avenue, as does the newly opened Gallery at the Fred. P. Pomerantz Art and Design Center—with its soaring glass façade—which is hosting “The Future of  the Human Experience,” a show featuring figurative work by FIT students, faculty, and alumni.

And all this is occurring amid the flurry of activity on our exterior walls as this year’s “Chalk” exhibit, a 300-foot-long, street-level mural, is literally being chalked in place along Seventh Avenue and West 28th Street by our illustration majors to great neighborhood interest and enthusiasm.

But along with the large-scale exhibits on display all over campus, we are fortunate to also host many that are smaller in scale. One that particularly captured my attention is on display in the corridor outside of the Great Hall. Called TRANS: ID, it is no less intriguing and fascinating than our larger productions. The show includes the work of FIT students, as well as students from Manchester Fashion Institute in the UK, and Bunka College of Fashion in Tokyo, Japan.

Participating students were asked to develop a visual interpretation of a word with the prefix “trans.” The response from this international group of students was remarkable. I was especially impressed by the variety of “trans” words that they chose (ie: transpose, translate, transgender, transformation, translucent, transit)—and the way the words were visually interpreted through photography, illustration, graphic design, fashion design, jewelry design, and toy design. One of my favorite features of the show, along with its international reach, are the brief, written explanations by the students that explain what motivated their choice of words and approach to the images. These provide a glimpse into the thought processes behind the images, which I found to be both fascinating and thought-provoking.

The exhibit was co-curated by Professor Melanie Reim, acting associate dean of the School of Art and Design, along with colleagues from Manchester Fashion Institute and Bunka College of Fashion. The team selected 50 images, of which 13 were by FIT students. The poster for the show was created by Jose Martinez, a freshman in our Graphic design program.

The show runs through November 2. I’ve included some images from the show, but I hope you will have an opportunity to enjoy it in person.