Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport and the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design have joined forces to produce a new art project at the airport.
MIAD’s colorful new art installation can be found on Concourse D, located near the gates for Delta Air Lines and Spirit Airlines. The first installation – Project Reframe – is the work of 2021 MIAD graduate Liz Geoffrey.
Mitchell’s collaboration with MIAD underscores its commitment to showcasing the community to the millions of travelers who fly in and out of the airport every year, Airport Director Brian Dranzik said.
“Liz Geoffrey’s work represents the creativity that MIAD students have been known for over the past 50 years,” he said. “We look forward to continuing to display engaging art from MIAD students and alumni at the airport, enhancing the travel experience for many years to come.”
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Geoffrey created Project Reframe in response to the negative effect the COVID-19 pandemic has had on mental health. The project was part of Geoffrey’s senior capstone project at MIAD. A series of 1,000 positive affirmation postcards were made using letterpress printing as part of the project. Viewers were invited to personalize and mail the postcards, spreading encouragement and fostering connections during a time of pandemic isolation.
MIAD’s airport display reimagines the original project, further exploring Geoffrey’s passion for both analog printing and mental health.
“Liz Geoffrey’s project is an example of our students’ and graduates’ creative skills and the deep empathy that fuels their work, whether they major in illustration like Liz, or in product design, fashion and apparel design or our other majors,” MIAD President Jeffrey Morin said. “Creating innovative solutions for area business while also providing learning and internship opportunities to hundreds of high school students is central to our college’s mission.”
A limited supply of Geoffrey’s postcards representing the exhibit will be available inside the TripAdvisor store located adjacent to the exhibit.
Project Reframe will be on display at Mitchell through at least the end of 2024. A new student exhibition, curated by Monica Miller, MIAD’s director of galleries and community engagement. will be installed sometime in 2025.
Learn more about the genesis of Project Reframe and Geoffrey’s other work at lizgeoffrey.wordpress.com.
