May 19, 2001

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ann Hudner, 401 454-6347, ahudner@risd.edu; Brien McDaniel, 401 454-6342, bmcdanie@risd.edu

Rhode Island School of Design's Department of Furniture Design Showcases Innovative Student Work at the 13th Annual International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF)

RISD is One of Only Four Schools Selected to Participate

PROVIDENCE, RI -- The Department of Furniture Design at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) is showcasing innovative graduate and undergraduate student work in the 13th annual International Furniture Fair (ICFF) in New York City. ICFF is a highly acclaimed international exposition for contemporary designs and designers.

To promote the cause of design education, ICFF held a call-for-entries from design schools for inclusion in this year's fair. Schools were asked to submit singular concepts by students of original products with prototypes. Submissions were reviewed and judged by editors from design publications and sponsors of ICFF: Abitare, Domus, Frame, Interni, Intramuros, Metropolis, and Wallpaper*. RISD joins other designated institutions, including Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, CA; Parsons School of Design, NYC; and Savannah College of Art and Design, Savannah, GA.

This is the 12th year RISD has participated in the International Contemporary Furniture Fair. In 2000, the Department of Furniture Design accepted an invitation to showcase student and faculty work at the Salone Internazional del Mobile in Milan, Italy.

Rhode Island School of Design's undergraduate and graduate programs in furniture design are unique in the way that they combine design, fine art, craft and theory. Students not only focus on the making and design of their objects, but on the larger cultural contexts of their ideas. Additionally, the programs stress research and professional practice.

Rhode Island School of Design has earned a worldwide reputation as the preeminent art and design college in the country. Today, with over 16,000 alumni, the college enrolls approximately 1,800 students and 200 graduate students from the United States and more than 47 countries, offering degree programs in the fine arts, architecture and design disciplines and art education. Academic programs include research and design initiatives, the exploration of art criticism and contemporary cultural concerns as well as international exchange programs. Each year, RISD hosts prominent and accomplished artists, critics and authors to its campus. Included within the college is The RISD Museum, housing 80,000 works of art in its permanent collection. RISD information: 401 454-6100