AMES, Iowa — Iowa State University students in the College of Design’s first-year design studio will showcase a new collaborative project on campus next week.

The “Processional Form” project is a transition from the Wearables Design Show, said Nathan Edwards, associate teaching professor of art and visual culture, who coordinated the Wearables show from spring 2019 through spring 2023 and is serving as the director of the Processional Form parade.

“There’s a lifespan for projects, and it felt right to shift the project this year,” Edwards said.

“Students are in a way defining what this is, so keeping the spirit of play and also the willingness to have vulnerability in both teaching and learning is going to make the project exciting.”

Working in teams, 270 students in the college’s Design Studies 102 studio this fall have designed and constructed large-scale sculptural forms focused on the use of color, materials and creative construction methods. They’ve also had to consider and understand how the form moves and how that movement affects the form’s design and procession.

Studio instructors encouraged students in their class sections to draw inspiration for their projects from a variety of sources, from stained glass and glass sculptures to folklore, “spooky” seasonal stories and the stages of life. Then, using materials like cardboard, wire, fabric, tape, aluminum foil, string lights and more, the teams have created experimental works they will wear, carry, roll, fly or otherwise transport in a coordinated “processional performance.”

These processions, or parades, will take place Wednesday, Oct. 25, and Thursday, Oct. 26, during regular studio class times.

Procession Schedule

Students will begin in the first-floor atrium of the College of Design and move through the main entrance to the green space in front of the building. Groups will then proceed down the sidewalk, cross to the Student Innovation Center and parade through that building and outside near the Marston Water Tower before returning to the College of Design.

Wednesday, Oct. 25

8:50 – 11:40 a.m. Sections taught by Carol Faber, Peter Goche, David Reid, Anna Segner
12:05 – 2:55 p.m. Sections taught by Nathan Edwards, Mike Jackson, Liz Koerner, Megen O’Toole

Thursday, Oct. 26

7:55 – 10:45 a.m. Sections taught by Maral Jafari Ranjbar, Brandon Olsen, Jamie Osmundson, May Wilson
11 a.m. – 1:50 p.m. Sections taught by Kristen Greteman, Liz Koerner, Kim Maher, Tom Neppl
2:10 – 5 p.m. Section taught by Tom Neppl

The artwork is designed to fundamentally change as students transport and temporarily install it in different locations. The community is invited to stop by and observe the parades, which will take place throughout each of these blocks of time.

Contacts

Nathan Edwards, Design Studies 102 Processional Form Performance Director, nedwards@iastate.edu
Lauren Johnson, College of Design Communications Specialist, laujohn2@iastate.edu
Heather Sauer, College of Design Director of Strategic Communications, hsauer@iastate.edu

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