The Fed Galleries @ KCAD Kick Off 2019 Programming with Exhibition Focused on Time and Process

Process-based art and design is coming to West Michigan this February in a new exhibition at Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University’s (KCAD’s) The Fed Galleries @ KCAD. Overlap + Dissolve: A Lifelong Collaboration will run from February 19, 2019 through March 16, 2019.

Overlap + Dissolve: A Lifelong Collaboration will showcase the collaborative work of designers Nancy Skolos and Tom Wedell. Partners in life and work for over four decades, the pair’s collaboration began as students at Cranbrook Academy of Art. Their work converges graphic design and photography to create intricate collages of 3D images influenced by modern painting, technology, and architecture. With the poster as their chosen format, they move deftly between analog and digital realms and blur the boundaries between 3D form-making and the 2D surface. Through a curated collection of posters, collages, and models, this exhibition emphasizes Skolos’ and Wedell’s shared passion for process and lifelong learning.

Nancy Skolos and Tom Wedell (credit: Charlie Rozier)

“So often we only see finished work or an end product on display,” says Curator of Exhibitions Michele Bosak. “In addition to exploring the finished work that Skolos and Wedell will exhibit, viewers will also get to take abehind-the-scenes look at the couple’s process, which is beautifully layered and complex, merging both analog and digital techniques.”

Skolos’ and Wedell‘s relationship has evolved tremendously over the years and they currently balance their commitments to professional practice and teaching at the Rhode Island School of Design. In addition to studio work and teaching, the pair have authored two books: “Type, Image, Message,” published by Rockport in 2006, and “Graphic Design Process,” published by Laurence King in 2012 and distributed by Chronicle Books in the US, as well as in five other countries and languages.

Poster design by Nancy Skolos and Tom Wedell (image courtesy of the artists)

Further imbuing Overlap + Dissolve with the spirit of working across disciplinary boundaries, KCAD’s Design West Michigan has collaborated with The Fed Galleries to hold both a lecture from Skolos and Wedell and a workshop led by the pair in conjunction with the exhibition. The lecture, which will double as an opening reception, will take place on Friday, March 1 at 5:30 p.m. in room 217 of KCAD’s Woodbridge N. Ferris Building (17 Pearl St. NW). The lecture/reception is free to attend, but attendees are required to RSVP via Eventbrite.

The workshop, “Collage as a Process for Poster Design,” will enable participants to observe Skolos’ and Wedell’s finely tuned creative process firsthand before getting the opportunity to practice it themselves and ultimately, to create a poster of their own. The workshop, happening Saturday, March 2 from 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., is also free and open to the public, but attendees are required to RSVP via Eventbrite.

Overlap + Dissolve: A Lifelong Collaboration is free and open to the public. For more information visit kcad.edu/galleries.