The Museum of Art and Design in New York City presents exhibits that dissolve the bridges between craft, art, and design. They also pay special attention to the creative process of artists. On a recent trip to the museum our class had the opportunity to learn more about how MAD celebrates and showcases working artists and their creative processes.

Upon our arrival we were met with a warm and personable welcome from the Manager of Artist Studios and Docent Programs, Carli Beseau. Carli began by telling our group more about the Artist Studio program. We learned that MAD is the only museum in New York City that offers an studio residency program that is open to the public at all times. Carli explained to us that MAD highly values their Artist Studios program because visitors are able to connect directly to contemporary artists through conversations about materials, techniques and concepts that benefits both the artist and the museum visitor. She also explained that the museum hopes that all visitors begin their visit on the top floor where the Artist Studios are located. Through surveys, MAD has found that visitors often had a more engaging experience exploring the museum after they had met and conversed with one of the Artists in Residence. We too started our visit on the top floor so that Carli could tell us more about this unique program!

Once on the 5th floor of the museum, we met in an art studio classroom. Carli initiated a discussion about valuing artists and the creation of platforms for artists at museums. She began by giving us a worksheet to take notes on and asking us to engage in small group conversations where we thought about answers to these three questions:

• “What is the importance of having the artist’s voice represented at museums?”
• “What does the voice look like? (Think about the ways an artist is represented at a museum from exhibitions to programs)
• Should museums have artist residency programs? If so, what should those residencies entail?

Our  group thought it is extremely important to have the artist’s voice represented in museums because that recognition elevates the role of an artist in our society and gives them  creative control regarding how their work is installed and ultimately how their work will be understood by the public. Having an artist’s voice present in the museum can result in more artist talks and artist involvement in the planning of educational programs for each exhibition. Our class also thought that not all museums should be obligated to have artist residency programs, however all museums exhibiting contemporary artwork should strive to create more professional development programs and opportunities for artists.

After our initial discussion we went to visit Uta P. Bekaia, a Studio Artist in Residence who was working in the open studio. Uta is a interdisciplinary artist who creates costumes, sculptures and videos that illustrate an imaginary, ancient, pagan culture from his home country of Georgia. We asked him how he liked the residency and if he appreciated always having his studio open to the public. He told us that due to the repetitive nature of his creative practice, it was relatively easy to work while talking to the public. He saw the experience of engaging with visitors as an “energy exchange where he is filled with enthusiasm.” Uta also said that the most challenging aspect of the residency is that he is only there one day a week. However he did see the Museum of Arts and Design as an institution where he felt welcome as an artist working in the realm of what is often considered design.

Uta P. Bekaia, Artist in Residence working in the open studio space at the Museum of Arts and Design

Our group returned to the studio classroom after visiting Uta to discuss our thoughts about the Artist Studio Program. Carli passed out a description of the program including program goals and objectives that is given to both interested applicants and museum funders. The reason she gave us a list of goals and objectives was because she wanted us to critique the list and edit it to reflect how we thought the program might be improved. Carli wanted to teach us about how important it is to be continually editing a program’s goals and objectives so that museums can measure and assess the outcomes. Our class thought the list of goals and objectives that Cari gave us were measurable, effective and clearly stated. However most of us thought of one addition which our professor, Christopher Richards brought up, stating that the program should be devoted to providing opportunities to artists from diverse backgrounds, we thought it could be stated more explicitly in the list of goals for the Artist Studio Program.

Overall I really enjoyed our visit to the Museum of Arts and Design, before arriving I did not expect to learn so much about their unique artist residency program. As an artist myself, It made me happy to hear and see that they truly value the creative process and provide a space for dialogue between artists and visitors.

-Rose Nestler