What
Students in the NewSchool of Architecture and Design (NSAD) chapter of the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) won a national competition to host this year’s West Quad Conference by presenting a formal bid during the 2010 AIAS Grassroots Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C.

The Spring West Quad Conference,“Architecture in the Networked City,” offers professionals and student leaders the opportunity to explore how current urban spaces, sustainable designs and multinodal concepts can contribute to innovative and enhanced networked cities.

When
April 14–17, 2011

Where
NSAD campus in downtown San Diego at 1249 F Street. Attendance is by registration only. Deadline to register is April 10. For more information, please visit www.newschoolwestquad.com.

Why
“Architecture in the Networked City” examines how a new generation of architects, planners and designers can explore networked possibilities for the urban environment. Can technologies coupled with advancements in the Internet and social media impact our social interactions to define a new public realm? A variety of developments, from online systems to high-speed transit systems, will offer new forms of access and communication that could redefine the urban paradigm. The conference will address these issues using San Diego as an appropriate setting for discussion and learning.

Who
NSAD students Dan Ordonez and Carla Wijaya are the conference co-chairs. Allen Ghaida is AIAS chapter president.

My Mu (Watashi No Mu) Isamu Naguchi 1950, Courtesy of Naguchi Museum

Focusing on the dynamic relationship between craft and design, Crafting Modernism: Mid-Century American Art and Design showcases the bold new directions taken in media and aesthetics during the postwar years.

Organized by the Museum of Arts and Design, and on view from October 11, 2011 through January 15, 2012, this historic exhibition is the fourth part of an ongoing series of shows for the The Centenary Project—the first in-depth examination of American craft in the 20th century. The first three exhibitions were presented at the Museum between 1993 and 1995.

Co-curated by Jeannine Falino and Jennifer Scanlan, Crafting Modernism underscores the growth and transformation of American life during the turbulent 1960s through art, craft, and design. Featuring the work of more than 160 artists and designers, including iconic figures such as Wendell Castle, Sheila Hicks, and Jack Lenor Larsen, and lesser-known, though highly influential artists and designers such as Katherine Choy, and Hui Ka Kwong, Crafting Modernism will demonstrate through furniture, textiles, tableware, ceramics, glass, jewelry, sculpture and painting, how the period between 1945 and 1969 proved a key transitional era for American craft and design. A scholarly 360-page catalogue, published by Harry N. Abrams, will accompany the exhibition.