Gallery of Art | University of Northern Iowa

Design from the UNI Permanent Art Collection

January 25 – February 26, 2021

Curated by Gallery Director Darrell Taylor and dedicated to Emeritus Professor of Graphic Design Phil Fass. Presented in association with the 2021 Elena Diane Curris Biennial Design Exhibition

This online exhibition based on objects in from the UNI Permanent Art Collection branches roughly into concepts about color theory, typography, architecture, linear perspective, economy/minimalism, graphics (symbols, diagrams, illustration) and other gestalt principles. With a hearty thanks to Walt Whitman, design “contains multitudes.”

The Collection, which began as a tool for teaching art studio classes, has not always represented design well, but we are working on that. Despite our past collecting inclinations, we do have a number of superb design and design-related objects to present. We are hopeful this exhibition will encourage a transformation in our holdings.

Encompassing American, German, British, and Italian designers/artists, this exhibition is by no means comprehensive; however, one can hardly argue with the authority that Josef Albers, Warren Platner, and Jessica Helfand bring to the table. This selection extends from the last mid-century to very nearly the present and includes letterpress, digital prints, and screenprints as well as painting, photography, and even jewels and precious metal. The earliest acquisition is the Albers painting and the most recent is a three-dimensional exhibition catalogue from 1970, produced for a Paolo Soleri retrospective.

We hope you enjoy and are inspired by this grouping of very rarely curated design-related objects from the Collection.

Albers' Homage to the Square: Blue Call
Albers' Homage to the Square: Blue Call

Josef Albers (German, 1888-1976), Homage to the Square: Blue Call, oil on aluminum, 1955-8 / UNI 1959.001 / UNI Department of Art purchase, Sidney Janis Gallery, NY / This painting is a signature object in the Collection. With deep associations within both the Bauhaus (Germany) and Black Mountain College (U.S.), Albers was interested in creative investigations of color theory as evidenced in his Homage to the Square series of paintings and prints in which tremulous optical effects are created through juxtapositions of color and texture.

Baeder's The Red Wood
Baeder's The Red Wood

John Baeder (American, b. 1938), The Red Wood, etching and collage, ed. H.C., 1980 / UNI 1984.575 / Gift of Robert Brooks, Port Washington, NY, through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation. / Associated with the Photorealist art movement in the U.S., Baeder began his career as an art director at a New York advertising agency. Baeder’s work reveals an affinity for idiomatic and domestic architecture and their correlations to cultural expression.

Bayer's Yellow Centre
Bayer's Yellow Centre

Herbert Bayer (Austrian American, 1900-85), Yellow Centre, screenprint, ed. 23/75, 1970 / UNI 1979.010 / Gift of Jerome Singer, Bloomfield, MI, through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation. / Bayer’s endeavors also included fine art, architecture, typography, and environmental and graphic design. Bayer was a student of Bauhaus instructors Wassily Kandinsky and László Moholy-Nagy and worked with the American photographer Edward Steichen on the historic 1942 MoMA exhibition Road to Victory.

Caulfield's Coat Stand
Caulfield's Coat Stand

Patrick Caulfield (British, 1936-2005), Coat Stand, screenprint, ed. 60/72, 1973 / UNI 1980.031 / Gift of Robert Borns; Indianapolis, IN, through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation. A depiction of a coat stand that references the work of design company Herman Miller, Inc. / Painter, printmaker, and set designer Patrick Caulfield was nominated for the Turner Prize in 1987. He is most often associated with the Pop Art movement though he drew inspiration from the Surrealists and ancient Minoan art.

Cutts' Parachutes and Umbrellas
Cutts' Parachutes and Umbrellas

Simon Cutts (British, b. 1944), Parachutes and Umbrellas, screenprint, ed. 23/50 1968 / UNI 1984.608 / Robert Brooks, Port Washington, NY, through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation. / Poet, designer, editor, and publisher, Simon Cutts has worked with Tarasque Press and Coracle Press since the 1960s.

Helfand's Nature Wheel No. 1
Helfand's Nature Wheel No. 1

Jessica Helfand (American, b. 1960), Nature Wheel No. 1, volvelle information wheel wall clock, 2018 / UNI 2018.027 / a Society6 online artist product and gift of Roy R. and Mary Snyder Behrens, Dysart, IA. / Helfand is the founding editor of Design Observer, a website about graphic design, architecture, urban design, and popular culture. Her work was featured in the Gallery’s inaugural The Reach and Richness of Design: the Elena Diane Curris Biennial Design Exhibition, curated by UNI Emeritus Professor and Distinguished Scholar Roy R. Behrens.

Hughes' Sticking Out Room
Hughes' Sticking Out Room

Patrick Hughes (British, b. 1939), Sticking Out Room, screenprint, ed. 39/75, 1973 / UNI 1982.038. / Gift of Christie’s Contemporary Art, New York, NY, through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation. / A fascination with optical illusion led the artist to create reverse perspective or “reverspective,” and the 1970 installation Sticking Out Room was the name of the first of these explorations. This print using the same title is a phantom room that when cut and assembled as instructed suggests differing illusions depending on lighting.

Ichiyama's Specimen Sheets from the GramLee Collection of Historic Wood Type
Ichiyama's Specimen Sheets from the GramLee Collection of Historic Wood Type

Dennis Y. Ichiyama (American, b. 1944), Specimen Sheets from the GramLee Collection of Historic Wood Type, letterpress portfolio, 2009 / UNI 2018.046 / Gift of the designer, Dennis Y. Ichiyama, West Lafayette, IN, in honor of UNI Professor Roy R. Behrens retirement from UNI in 2018. / Former Professor of Visual Communications Design at Purdue University, Purdue, IN, Ichiyama’s design focus is woodblock prints, letterpress, and commercial trademarks. He was featured in the 2010 independent documentary Typeface directed by Emmy-nominated Justine Nagan.

Kirschenbaum's untitled, digital print
Kirschenbaum's untitled, digital print

Bernard Kirschenbaum (American, 1924-2016), Untitled, digital print, 2011 / UNI 2019.016 / Gift of Verlaine Boyd, Ithaca, NY. / A 1952 graduate of the Chicago Institute of Design, Kirschenbaum was one of the founders of the architectural firm Geodesics, Inc. and in 1958 built the first residential geodesic dome. He was Professor at the Royal Institute of Fine Arts in Stockholm, Sweden from 1985 to 1991.

Miss' Photo Drawing (Fleur Bridge)
Miss' Photo Drawing (Fleur Bridge)

Mary Miss (American, b. 1944), Photo Drawing (Fleur Bridge), archival digital print, ed. 21/50+5, 1996 / UNI 2015.016 / Gift of Jean R. Hall, Waterloo, IA, who purchased it from the Northeast Iowa Print Club, a commissioned series produced between 1990-2004. / A prominent artist and designer, Miss has a distinguished career in site-specific and environmental art. Her Greenwood Pond: Double Site public artwork is a feature of the Des Moines Arts Center’s Museum Park. The subject of this print, Fleur Bridge on the Raccoon River in Des Moines, was the site chosen for a city restoration project in 1995-96 due to frequent flooding.

Morgan's Le Corbusier in New York
Morgan's Le Corbusier in New York

Barbara Morgan (American, 1900-92), Le Corbusier in New York, gelatin silver print, 1946 / UNI 1984.536 / Gift of John Horne, New York, NY, through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation. / Photographer, printmaker, and painter, Morgan was a co-founder of Aperture magazine and the creator of “light drawings.” Part of her “Changing New York Series,” this photograph is representative of the artist’s avid interests in modern art, modern dance, and modern architecture of the 1930s and 40s.

Phillips' The New National Theatre Is Yours
Phillips' The New National Theatre Is Yours

Tom Phillips (British, b. 1937), The New National Theatre Is Yours, screenprint, ed. 216/250, 1976 / UNI 1980.134 / Gift of Marvin A. Sackner, M.D., Miami Beach, FL, through the Martin S. Ackerman Foundation. / A member of the Royal Academy since 1984, Phillips is known primarily for his prints and collages, though he has also worked in set design, painting, and concrete poetry. This promotional poster design is a design commission that features his characteristic bright Pop Art color and bubbled texts.

Platner's Coffee Table and Armchairs
Platner's Coffee Table and Armchairs

Warren Platner (American 1919-2006), Coffee Table and Armchairs, nickel-plated wire, wool, nylon, and glass, 1975 / UNI 1996.007.01-.05 / produced by Knoll International, New York, NY. Gift of Homeland Bank, N.A., Waterloo, IA. / Platner was an architect, interior designer, and icon of mid-century modern furniture design. After a six-year engagement working for Eero Saarinen, he produced a series of signature, sculptural designs like this table and chairs for Knoll International.

Roach's Olga (bracelet)
Roach's Olga (bracelet)

Ruth Roach (American 1913-79), Olga (bracelet), silver and opal, ca. 1913-79 / UNI 1964.006 / UNI Department of Art purchase. / Roach studied at the School of Art Institute of Chicago and later taught jewelry at UNI (formerly Iowa State Teachers College). This bracelet represents one of the few wearable art objects in the Collection and the only one made of gemstones and precious metal.

Soleri's Documenta: the Paolo Soleri Retrospective
Soleri's Documenta: the Paolo Soleri Retrospective

Paolo Soleri (Italian, 1919-2013), Documenta: the Paolo Soleri Retrospective, cardboard, paper, and prints, 1970 / UNI 2019.019 / Gift of Verlaine Boyd, Ithaca, NY. An atypical exhibition catalogue with 17 components made for a retrospective held at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, 1970. / Architect Soleri, a student of Frank Lloyd Wright in the 1940s, advanced the concept of “arcology,” an integration of architecture and ecology in urban planning.

David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens untitled print, the Iowa Insect series
David Versluis and Roy R. Behrens untitled print, the Iowa Insect series

David Versluis (American, b. 1953) and Roy R. Behrens (America, b. 1946), Untitled from the Iowa Insect series, giclée print, 2012 / UNI 2018.042 / Gift of Roy R. and Mary Snyder Behrens, Dysart, IA. / Versluis, Emeritus Professor of Art at Dordt University, and Behrens, Emeritus Professor of Art and Distinguished Scholar at UNI, collaborated on and completed ten digital montage prints on the subject of Iowa insects via email exchange during January of 2012.

Westrom's untitled acrylic sculpture
Westrom's untitled acrylic sculpture

Jeff Westrom (American, b. 1959), Untitled, acrylic, 1982 / UNI 1984.009 / Gift of the UNI Office of the V.P. & Provost, a purchase award from the 1982 Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition. / UNI alumnus Westrom is co-founder, co-owner, and president of Creative Services at J.W. Morton and Associates, an advertising agency in Cedar Rapids, IA. This sculpture was completed while Westrom was a student at UNI and is featured in the UNI Department of Art 75th Anniversary Catalogue published in 1982.

Yee-Haw Industries' G Love and Special Sauce
Yee-Haw Industries' G Love and Special Sauce

Yee-Haw Industries (American letterpress company, Knoxville, TN, 1997-2012; re-branded Church of Type then Voodoo Rocket, Santa Monica, CA, 2013-present), G Love and Special Sauce, letterpress and woodblock on recycled kraft paper, 2010 / UNI 2013.093 / Gift of Professor Jeffery Byrd, Cedar Falls, IA. / This poster design advertises the 2001 fall tour of the Philadelphia alt hip hop band G. Love & Special Sauce. Yee-Haw Industries presented a solo exhibition at the UNI Gallery of Art in 2010, during which this artwork was on display.