We’ve gotten some calls recently from interested alumni and parents, wondering when oh when they will receive their RISD by Design brochures.  Not to worry!  The copy is in the final stages of being massaged as we speak, and will very shortly be bounced off to the printer and then the mailhouse to make its merry way to you.

And while we’re talking about the schedule for this year, let me just give you a sneak peak into some of the exciting changes we’re making!

• Student-guided classroom tours on Friday
• Students from each year talking about their experiences at RISD in a Friday panel
• President Maeda speaking with alums and students about critical thinking and making at RISD on Saturday morning
• An open Saturday sketch class in the Museum’s Main Gallery
• Saturday afternoon Health and Fitness Fair in the Met
• Saturday Open Studio Tours complete with student guides for all majors, and maps, along with some departmental open houses
• Saturday Kids’ Workshop in the Museum
• Alumni Show and Tell at the Tap Room on Saturday
• Successful alumni entreprenuers talking about their RISD experience and how they make a living at what they love in Metcalf Auditorium on Saturday

As you can see, we’ve been busy!  We look forward to providing you with all the details soon.

Thinking of going to reunion but not sure your friends will be there?  Longing to reconnect with an old dorm mate, or see how a classmate’s work has developed since your last crit so many years ago?

In the spirit of our new presidency, MAKE CHANGE HAPPEN!  If you contact the Alumni Relations office, we can help you get on the horn, or the keyboard, or a letter writing kick, and contact those risdoids nearest and dearest to you, to ensure you rendezvous with everyone on your list.

And while you’re at it, why not organize a series of special events specifically for your class?  Tours, cocktail receptions and dinners all specifically tailored to your reunion year are just a few of the examples of events we’ve helped alumni organize in the past.  Give us a call!

This could be you!

Does your mailbox gape with emptiness every time you open it?   Do you find yourself wondering what happened to eviews when you check your gmail?

Don’t be frightened, but you may be………LOST!  It’s scary but true.  If you think this applies to you or something you may know, please let us know!  A list of lost alumni are listed here.  Email crobinso**at**risd.edu with updates and help us find you and your friends!  A vital RISD community is a connected RISD community.

In this NY Times article, Who needs a College Reunion?  I’ve got Facebook, a University of Virginia alumna posits her theory that staying connected via Facebook has replaced her desire/need for attending her college reunion.  Interesting idea– I’d be curious to hear thoughts from fellow RISD alumni on the subject.  I just traveled to the West Coast for several alumni events, and connected with some former classmates I hadn’t seen since graduation.  I can say unequivocally that my time spent with them these last few days was far more rewarding and engaging than any virtual communication.  For me, Facebook hugs just don’t make it - I want the real thing.  What about you?

Hard to believe that the time has come to plan again for reunion and parent weekend.  We are looking at making some changes to the weekend to enhance the experience for both alumni and parents, so stay tuned for updates as details become confirmed.  Of course, now would be a great time for you to share any thoughts on the type of programming you would like to see as well, and if it’s something we think we can pull off we will make every effort to!

If you missed out on being a part of this year’s RISD by Design, or if you just want to relive the fun, visit our photo gallery. It was a beautiful weekend and an exciting time to be back on campus!

Alum and Alumni Council member Joe Gebbia ‘05 ID/GD set up a table at the Alumni and Student Art Sale this past weekend to promote his newest venture, AirBedandBreakfast (something we’ve mentioned on the site before) and produced some pretty interesting promo boxes:

In his words, “The limited edition boxes were produced by the team at AirBedandBreakfast.com; the peer-to-peer travel site that encourages hosts to provide breakfast for guests each morning. 5% of proceeds on Saturday went to support the RISD Student Leadership Scholarship. As the first recipient of the award back in 2003, it was a welcomed cushion to my tuition payments. You can imagine it felt good to give a little something back.

The project was art directed by myself and AB&B co-founder Brian Chesky (ID ‘04). We collaborated with illustrators, photographers, copywriters, a design shop that includes Scott Thorpe (MFA GD ‘05), and a very cool printer, General Printing, run by Fred Fassett (Arch ‘69).  He’s on the alumni council.

More images, and the hilarious jingles, can be found at http://www.airbedandbreakfast.com/obamaos and http://www.airbedandbreakfast.com/capnmccains”

If you didn’t get a chance to make it to the inauguration of RISD’s 16th President, John Maeda, do the next best thing.  Visit our Inauguration Station at the old risd|works, at 20 Westminster Street (across from the library) this Saturday from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm.

We’ll have lots of gorgeous materials with the START HERE theme, put together by Michael Rock’84 GD and other alums at 2×4, a NYC-based award winning design studio, including START HERE t-shirts and screen printers, so you can have your own personalized version of our shirt.

We’ll also have photos from the day, so you can see what you missed, hot coffee to perk you up, tables to sit at and rest your aching feet, and an Ask Me station, to pick up any materials you might have forgotten to grab at registration.

Come join us!

The changing color of the leaves and the crisp night air always means that Fall is here and school has started. I used to walk along Benefit Street shuffling through the leaves on my way to class. I still am nostalgic about my time at RISD and being part of a community of passionate artists. It was a great experience. I come back because I love the RISD experience, I love to learn and art brings people together. I’m looking forward to seeing what students are doing, how design technology is evolving and seeing other alums. Lots to do, lots to see, lots of wonderful experiences to remember.

How does our work at RISD function in the world once we leave? If you were speaking with children interested in art & design, what would say about your experiences in this field? How does our work draw us to opportunities we cannot anticipate? Come hear recent graduates Brooks Hagan ‘02 TX, Naomi Kaly ‘06 D+M,Carmen Montoya ‘07 D+M and Meredith Pingree, ’03 SC, start the conversation on Friday, October 10th, in a panel discussion moderated by Interim Dean of Graduate Studies Chris Rose. The discussion, along with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, will take place in the newly designed internal atrium at the Westminster Lofts in the Peerless Building (150 Union Street), a half block away from Tazza, from six to eight pm.