15 Years of Impact: Provost’s Perspective

ArtCenter’s mission statement — Learn to Create. Influence Change. — encapsulates the present educational mandate of our college across all of the diverse programs we offer in our undergraduate and graduate departments. Amongst the most recent of these programs, the Designmatters concentration provides ArtCenter students and faculty the opportunity to expand their influence to areas of social justice and innovation within both not-for-profit and corporate environments.

The outcomes for students from this particular experiential learning, made possible by Designmatters courses, embody this institutional mandate with unique force. In the span of the past fifteen years, this program has evolved and grown to become internationally recognized as leading pedagogy in this field. As exemplified by the many testimonials of this campaign, it is rewarding to witness how Designmatters has helped shape the many creative, purpose-driven trajectories that our alumni have taken forward into their careers.

The powerful work produced by students in our Designmatters courses reminds us of the unique responsibility that an art and design education has in influencing genuine and substantive change in our practices and in the world.

Fred Fehlau was appointed provost at ArtCenter in November 2010. He oversees the College’s 11 undergraduate and seven graduate educational departments, Public Programs, Student Affairs, the Library, Archives and exhibitions. Previously, Fehlau held the positions of dean of Academic Affairs, chair of the Foundation Studies Department, chair of the Senior Education Committee and interim chair of the Graphic Design Department. As a faculty member, he received seven Great Teacher Awards from three different departments.  

He has exhibited his painting and sculpture internationally in both museums and private galleries and is in the permanent collections of MOCA, MoMA, LACMA, the Newport Harbor Art Museum, the Smithsonian and Corcoran Gallery of Art. He has published both criticism and essays in various art journals, magazines and catalogues and has acted as a curator for a number of group exhibitions. Fehlau holds a BFA and MFA in Fine Art from ArtCenter. 

Help us celebrate 15 Years of Designmatters by using the hashtag #DM15Yrs

Catch up on the entire campaign at  designmattersatartcenter.org/category/dm15 

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