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CLEVELAND INSTITUTE OF ART FACULTY AND ALUMNI TO PRESENT ARTWORK AT INGENUITY FESTIVAL

One-of-a-kind festival explores the intersection of art and technology

Cleveland - Six faculty members and four recent graduates of The Cleveland Institute of Art will present ideas and artwork at Cleveland's third annual Ingenuity Festival of Art and Technology. This year's festival celebrating technology and the arts takes place July 19 through 22 at Playhouse Square, the Idea Center, Cleveland State University and several Theater District storefronts on Euclid Avenue and East 14^th Street and East 18th Street.

A new version of the game "Ripon," created by Institute faculty members Troy Richards and Knut Hybinette, will be featured in the State Theatre lobby throughout the festival. Richards, heads the Institute's Drawing Department and is an assistant professor of foundation and T.I.M.E.-Digital Arts (Technology and Integrated Media Environment). Hybinette is also an assistant professor of foundation and T.I.M.E.-Digital Arts. Set in a near-future world of cultural collapse in Ripon, Wisconsin, the game is designed to undermine the notion of violence as entertainment. Up to 10 players can simultaneously play "Ripon," as multiple monitors and projectors display large-scale digital prints depicting the world of the game that cover the walls surrounding the players. "Ripon" was recently exhibited at the LMCC Swingspace, a gallery in Lower Manhattan.

Four recent graduates of the Institute will also participate in Ingenuity with installations that will be on view for the duration of the four-day festival. Samantha Schartman, a 2007 graduate of the Institute's painting program, serves as technology assistant for the festival and will show her Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) installation, "Mission Control," at the Idea Center, 1375 Euclid Ave. Noah Morrison-Hrbek, who graduated in 2007 with a sculpture major, will display his BFA installation at 1305 Euclid Avenue. Michael Lehto, a 2007 graduate of the Institute's master of fine arts (MFA) program in digital arts, will present "Hidden Costs," an interactive, computer-based installation exposing the hidden costs of products not apparent to consumers at 1516 Euclid Avenue. Lehto is a former NASA Glenn Research Center computer programmer. Jared Bendis, a 2004 graduate in art education, will present "Found in a Crowd" together with well-known local artist Rita Montlack. Bendis and Montlack will photograph images of festival-goers' faces as they pass the Allen Theatre marquee windows and incorporate them into a video on a large screen plasma display. The faces will be animated and seem to dance on and off the screen, changing every time a new face is added.

Four Institute faculty members will participate in Ingenuity's "Synergy" lecture series at noon on July 22 in Cleveland State's Monte Ahuja Hall. Gary Sampson, Chuck Tucker, Saul Ostrow and their colleague from Case Western Reserve University, Fred Collopy, will discuss how a multi-institutional graduate program in art and design would contribute to Greater Cleveland's economy and culture. Sampson is professor of liberal arts and associate dean of graduate studies at the Institute, Ostrow is chair of the Institute's Visual Arts and Technologies Environment and associate professor of painting, Tucker is chair of the Institute Integrated Media Environment, and Collopy is professor of information systems and cognitive science at CWRU.

Dan Cuffaro, chair of the Institute's Design Environment and head of the Industrial Design Department, will also participate in the "Synergy" series, along with Ned Hill, vice president for economic development at Cleveland State University. Together they will present an innovative plan for a design district in downtown Cleveland. Cuffaro is. Cuffaro and Hill will speak at 11:00 a.m. and again at 1:30 p.m. on July 22.

All four Institute faculty members, and several other speakers, are scheduled to participate in a summit at 2:00 p.m. July 22 in Ahuja Hall on the topic of technology integration.

Many Ingenuity events are free to the public, including performances by Grandmaster Flash, the NASA Space Palace and all Family Village activities. Tickets to the Ingenuity Festival featured events can be purchased at http://www.ingenuitycleveland.com/, in person at the State Theatre Ticket Office or by phone at 216/771-8403. Admission to Ingenuity is $5 per person or $15 for a four-day pass. Children under 12 are free.

Founded in 1882, The Cleveland Institute of Art is an independent college of art and design committed to leadership and vision in all forms of visual arts education. The Institute makes enduring contributions to education and extends its programs to the public through gallery exhibits, lectures, a continuing education program and The Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque, an art and independent film program. The Cleveland Institute of Art...Making Art Work.