Thirst | Communication Design Practice

CHGO DSGN at the Chicago Cultural Center

The City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events invited Rick Valicenti to curate a major exhibition of recent object and graphic design. CHGO DSGN showcases over 200 designers and more than 300 works. A record-breaking 2,000 people attended the opening reception on May 30, 2014. The exhibition attracted over one visitor per minute — 66,000 visitors by closing.

[CHGO DSGN] is a fantastic snapshot of what’s going on here and a great testament to the talent we have in this town. A real contribution to the field.
— Zoë Ryan, Chair and Curator of Architecture and Design at The Art Institute of Chicago

CHGO DSGN may be the arrowhead of a new talent and tourism attraction strategy, oriented toward the global creative class.
— F. Philip Barash, Assistant Design Editor of Newcity

Rick, I'm grateful for all that you're doing for Chicago's design community—you're generating terrific energy, presenting design in remarkably engaging ways, and helping make design feel more integral to the life of the city. We're very lucky to have you here.
— Cheryl Towler Weese, Studio Blue

Exhibition photography © Hedrich Blessing Photographers

Awards: Chicago Design Archive 2014

Magdalena Wistuba created a mock-up for the title wall in Processing. Price stickers were then placed on the projected image.

Lauren Nassef's editorial illustration becomes a wall graphic in one of the vignettes.

Sandro's 80-foot portrait titled Homage to Richard Avedon's Chicago 7 features more than 100
of the designers in the show.

John Pobojewski's Metallics is projected inside of the theater
and is accompanied by two works on iPads by Leviathan.

Felicia Ferrone's ZigZag Bookcase holds a few items successfully funded through Kickstarter campaigns.

Chairs by Gentner Design and Holly Hunt in front of Alex Fuller's Two Letter Words.

A reading table designed by Parsons & Charlesworth with publications by designers in the show.

Banners on the east side of the Cultural Center along Michigan Avenue.

Found in the Chicago offices of bKL Architecture, 2018

Client: City of Chicago

Service: Exhibitions

Process

Displays

The exhibition displays were designed by Tim Parsons, Associate Professor of Designed Objects at the School of the Art Institute, and in the spirit of Chicago's history of printing and manufacturing, they were built using industrial materials.

Reading Table

iPad Kiosk

Sketches

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