Neal Hauschild, Nth Degree
Mark your calendar!
Day at the Museum for the Designer Showcase
- April 19-May 19
- The Columbus Museum of Art's Margaret M. Walter Wing
- Tickets are $25 each, which includes general admission to the museum
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April 19-May 19, Columbus will once again experience the work of local designers as they transform the Margaret M. Walter Wing of the Columbus Museum of Art into a beautiful home.
The Designer Showcase, formerly Decorators’ Show House, is a biennial event put on by the museum’s Women’s Board in order to raise money for museum initiatives. This year, funds raised by the DSC will benefit the Wonder School, a laboratory preschool currently in its first academic year.
Before the 2017 DSC, the event was held in a private residence. Participating designers chose a room and gave it a complete makeover, from the paint on the walls to all of the furniture inside. In 2017, however, it was moved to the Ross Building at the CMA and, says Melissa Ferguson, director of marketing and communications for the CMA, the move garnered new attention.
Courtney Jones
“Having the showcase here in the museum, the designers can do anything they want. Their only limit is their creativity. Any materials, any theme, any style,” Ferguson says. “When you have a client, you’re looking for things that will suit the client’s taste. … All the elements of that home have to flow together and are focused on a particular style.”
This year, the DSC will be bigger and better than ever, as the Walter Wing has even more room for decorators. In 2017, the DSC featured just six spaces. This year, visitors will have the chance to explore 18.
Like the 2017 iteration, designers are afforded the opportunity to borrow a piece of art from the CMA’s private collection. This year, Ferguson says, rather than borrowing contemporary works, some designers chose to borrow old-world art that compliments current CMA exhibition Life in the Age of Rembrandt: Dutch Masterpieces from the Dordrecht Museum.
“I’m really curious to see how they incorporate those old-world masters into their designs,” Ferguson says. “It’ll be really interesting to see.”
The DSC is open during normal museum hours, and visitors can take a guided phone tour of each room. Each Thursday from 6-9 p.m., however, the designers will be at the museum answering questions and discussing what they’ve created.
The CMA will also feature special events relating to the DSC. On April 18, the CMA teams up with the Columbus College of Art and Design for the Go Green Gala Preview Party. CCAD students will use sustainable fabrics to create beautiful runway looks. Then, on May 4, central Ohio home and garden retailer A Proper Garden presents the Garden Party, complete with lunch and an interactive presentation.
“There is a different feel when you go out into a community like Bexley or Arlington or Dublin, but the downtown neighborhood is great and the thing that’s wonderful is that it’s so accessible for so many people,” says Ferguson. “This year, we took a different approach and decided to partner closer to home. … We really focused on local business and local creatives.”
The CMA will also showcase pop-up shops featuring work by local artists during the DSC’s run. With such a variety of local talent, Ferguson has a hard time deciding her favorite
Glenn Doell, Curtis Elliot Design Inc.
“I love seeing the rooms come together, when the designers are coming together and talking about what inspired them,” she says. “I’m looking forward to seeing the sustainable designs that the CCAD students show.”
The $25 ticket to the DSC also includes general admission to CMA, so Ferguson suggests turning it into a day trip. Supporting the Wonder School is just a plus.
“It really reflects the commitment of the museum to nurturing creativity, to supporting the importance of creativity in education,” Ferguson says. “It underscores our sameness; the things we have in common, the essence of our shared humanity. It both opens up new worlds to people and connects them to their world and to each other.”
Amanda DePerro is a contributing editor. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
