On Topic Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD)

MCAD President Sanjit Sethi speaks with curator, arts advocate, and community leader Rosie Gordon-Wallace. Gordon-Wallace shares her experience as the pioneering founder of Diaspora Vibe Culture Arts Incubator in Miami, a leading platform for artists to challenge traditional definitions of Caribbean and Latin American art.

Recorded during the Race and Design 2021 Presidential Lecture Series. MCAD President Sanjit Sethi speaks with Amanda Huynh, a product, interaction, and food designer, and professor at Pratt Institute; and Rosemary Ugboajah, founder and CEO of Neka Creative, a brand development agency committed to bringing the power of inclusion to organizations. Amanda and Rosemary share their own experiences addressing race and racism inside and outside the design world. How can practitioners and company structures be more responsive to the communities it serves, and ultimately, more successful?

MCAD President Sanjit Sethi welcomes Ben Cameron, President of the Jerome Foundation, and Marianna Schaffer, Vice President of Programs at the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, to discuss how the philanthropic field has changed and how foundations can equitably support the artists of today as well as long into the future.

In this episode, MCAD President Sanjit Sethi speaks with Sarah Bellamy of the St. Paul-based Penumbra Theatre, one of the nation’s oldest and largest African American theater companies. Sarah discusses Penumbra’s history and how the organization grapples with the social condition of Black Americans, while it also serves as a beacon for the community. Recently, Penumbra has transformed into a center for racial healing and developed a racial equity training program.

This episode's guests also happen to be MCAD alumni—technical artist and animator Mike Medicine Horse '00 and print-based studio artist Jonathan Herrera Soto '17.

Hosted by MCAD President Sanjit Sethi, the conversation explores creativity and equity, and how it relates to mentorship, collaboration, racial inheritance, and social responsibility.

Lili Hall and Todd Paulson are the founder/CEO and Chief Creative Officer of KNOCK, inc., a full-experience creative agency with a strong commitment to community development. Sanjit spoke with Lili and Todd about the what it means to be a values driven ad agency, how philosophies on corporate responsibility have changed for them, and how they see empathy as a key driver in their work.

Learn more about Lili and Todd on our website (mcad.edu/ontopic)