Pop!
Outdoor Reading Room Installation at the Cole Center for the Morse Institute Library’s 150th Anniversary
Created by Class of 2024 Design and Visual Communications, Metal Fabrication, and Carpentry Students at Keefe Technical School Students
Project Led by Molly Dee
In my practice I work as a Design and Visual Communications instructor at Keefe Technical High School in Framingham. My students are incredibly important to me and I look for every opportunity to work with them and help guide them through a realistic creative career pathway. In this role I often become a guide for their creative process, helping them promote themselves and bring their ideas to life.
For the Outdoor Reading Room Installation completed for the Morse Institute Library my role was to be a leader, a guiding force, a synthesizer and an operations manager. The Design and Visual Class of 2024 created the design of this public art project. The characters, scenes, monsters, and creatures you see in this piece are imagined and illustrated by those students. I simply took their ideas and helped to put them into the same world. For example, the students came up with the base color palette, I helped them understand the importance of a simplified color palette for budgetary purposes and also helped them figure out the logistics of how to implement a limited color palette. This project was a true collaboration between the Design and Visual Communications, Carpentry and Metal Fabrication programs at Keefe Technical School led by me, Molly Dee.
The Ideas Behind the Piece
You are the main character in this story. The creatures are your neighbors and the places are your backyard. What's your character name? Do you have any special powers? Who are your friends? How do you work together to help others? How will you change the world?
Inspired by graphic novels, the Keefe Technical School's Design and Visual students designed a space using the visual language of comic books and manga. Inspired by the theme of "Find Your Voice," the room empowers visitors by making them the main character of the books they're reading. The piece consists of wooden panels creating a 3D comic frame with a bookshelf and benches for support. The final structure was built by the School's Carpentry and Metals programs.
Video Interviews
These are video interviews about the process of this collaboration. One video interview is with the Lead Carpentry teacher, Kyle Meath, one interview is with the Design and Visual Instructor/Artist, Molly Dee, and the other two interviews are with Design and Visual students who worked on this project. These interviews were conducted by Jane Ellen of the Morse Institute Library in Natick. To find out more of the inspiration behind the project check out this site.
Work in Progress
This project was a collaboration between the Carpentry, Metal Fabrication, and Design and Visual Communications program at Keefe Technical High School in Framingham. All photographs of students were taken with the student’s consent and approval to be on the internet. These photographs show the work done behind the scenes whether it is painting the boards, installing the work or even welding the initial structure.
