On December 15, a creative collaboration between students from the Corcoran College of Art + Design and Washington’s 14th Street merchants will kick off at a day-long event to raise funds for a new student project and scholarship.
The day-long shopping event will benefit a new class at the Corcoran College of Art + Design called “14th Street and The Creative Economy.” The class will call on design students to create store windows to brand the mid-city shopping district. Redeem (1734 14th St. N.W.), a retail clothing store specializing in hip urban casual wear for women and men; Muleh (1831 14th St. N.W.), a furniture store inspired by South East Asian design and clothing designed in New York, Los Angeles, Paris and Milan; Vastu (1829 14th St. N.W.), a furniture store offering contemporary and modern furnishings; and Home Rule (1807 14th St. N.W.), a store specializing in unique housewares, will contribute a portion of the day’s proceeds to fund the new program. Funds also will be allocated to a scholarship for Corcoran students.
“This is the first time that Corcoran students will gain experience in the larger Washington community while doing work that will stimulate the development of the 14th Street corridor,” said Brian Corrigan, adjunct professor in the College’s graphic design department. “’14th Street and The Creative Economy’ is the first College project to bring art to Washington’s streetscape, and the Corcoran wants to continue this type of collaboration with Washington businesses—thank you to Home Rule, Vastu, Muleh and Redeem for pledging to work with our students and underwriting part of the program’s expenses.”
Fourteen students have registered for the semester-long class—most are graduate students in the school of interior design or undergraduates in graphic design. Students will study the stores, their merchandise and clientele and neighborhood demographics in order to come up with a series of window installations that will sell products and brand the area as a creative, culturally rich destination.
