Parsons The New School for Design will present its first art and design festival, with nearly 200 public events taking place across its campus and around the city from May 7–23. A daylong block party on May 21 will feature a printmaking jam, an interactive fashion photo booth, and musical performances.

“We are opening our doors to the public to showcase the talent found here at Parsons, but also to celebrate the future of art and design,” said Joel Towers, executive dean of Parsons The New School for Design. ”The Parsons Festival will comprise a number of exhibitions and installations featuring cutting-edge and critically engaged work in a wide range of disciplines.”

The first festival reflects the creative spirit and includes exhibitions of students' work including: a large-scale collaboration between Milk Studios and Parsons Photography program featuring projections, screenings, music and art performances (May 20); an MFA Fine Arts exhibition (May 5-16, opening reception on May 10); an exhibition of experimental installations, screenings and an arcade of gaming projects by Design and Technology students (May 9-23, opening reception May 14); a special screening of Somewhere to Disappear, a portrait of documentary photographer Alec Soth, followed by a conversation with him (May 9); an exhibition of new furniture concepts by Product Design students at the Poltrona Frau during the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (May 14-17, opening reception May 14); and a exhibition of work by students in Parsons fashion school (May 12-19).

There also will be several symposia and panel discussions that address topical issues in the field. Scientists, scholars, and technology experts will come together for Transhumanism Meets Design (May 14-15), a symposium on technology's potential to radically transform the human condition. Water Fight: Fracking, Food, Art and Economy (May 16) moderated by Anna Lappé, author of Diet for a Hot Planet, will address industrial hydrofracking (drilling rock formations for oil and natural gas), and tools for protecting ecosystems and building a green economy. Fashion Cuts: Public Media and the Fashioning of Reality (May 10) brings together Tim Gunn and the Sartorialist Scott Schuman to discuss the cultural significance and meanings of this contemporary construction of fashion.

For a full calendar of events, please visit the Parsons Festival website.