Image Faculty Alumni ’76 Title Professor Education BFA in Intermedia Art Email Address bjirka@mcad.edu Brad Jirka is a professor in the areas of sculpture, digital fabrication, and 3D foundation studies. In addition to more than three decades of teaching studio art, Jirka’s professional history includes working with the collaborative group Midwest Electric Art; cofounding the American School of Neon; and being vice president of design for St. Elmo’s Inc., an internationally-recognized producer of creative lighting. Jirka's current studio works focus on the tradition of the philosophical instrument, which explore and discover the phenomenology of our environment, while his public art projects, with collaborative partner Katherine Jones, strive for the creation of “event,” often incorporating light, motion, and random technologies. Recent public works include Justitia Omnibus for the Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Education Center at Metropolitan State University; Lax Communica for the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse; and Geometrica Kinesic for the University of Wisconsin, Parkside. Jirka was also a co-curator of the MCAD international exhibition Beyond the Buzz: New Forms, Realities, and Environments in Digital Fabrication and was the moderator for the show's artist panel discussion.
Brad Jirka is a professor in the areas of sculpture, digital fabrication, and 3D foundation studies. In addition to more than three decades of teaching studio art, Jirka’s professional history includes working with the collaborative group Midwest Electric Art; cofounding the American School of Neon; and being vice president of design for St. Elmo’s Inc., an internationally-recognized producer of creative lighting. Jirka's current studio works focus on the tradition of the philosophical instrument, which explore and discover the phenomenology of our environment, while his public art projects, with collaborative partner Katherine Jones, strive for the creation of “event,” often incorporating light, motion, and random technologies. Recent public works include Justitia Omnibus for the Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Education Center at Metropolitan State University; Lax Communica for the University of Wisconsin, La Crosse; and Geometrica Kinesic for the University of Wisconsin, Parkside. Jirka was also a co-curator of the MCAD international exhibition Beyond the Buzz: New Forms, Realities, and Environments in Digital Fabrication and was the moderator for the show's artist panel discussion.