Katagami: Nature by Design
In collaboration with the special upcoming exhibition Nature-Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial, Cooper Hewitt is hosting Nature by Design, a rotating series of works drawing from over 210,000 design objects in the museum’s collection. The most recent series highlights the Japanese craft of katagami — paper stencils carved by master artisans for decorating textiles. The colorful, intricate, geometric patterns on display are forged through a rigorous process, creating skillfully dyed stencils.

Gay by Design: LBGT Historic Sites of the Design Communities
On April 10, join the NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project to highlight the LGBT designers who have shaped the landscape of New York. Founded by historic-preservation professionals in 2015, the project is the first initiative to document the community’s landmarks throughout the city’s five boroughs, all the way from the 17th century to the 21st. These sites — including activism locations, performing-arts venues, former residences of LGBT notables, and bars and clubs — depict New York’s rich LGBT history and their widespread cultural influence.

Jon Key: Designing to Amplify
How can we use design to make marginalized voices visible? Jon Key leads this discussion on April 4 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Museum of Arts and Design, where he will talk about design as a means to amplify and empower communities, focusing on queer and trans communities of color. In addition to his own Brooklyn-based design studio Morcos Key, Jon’s recent collaborations include work for the Tenth, a black queer arts-and-culture magazine, as well as SlayTV, a queer-centered digital platform and community.