Richard Mafong
Professor Emeritus of Art and Design
Georgia State University

Mafong received a B.A. degree from California State University, San Diego and an M.F.A. degree from Indiana University. He has been a guest lecturer/instructor at numerous workshops nationwide and abroad. He has been a product designer and consultant for the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Haiti, Honduras and Guatemala. He was the art director for Shanghai Center in Shanghai, China, and also a product developer for Shanghai Arts and Crafts Corp. He also worked as a designer for a line of Diamond Jewelry for the Elizabeth Taylor diamond Corp.

Mafong has exhibited extensively throughout North America and abroad. He has received many grants and awards including a National Endowment for the Arts grant, Fulton County Arts Council award in the Visual Arts and Georgia Council for the Arts-Individual Artist Grant. Mafong’s works have been collected by Smithsonian National Museum of American Art, Renwick Gallery, the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library, the Wustum Museum of Art in Racine, Wisconsin, the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte, N.C. and the Contemporary Craft Museum in N.Y. to name a few.

His metal objects have received numerous corporate and institutional commissions:
Relief sculptures for the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line: Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles; Equifax Credit Corp. in Atlanta and Portman Hotel in Shanghai, China; Ceremonial Mace for Brenau University, Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Dillard University in New Orleans and Agnus Scott College in Decatur. The most recent institutional commission was for a trophy for the Augusta Junior Golf League, “The Rountree-Cox trophy.

His most recent works involve combinations of wood and metal with artist Mike Harrison.

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Michael B. Harrison

Harrison was an industrial patternmaker for 30 years working for the cast metal industry and vacuum form plastic industry. He made prototype models for design firms, individuals, and large corporations. Some of the jobs were for companies such as Coca-Cola, Lockheed, General Electric, General Motors Electromotive Division, all the U.S. Armed Forces & others. The materials he worked with were wood, plastic, metals, plaster, cast epoxy, silicon rubbers, and fiberglass resins. Wood though, has remained his favorite choice of material.

For the past four years, Harrison have been working with Richard Mafong on collaborative pieces composed mainly of wood, metal, and semiprecious stones.

Exhibitions

2004
Thirteen Moons Gallery, Santa Fe. Group exhibition with Jon Eric Riis (tapestries) and wood metal combinations with Richard Mafong.

2003
“Synergy” Brenau University Galleries Collaborative works with Richard Mafong

2001
“Science and Technology International Invitational Exhibition” Tsinghua University Academy of Arts and Design. Collaborative work with Richard Mafong

Corporate Commissions

2003
Mandarin Hotel N.Y. Sculpture for Presidential suite and Reception Lobby. Collaborative works with Richard Mafong