"Movers and Shakers” profiles the leaders, innovators and changemakers who shaped the Milwaukee area and beyond. Each segment highlights the stories of local visionaries who made a lasting impact. Discover the people who transformed the Milwaukee community, one groundbreaking idea at a time.

Charlotte Partridge and Miriam Frink have been called the “matriarchs of Milwaukee modernism.” The two visionaries founded the Layton School of Art, which would eventually become the spiritual predecessor of the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design. Their bold ideas left an indelible mark on the city’s creative landscape — even after the women were coerced to step away from the very institution they built. Their legacy, however, proved far more resilient than the forces that tried to diminish it.