A roundup of ideas and projects from around the Institute
Derrick Adams, BFA Art and Design Education ’96, created a multimedia mural and sculptural installation for the Milwaukee Art Museum that is inspired by Victor Hugo Green’s traveler’s guide for Black Americans during the Jim Crow era. As he stated, the Our Time Together mural highlights “Milwaukee by representing commercial and civic gathering spaces known within the Black community, where people are united in ways that may go unnoticed.”
Sharifa Rhodes-Pitts, associate professor of writing, received a Warhol Foundation grant to support her forthcoming publication, Proving Ground: Proposals for a Genealogy of Black Feminist Land Art. “The incisive criticism and expansive scholarship of this year’s grantees underscore the invaluable role of visual art in our lives today.”
Ifeoma Ebo, visiting assistant professor in the graduate center for planning and the environment, was selected as the Public Artist in Residence for the Mayor’s Public Engagement Unit for the next year. “Through participatory design processes that center community voices, I hope to create artistic interventions that make city services more accessible while building lasting partnerships between vulnerable New Yorkers and the institutions meant to serve them,” Ebo said in a statement shared with Hyperallergic.
Associate Professor of Sculpture and Integrated Practices Cassils received an eight-page portfolio review of their durational performance Undersight in the latest issue of Artforum. Cassils writes, “My work suggests that trans rights must be linked with all of our other political movements. My wish is for my work to be part of a continuum of cultural production created by disenfranchised communities who work in solidarity to liberate ourselves from systems and regimes that deny us our humanity. My hope is that art can be a part of the struggle for justice everywhere that people are fighting to live, heal, and have their humanity honoured amidst violent conditions. I strive for liberation, compassion and for a world that insists upon both gentleness and justice.”
Game Design students Nai’im Muhammad and Fides Wong, both AOS Game Design and Interactive Media ’26, had the opportunity to showcase their projects at Game-A-Palooza 2025, a first-of-its-kind NYC games showcase held by IGDA and the NYC Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment. Accompanied by Visiting Instructor of Associate Degrees Laura Reyes Arias, the students’ games were play-tested by fellow developers and members of the general public who provided valuable feedback on various elements of the games.
Chief Librarian at the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center at Howard University Christina Vortia, MSLIS ’15, was interviewed for Fine Books magazine’s Bright Young Librarians series. “One of the most beautiful aspects of this role is connecting these books, which I see as ancestors, to their descendants. It is deeply moving and spiritual work,” she said.
Pratt Center was named among the recipients of the first-ever NYC Nightlife Grant, provided by the New York City Department of Small Business Services (SBS). “The New York City Office of Nightlife is proud to award the first-ever NYC Nightlife Grants to nonprofits whose initiatives support safer, more inclusive, and sustainable nightlife businesses and communities,” said ONL Executive Director Jeff Garcia. “We are excited to see these ideas come to life across the city, helping New York City remain the world’s nightlife capital.”
Trey Phillips, BFA Communications Design ’27, was named the Atlantic East Conference’s Men’s Basketball Player of the Week following a 19 point and 15 rebound performance against neighborhood rival St. Joseph’s on Nov. 22. The men’s basketball team has surged to an early 5-2 record.
Merve Kayan and Sasha Sumner, both adjunct assistant professors of Film/Video, received 2025 New York State Council on the Arts grants for work on films. Kayan was awarded the grant for her film Baby Gates, and Sumner received it for her film Ripple.
Visiting Assistant Professor of Fine Arts Yasmeen Abdallah, MFA Fine Arts ’15, reviewed “I Find Rest” by V Walton and “Sarsabzi” by Misha Japanwala at Hannah Traore Gallery in Hot Coffee Conversations.
From Pratt Institute News
From Pratt Institute News
