A roundup of ideas and projects from around the Institute
For the final week of LGBTQ+ Pride Month, artist and illustrator Nicole Rifkin, BFA Communications Design (Illustration) ’14, contributed cover art for The New Yorker depicting a reflective, intimate moment of self-presentation and pride: “When I was at Pratt, I visited Desert Island, a gallery/store where I first saw the work of Charles Burns, Jordan Crane, Adrian Tomine, and the Hernandez brothers … I became deeply immersed in those comics, and in finding unique ways of telling stories.”
Jennifer Babcock, assistant professor of the history of art and design, received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Adjunct Teaching, which recognizes and honors the expertise, dedication, and commitment of outstanding adjunct faculty members.
Sara Cedar Miller, MFA Photography ‘83, is retiring after 40 years as the Central Park historian and photographer. “It has never been an ordinary job—because, of course, the Park is extraordinary,” she told the West Side Rag.
Xuechen Chen, BArch ’19, won the 2024 Iron A’ Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design for “The Field of Uncertainty” and a Silver A’ Idea Design Award for “The Folding Boat.”
Pratt Institute was ranked #6 on a list of best graphic design schools by Techopedia.
Designer Ludovico Bruno, who studied fine arts at Pratt, was profiled in Vogue about his menswear brand Mordecai.
Adjunct Assistant Professor of Fashion Claire McKinney, BFA Fashion Design ’15, and Sophie Andes-Gascon, BFA Fashion Design ’15, were featured in Interview Magazine about their collaborations and exhibitions. “There’s a lot of the times when we are presenting things to each other, and it’s just an exercise in partnership. It’s like you’re trying to give someone else the confidence to build upon something that you know is going to be great,” said Andes-Gascon. “We’re each other’s biggest hype people.”
A solo exhibition by Jiwon Rhie, MFA Fine Arts ’19, at La MaMa Galleria in New York, “offer[s] a unique, thought-provoking probe into the lines between objectification and agency as an immigrant,” wrote Rhea Nayyar in her review for Hyperallergic.
Xuechen Chen, BArch ’19, was featured in e-architect for the innovative conceptual project Museum of Uncertainty, a contemporary tribute to the historic La Brea Tar Pit area. The museum “explores the profound mystery and historical significance hidden beneath the tar, emphasizing themes of excavation, discovery, and preservation.”
Dezeen showcased thirteen recent interior design projects by BFA and MFA students at Pratt. “The curriculum addresses emerging and innovative technologies, sustainable practices, interdisciplinary collaboration and issues of ethical and social responsibility in a diverse and global context,” Pratt wrote in a statement about the program.
