Associate Professor of Photography Stephen Hilger wrote an essay for Full Bleed on various books about Los Angeles histories that have influenced his work. “My photographs reflect the ways in which Los Angeles absorbs me. I rely on looking and recording to make both personal histories and larger histories visible,” he writes. “My approach is also inspired by shelves of books authored by photographers, artists, and writers who explore LA’s pasts.”
The Daily Hub
A roundup of ideas and projects from around the Institute
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Visiting Assistant Professor of Creative Enterprise Leadership Innocent Ekejiuba (MPS Arts and Cultural Management ’23) presented at the dmi Diversity in Design Conference in DC/Baltimore. In his presentation, Ekejiuba explored the question: “How do we create cultures of inclusion that leverage the power of community to lead as if life matters and address the crises we are facing?”
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Jean Shin, adjunct professor – CCE of fine arts, was featured on WBUR for her project Perch, a sculptural installation composed of repurposed wood, located at Appleton Farms in Ipswich. The sculptures provide a resting place for bobolinks, songbirds that rely on Appleton Farms as a refuge during their annual migration. “Their populations are really dependent on farmers and their hay fields, their pastures — and grasslands are declining all over the world,” Shin told WBUR. “So, it just seemed like the most beautiful story for us to understand more deeply and really appreciate their contribution to the landscape.”
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Joan Semmel, BFA Art Teacher Education ’63; MFA ’72, was featured in AnOther Magazine, Wallpaper, and Ocula on the occasion of her latest exhibition in Brussels. The 91-year-old figurative painter is lauded for “sex-positive paintings,” which “celebrat[e] natural urges which to this day are laden with shame and stigma,” writes Emily Steer in AnOther.
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For Frieze, Theodora Skipitares, visiting professor of art and design education, reflects on puppetry, past projects, and her latest work, The Four Lives, which premiered in April at La MaMa.
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Pratt’s BFA in Communications Design (emphasis in Graphic Design) was ranked #12 in TechGuide’s list of “The Best Bachelor’s in Graphic Design Degree Programs for 2024,” which recognizes an “unwavering commitment to academic excellence.” TechGuide considers factors such as tuition, student-to-faculty ratio, admission and graduation rates, and alumni success in its ranking process.
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Pratt is named among the prettiest campuses in America by Architectural Digest: “Known for its architecture, interior design, and industrial design degrees, it’s no wonder the campus is stunning.”
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Fashion design alumni Paul Tazewell and Emilio Sosa were both nominated for Tony Awards. Sosa received a nomination for Best Costume Design of a Play for Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch, while Tazewell’s nomination was for Best Costume Design for a Musical for Suffs.
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Robert Vargas, alumnus of fine arts, will receive an honorary doctorate degree from ArtCenter College of Design and deliver the commencement address at the College’s spring graduation ceremony. “As an artist growing up in Los Angeles, I accept this honorary doctorate with both great pride and humility.“ said Vargas.
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Chloe Scout Nix and Lena Smart, both MFA Photography ’24, were featured in Hyperallergic for their thesis exhibitions currently on view at the photography gallery in Pratt’s ARC Building. “It’s worth a trip to explore body parts like ears, arms, and hands in an unconventional way, but more importantly this exhibition challenges the distorted body images that prevail in mainstream media,” writes Daniel Larkin. The artists
“champion the role photography can play in intervening and healing.”