Alumnus Paul Tazewell and Pratt Trustee and alumnus Derrick Adams were among those to be honored at the 2025 Native Son Awards, which celebrates “mavericks and Black gay excellence.” Tazewell told The Hollywood Reporter, “This organization is incredibly close to my heart, and to be acknowledged by a community that celebrates the brilliance and resilience of Black queer and gay men is truly humbling. Thank you for seeing me.” Derrick Adams is also one of four artists featured in The New York Times Style Magazine’s 2025 Art Issue.
The Daily Hub
A roundup of ideas and projects from around the Institute
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Pratt Fine Arts Ox-Bow summer 2025 awardees include Giovanna Lisa, BFA Fine Arts (Drawing) ’26, Isaiah Robinson, BFA Fine Arts (Sculpture) ’26, Jack Catlett, MFA Fine Arts (Sculpture) ’26, and Associate Professor of Fine Arts Laurel Sparks, who will be teaching Material Abstraction in Painting.
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Pratt women’s tennis excelled in the 2024–2025 academic year with an impressive combined GPA of 3.566. Special recognition goes to Kayla Abraham, BFA Critical and Visual Studies ’28, and Julia Ognibene, BFA 2D Animation ’25, who both achieved a 4.0 GPA this semester.
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Professor of History of Art and Design Eva Díaz’s new book After Spaceship Earth was included in Art Review.
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Jimmy & The Demons, a new feature-length documentary about Pratt alumnus and former Pratt faculty James Grashow, BFA ’63; MFA ’65, is premiering at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival, with a final screening on Sunday, June 15. The film follows Grashow, who taught art at Pratt from 1969 to 1982, on a multiyear journey to complete a large and detailed wood sculpture titled The Cathedral. The film was recently reviewed in The New York Times.
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Rachel Genito and Jimmy Li, both BFA Communications Design ’26, were selected as finalists for scholarships from the Society of Illustrators. Genito was selected as a Zankel Scholarship finalist, while Li was selected as a Will Eisner Scholarship finalist.
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Dashiell Schaeffer, BID ’28, is profiled in Core77 for his project “Curvesse Rocker,” a rocking chair he designed and built out of a single sheet of plywood.
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The New York City Department of Transportation cites the Pratt Center for Community Development’s report Better Buses for Flatbush Avenue: Participatory Action Research with Riders Alliance in a proposal for new bus lanes along Flatbush Avenue.
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Adjunct Professor of Undergraduate Communications Design Tim O’Brien was included in American Illustration 44 for his illustrations Reality and He’s Back.
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Zhiwei (Johnny Xie), BID ’25, won the ICFF Best of Students 2025 Award, sponsored by Haworth, for his Flat Pack Chair. Image courtesy of ICFF (Jenna Bascom Photography).
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More Pratt Institute News
Repair. Rest. Repeat.
Mending Circle, one of Pratt’s newest student clubs, sets aside time for care and community.
Designing Digital Interfaces for Real-World Clients
From Pratt Institute News
Graduate student Shreesa Shrestha, MSIXD ’26, is making the most of every opportunity at Pratt as she balances client projects, community-building initiatives, and a prestigious Product Design Fellowship at The Museum of Modern Art.
Open Studios, Endless Possibilities
From Pratt Institute News
Pratt’s annual MFA Open Studios were complemented by the first-ever Open Fields artist resource fair, making for an electric day of events celebrating artistic practice and the resources that sustain it.