Zhihan Qian, MFA Communications Design ’23, was profiled in Design Scene. “Few designers use their commercial work as research material for cultural critique. Qian does. By day, she creates brand identities for fashion and retail clients. By night and on weekends, she makes books that dissect how designed systems encode power and exclusion. The approach is rare: treating professional practice not as separate from critical work, but as the evidence base for it.”
The Daily Hub
A roundup of ideas and projects from around the Institute
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The newest board members of ARLIS NY (Art Libraries Society of North America NY Chapter) are mostly Pratt alumni or work at Pratt, including Ann Bell, MSLIS ’25, Bridget O’Keefe, MSLIS ’23, Nicole Rosengurt, MSLIS ’23, Olivia Buck, MSLIS ’24, and Pratt Library Access Services Clerk Sal Tuszynski.
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Art and Design Education BFA/MA 5th-year students Sydney Lipner, Emily Morillo, Mikey Rodriguez, and Vicky Zhang have had their proposal, Accessible Culturally-Responsive Art Education in Puerto Rico, approved for funding by the Graduate Student Engagement Fund (GSEF).
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Kaylee Ann Johnson, MS Historic Preservation ’25, was named the director of preservation and historic properties at the Historic Savannah Foundation.
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Tomokazu Matsuyama, MFA Communications Design ’04, was awarded a 2025 Pen Creator Award and interviewed for Pen Magazine about his art practice. “I began working as a self-taught artist, and while painting murals in New York I found myself immersed in environments where culture and art intersect,” he said. “I was drawn to a free, physical mode of expression.”
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Kadir Nelson, BFA Communications Design ’96, was interviewed in Publisher’s Weekly about his most recent book, Basket Ball: The Story of the All-American Game. “This book is my love letter to basketball. It merges my love for athletics, art, and literature. It’s over 100 pages of text and artwork that I created over the last nine years. It’s a potent mixture of all the things that I really love.”
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Pratt alumna Pamela Colman Smith, the artist behind the world’s best-selling deck of tarot cards, was spotlighted in a New York Times “Overlooked No More” feature. “She was this radical feminist—an iconoclast—who was so ahead of her time,” Alex V. Cipolle said in the article. “I think she would still be radical today.”
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On Artsy’s 11 Must-See Museum Exhibitions in 2026: Pratt Trustee and alumnus Derrick Adams’s solo exhibition View Master at the Institute of Contemporary Art, and a group exhibition on masculinity at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, featuring Salman Toor, MFA Fine Arts (Painting) ’09.
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Dean of the School of Architecture Quilian Riano shared his predictions for 2026 with Archinect. “In 2025, the New York City mayoral campaign’s central messages around affordability and quality of life resonated across the country. Addressing these issues not only in NYC but also nationally will require the design and construction of millions of housing units and accompanying infrastructure.”
More Pratt Institute News
Three Outstanding Graduates to be Honored at Pratt’s 2026 Alumni Achievement Awards
Pratt Institute alumni Nanette Carter, Vann Graves, and Lian Farhi will be honored for their creative and professional accomplishments.
Leading by Example
From Pratt Institute News
Spencer Giuliano, BArch ’26, thrives on the soccer field and in the studio, all while helping fellow student-athletes balance the demands of both worlds.
Designing Her Way to Her Dream Job
From Pratt Institute News
Recent alumna Renata Dominguez always knew she wanted to work in design. Now, just one year post-grad, she’s thriving at one of the biggest international branding agencies.