Skip to content

The Daily Hub

A roundup of ideas and projects from around the Institute

  • Fine Arts Fellow in Civic Engagement Alex Strada spoke at CUNY Graduate Center, organized by the United Nations Network on Migration on December 16, for Every Day Is Migrants Day. The event showcased work by “a diverse group of artists, scholars, and organizations with projects that foreground migrant narratives” and “highlight[ed] the essential role migrants play in the creation of culture.”

  • Jake Stewart, AOS Illustration ’26, was named the first place winner of an illustration contest for students, hosted by Pratt’s AOS Department and leading Italian legacy printer PdiPigna. Participants designed notebook covers and the winning notebook design is to be printed and sold commercially in a limited-edition release. As the winner, Stewart will earn a portion of commissions as well as the opportunity to work with an established art brand. 

  • Edel Rodriguez, BFA Fine Arts (Painting) ’94, was selected as a PRINT Awards Jury Member for Hand Lettering, Illustration, Graphic Novels, and Invitations. The jurors were chosen because they possessed the “insight and experience needed to recognize standout work across these creative categories.” Rodriguez has also been chosen as The Sidney Harman Writer-in-Residence for the spring 2025 semester at Baruch College, and he recently presented his book, The Mango Tree, at the Miami Book Fair.

  • Laurie Cumbo, who was a visiting assistant professor from fall 2001 to fall 2009 in the Arts and Cultural Management program at Pratt Institute, was listed among 2024’s Leading Culturepreneurs: Pioneers of Cultural Transformation by Elucid Magazine. “As New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner, Cumbo oversaw significant cultural grants, expanded public art installations, and championed arts institutions, ensuring the city’s vibrant arts scene remained valued by residents and visitors alike.”

  • Devin B. Johnson, MFA ’19, was interviewed for the Fall 2024 issue of Gagosian Quarterly. During his first semester at Pratt, he says he was challenged to think “more in depth about the ideas and concepts of my practice, the whys and the scaffolding of what my practice was based on.” He remarks on the “influential professors,” including Greg Drasler, Torkwase Dyson, and Cullen Washington Jr, who “challenged their students to think and talk about their work in a more philosophical manner.“ A painting of Donald Glover by Johnson was also featured in TheWrapBook