Spring semester is an exciting, bustling time of year at Herron with thesis and capstone presentations and year-end celebrations. This spring was no exception, on and off campus, for our exceptionally talented students, alumni, and faculty. Taking a look back, here are some of the past semester's highlights.
- Associate Professor Anila Agha showed her work in seven museums exhibitions this spring including "Shimmering Mirage" at the Brattleboro Museum and Art Center; "All the Flowers are For Me" at the Peabody Essex Museum; "Convergence" at Addison Gallery of American Art at Phillips Academy; "You Are Here" at North Carolina Museum of Art; "Long, Winding Journeys" at Katonah Museum of Art; "Project Atrium: Anila Quayyum Agha" at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) Jacksonville; and "Anila Quayyum Agha: Intersections" at Grand Rapids Art Museum.
- In January, Sarah Anderson (B.F.A. Photography '08) joined Luci Creative, the full-service master planning and exhibit design firm in Chicago, Ill., as senior graphic designer from Indiana Historical Society (2004-2017).
- Tasha R. Beckwith (B.F.A. General Fine Arts '06) installed her mural "Moon Sisters" on the façade of Arts Council of Indianapolis' offices located at 924 N. Pennsylvania Street in downtown Indianapolis.
- Audrey Barcio (B.A.E. Art Education '07) exhibited new paintings in "Under Influence," a solo exhibition at Tube Factory Artspace from Feb. 2 to April 14.
- "tele-present water" by David Bowen (B.F.A. Sculpture '99) was featured in "AESTHETICS OF CHANGE: 150 Years of the University of Applied Arts Vienna," a group exhibition at the Austrian Museum of Applied Arts / Contemporary Art through April 15. Bowen's work was also included in Minneapolis College of Art and Design's group exhibition "Stream Capture," running Jan. 16 to March 4.
- Scholastic Entertainment announced a new "Clifford the Big Red Dog" animated series, based on the beloved books by Norman Bridwell (B.F.A. '49), to debut on Amazon Prime and PBS Kids in fall 2019.
- More than a decade since her last solo exhibition in Los Angeles, Calif., Vija Celmins (B.F.A. '62) exhibited new work – paintings, drawings, prints, and sculpture – at both Matthew Marks Gallery locations in L.A. from Jan. 27 through March 31.
- Undergraduate student Janine Collier, who graduated this spring with high distinction, presented her paper "The Influence of Vincent van Gogh's Expressionism on Franz Marc" at Midwest Art History Society's 45th annual conference April 5-7, hosted by Newfields and the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art. Herron art history faculty members Laura Holzman, Patrick Kinsman, Jennifer Lee, Jean Robertson, and John Turner participated in the conference by chairing sessions and presenting research.
- Making Ways, a podcast about unexpected paths to creative careers, interviewed Susana Cortez (M.F.A. Visual Art '13) about finding her artistic voice and her role as the installations and site manager for Root Division in San Francisco, Calif.
- Kaitlyn DeSpain (B.F.A. Drawing & Illustration '17), visual artist at Curran Architecture, heads the company's new art curating service representing Indianapolis-based artists and bringing high quality artwork to offices and work spaces.
- Since January, Jeff Drew (B.F.A. '97) has illustrated covers for CityBeat Cincinnati, Colorado Springs Independent, Eugene Weekly, Orange County Weekly, The Pacific Northwest Inlander, and Salt Lake City Weekly.
- Dave Freeman (B.F.A. Furniture Design '12) designed seven new sets for Complexly shows "Crash Course" and "Mental Floss" and Hank and John Green's "vlogbrothers."
- Gary Gee (B.F.A. Integrative Studio Practice '16) was an Art & Soul Featured Artist during the 22nd annual series of events and exhibitions at Indianapolis Artsgarden, hosted by Arts Council of Indianapolis.
- On May 1, Graduate Research Assistant Amy Granger spoke on WFYI's No Limits in conversation with host John Krull, Eskenazi Health Activity Therapist Nanette George, and Riley Art Therapist Cassie Dobbs about art therapy programs in central Indiana.
- Undergraduate students Haley Francis-Halstead, Jordan Nelsen (B.F.A. Drawing & Illustration '18), Sydney Patberg, and Megan Smith (B.F.A. Ceramics '18) were included among this year's IUPUI Top 100 for their excellence in academics, campus leadership, and community engagement.
- Similarly, Brittany Hinkle (M.A. Art Therapy '18) was named one of IUPUI's Elite 50 honorees for 2018. Presented by the Graduate and Professional Student Government, the Elite 50 list honors achievement outside the classroom and represents the top one-half of 1 percent of IUPUI's 8,100 graduate and professional students.
- Assistant Professor Katie Hudnall and Associate Professor Reagan Furqueron, director of foundation studies, exhibited small-scale 3D works in "The Chair, writ small" Jan. 11 to Feb. 19 at McCutchan Art Center and Pace Galleries in Evansville, Ind.
- Samuel Levi Jones (B.F.A. Photography '09) curated the group exhibition "Sidelined" at Galerie Lelong in New York, N.Y., inspired by the recent protests of NFL players during the national anthem. The exhibition was on view from Jan. 5 to Feb. 17 and lauded by Artsy writer Daniel Kunitz as "a captivating group show."
- Yasmine Kasem (B.F.A. Sculpture '15) exhibited her latest work "Mwasah" at Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana, Calif., from Feb. 3 to April 15.
- In March, Matthew Kelm (B.F.A. Visual Communication Design '08) transitioned from his designer position at Newfields to take on a similar role at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, Calif., designing and implementing exhibitions and more.
- Assistant Professor Juliet King spoke on WFYI's Side Effects on April 16 about an art therapy program at IU Neuroscience Center that benefits both patients and healthcare workers.
- Boot Kumthip (B.F.A. Furniture Design '12) was hired in April as the studio manager for the New York City-based design studio of Danish architect and designer Thomas Juul-Hansen.
- The Kansas City Star interviewed Herron alumnus Shannon Manning (B.F.A. '62) about the original Kansas City Royals logo that he created 50 years ago while working in the Creative Division of Hallmark.
- Stanford University's Hasso Plattner Institute of Design named visual communication design graduate student Maria Meschi and three IUPUI students University Innovation Fellows to be agents of change at their schools and promote new opportunities for their peers to engage with innovation and entrepreneurship.
- Adam Collier Noel's (B.F.A. Photography '02) mixed media painting "Beach Glass" was featured on Saatchi Art's May 21 weekly collection curated by Rebecca Wilson, Saatchi Art's chief curator and vice president of Art Advisory.
- Indianapolis Business Journal featured Rebekah and Eric Nolan (B.F.A. Visual Communication Design '08), the couple behind Flatland Kitchen, a creative studio helping Indianapolis restaurants develop their brand identities.
- Ambica Prakash (B.F.A. Visual Communication Design '02), principal creative director of Eighty2degrees in Washington, D.C., reflected on the studio's 2017 ADDY award-winning campaign for the opening of Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.
- Indy Urban Hardwood founder Brian Presnell (B.F.A. Furniture Design + Sculpture '96) spoke at CreativeMornings/Indianapolis, held at Newfields on May 25, about his commitment to urban milling in Indianapolis.
- Visual Communication Design Professor and Department Chair Eva Roberts co-led a workshop at the University of Sussex in Brighton, England, with Dr. Pollie Barden, senior experience designer at ICF Olson, on using active listening as a tool for reflective thinking.
- Metropolis Magazine featured James Sholly (B.F.A. Visual Communication '88) and Jon Sholly (B.F.A. Visual Communication '03) – the dynamic sibling duo behind the Indianapolis-based design studio Commercial Artisan – for their latest publication highlighting Indiana's design luminaries.
- IUPUI and Fox 59 highlighted Johnson Simon, who graduated this spring with a Master of Fine Arts in pursuit of becoming a professional artist and educator. Simon's thesis work examined personal struggle, including exploring his own journey as an artist living with cerebral palsy.
- Hoosier artist and Herron alumna Lois Main Templeton (B.F.A. Painting '81) is spotlighted in a retrospective exhibition, "Lois Main Templeton: A Reinvented Life," now through Aug. 5 at the Indiana State Museum.
- The work of Colin Tury (B.F.A. Visual Art '14) was included in "Datum: Detroit," an exhibition featuring furniture designers living and working in Detroit, on view from Feb. 15 to April 25 at Detroit Center for Design + Technology.
