MEDIA CONTACTS:
Kurie Fitzgerald: [email protected], 202-994-6461
Brett Zongker: [email protected], 202-994-6466
EVENT:
The Corcoran School of the Arts and Design’s upcoming “NEXT” exhibition features artwork showcasing the thesis work of the school’s bachelor of fine arts, bachelor of arts and graduate students. The exhibition has helped many artists get their start and introduces the community to fresh perspectives in contemporary art. The exhibition includes installations, photographs, drawings, paintings and graphic design projects.
PRESS PREVIEW:
Monday, April 18, 2016; 9 a.m.-11 a.m.
- 9 a.m. – Check in, light refreshments
- 9:20 a.m. – Brief introduction from the Sanjit Sethi, director of the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design
- 9:30 a.m. – Gallery tour
- 10 a.m. – Student interview availability
Media will have the opportunity to view and photograph students’ work, interview selected students about their projects and tour the exhibition before it opens to the public. Media interested in attending the press preview must RSVP to Kurie Fitzgerald at [email protected] or 202-994-6461. Media must RSVP by Wednesday, April 13.
HIGHLIGHTED STUDENTS:
The Corcoran’s bachelor of fine arts majors (digital media design, fine art, graphic design, interior design, photography and photojournalism) and bachelor of arts (art studies)
are represented in diverse forms of expression, including the following selected artists:
Carol Antezana (“Lamentation”) – For this work Ms. Antezana created a space for contemplation where her photographs live and serve as relics to mourn the loss of an untouchable identity. Ms. Antezana used post-mortem 19th century portraits as reference for this project. During the 19th century, photographers often captured still images of loved ones soon after they died to help grieving families mourn. Ms. Antezana’s photographs depict herself as a Madonna without her child; the photos explore the themes of life, death and the strength of the maternal bond.
Anders Larsson (“Randomness and Typography”) – Mr. Larsson’s thesis project investigates the various effects that randomness – not often a word used to describe the work of a graphic designer – has on typography. While strategically calculated visual solutions drive much of contemporary graphic design, there is, occasionally, a degree of randomness that emerges through layers of controlled decision-making.
Lucien Liz-Lepiorz (“Making Bits into Typographic Beauty”) – Mr. Liz-Lepiorz’s piece looks at how the digital age transformed both the creative development and visual transmission of typographic form. To address new complexities related to the digital age, designers collaborate with engineers in an interdisciplinary process that questions, stresses and strengthens the work. Typography emerges from bits coming together, from concepts, development and creative dialogue.
Madison Richeson (“Rebuild”) – Ms. Richeson has documented the progress of a fellow Corcoran student Tyree Brown following a car accident, which left her paralyzed.
Every day Ms. Brown faces the struggles that come with adjusting to her new situation; however she finds strength in her family, religion and continuing art practice. Ms. Richeson’s documentation explores Ms. Brown’s recovery and identity, while Ms. Brown’s drawings reveal the rehabilitation of her past self and the creation of a new one.
Elizabeth Shannon (“There is No Zipper”) – Ever since she was a child Ms. Shannon felt hostility toward her body. When she was in elementary school she imagined finding a zipper on her hairline. She imagined she could open the zipper to allow herself to step out of her body and have the one she had always imagined. Ms. Shannon chose to use photographs to confront her own issues with body image. In addition to the photographs, she created a book to give the viewer a more complex look into her journey of acceptance.
Johab Silva (“On the Further Side Of”) – Mr. Silva’s “On the Further Side Of” is a sculptural piece built with materials often used to build “Barracos” (one-room wood houses in favelas (or ghettos)) in Brazil. The design, dimensions and fabrication of each section, usually off-scale, mirror the work aesthetic of an ordinary Brazilian craftsman. This installation suggests the importance of examining one’s past, re-evaluating places and events that are quickly vanishing and re-building one’s memories.
Lauren Stern (“Repression/Indulgence: Growth of Trauma”) – Ms. Stern’s work is an installation that looks at domestic violence from a child’s perspective, and addresses issues of rights and treatment of women.
Graduate students will also present during the monthlong show. Work from students in art education, art and the book, exhibition design, interior design and new media photojournalism will be exhibited during NEXT:
Ian Warren (“Know Our Place”) – Mr. Warren’s project is an activist-based book warning against the potential impacts of oil pipelines and fracking. Divided into two parts, his book first features a series of pristine images, created with ink jet printing, that aim to show viewers and allow them to experience the beauty of backcountry wilderness. The editorial design of the second part of Mr. Warren’s book, meanwhile, imitates a guidebook and includes scattered, recounted memories of his personal trips to the Rocky Mountain backcountry.
Andrew Windham (“Ourselves”) – Mr. Windham’s multimedia documentary follows a transgender couple, Mikey and DJ, as they both transition from female to male. The project began three months into the couple’s transition and focuses on the emotional aspects of transition in contrast to the process. Ingrained in the work is the idea that while having a partner to share the personal journey of transition can be beneficial, such dramatic change can take a heavy toll on a relationship.
WHERE:
The George Washington University’s Corcoran School of the Arts and Design
500 17th St., NW
Washington, D.C.
Farragut North Metro (Red Line); McPherson Square Metro (Blue, Orange and Silver lines)
ADMISSION AND PUBLIC INFORMATION:
The NEXT exhibition continues through May 15. Admission is free.
Exhibition hours: Wednesdays: 10 a.m. – 9 p.m.; Thursday – Sundays: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. For more information visit: www.corcoran.gwu.edu/next or email [email protected].
BACKGROUND:
The NEXT thesis exhibition is the George Washington University’s Corcoran School of the Arts and Design's annual celebration of the brilliance and promise of its students. Each degree program at the Corcoran requires students to successfully complete a thesis project and then collaborate with other programs to present a building-wide exhibition in the Corcoran's many gallery spaces. Projects may take many forms—from written research papers to a series of paintings—and they all represent a culmination of a student's learning experiences at the Corcoran and a glimpse of future promise. Students exhibit their theses on the walls of the Corcoran School and present pictorial and oral presentations of their projects to an audience of their peers, faculty and the GW community.
-GW-