Professor Susie Ganch presented at the 2022 Texas Metals Symposium hosted by Texas Tech University
es·sen·tial: (adjective) absolutely necessary; extremely important, an exhibition of work by adjunct faculty within the department was on view in the DePillars Gallery from February 10 – 25. The show featured work by Patrick Carter, Vivian Chiu, Rice Evans, Kathleen Kennedy, Sarah ‘Spee’ Parker, and Alex Younger
Current BFA minor Kayleigh Macdonald co-curated, as a part of the Anderson’s Curatorial Practice’s studio, Southern Exigency, an exhibition of 10 Atlanta-based artists, which was on view from February 4 – March 6
Professor Jason Hackett showed in a group exhibition, Digital Directions, at the Maryland Federation of Art. Hackett received a Juror’s Award
Current BFA major Eileen Morley presented a solo show, Things Broken at Night, at the Anderson from February 17 – March 4. The exhibition explored a set of objects broken and mended over the course of a calendar year
Professor Alex Younger is currently showing at the Shenandoah Valley Art Center’s 40 Under 40 Exhibition in Waynesboro, VA
Professor Rice Evans is presenting “Growing Seeds: Preparing for Graduate School” at the 2022 NCECA Conference, hosted in Sacramento, CA this March
Professor Emeritus Howard Risatti has been named a 2022 American Craft Council Honorary Fellow. Risatti is the former chair of Craft/Material Studies and Professor of Art History/Critical Theory.
“Howard Risatti was chair of the influential Department of Craft/Material Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University from 2001 to 2005, where he championed new directions for craft. His scholarly publications on history and theory, positioning craft in the larger world of contemporary art and design, are essential resources in the field of contemporary craft. His writings have appeared in journals including New Art Examiner, Art Journal, Artforum, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The Studio Potter, the British journal Crafts, American Craft, Ceramic: Art & Perception, and Winterthur Portfolio.”
Current MFA candidate Nyasha Chigama was named a 2022 recipient of the Black History in the Making award by the Department of African American Studies.
“Nyasha Chigama is a first year MFA student who relocated her family from Harare, Zimbabwe during the summer of 2021 to pursue her degree in Ceramics in the Department of Craft/Material Studies. Her engagement and presence with undergraduate students has exposed them to new modes of working and cultural understanding as her work is grounded in traditional Zimbabwean ceramics of the Karanga and Rozvi dynasties.
Before arriving in Richmond, she worked with indigenous terracotta clay extracted from anthills from the rural area of her homeland. Through her work she seeks to expose ways in which communities of women can be empowered in therapeutic and economic pathways embedded in their everyday routine.
As a graduate assistant, her contributions in the classroom and studio alongside her faculty mentors, empowers students to challenge the boundaries of their own work and creative pursuits.”
Featured Image: Biomorphic 1 (2022), Sterling Silver and Ash Wood, by current BFA major Brianna Cappelli