BALTIMORE--Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) this spring features three exciting and provocative exhibitions of thesis work by master of fine arts candidates from MICA's Graphic Design, Hoffberger School of Painting, Mount Royal School of Art, Photographic and Electronic Media, and Rinehart School of Sculpture programs. All shows take place in MICA's Decker, Meyerhoff, and Fox 3 galleries, located in Fox Building, 1303 W. Mount Royal Ave.

A public reception with the artists for MFA Thesis Exhibition I (Friday, March 27-Sunday, April 5) takes place Friday, March 27, 5-7 p.m., and gallery talks are Wednesday, April 1, 1-4:30 p.m. MFA Thesis Exhibition II (Friday, April 10-Sunday, April 19) features a reception on Friday, April 10, 5-7 p.m., and gallery talks Wednesday, April 15, 1-4:30 p.m. A reception for MFA Thesis Exhibition III (Friday, April 24-Sunday, May 3) takes place Friday, April 24, 5-7 p.m., and gallery talks are Wednesday, April 29, 1-4:30 p.m.

Graphic Design MFA students use graphic design as both a formal medium and a means to engage contemporary culture through work that ranges from the scholarly to the experimental to the political. Rinehart School of Sculpture students reflect the dynamic and diverse nature of sculpture today using a range of media-including performance, video, and multi-media installation-and materials as traditional as metal and stone or as unusual as rice and human hair. Artists in the multidisciplinary Mount Royal School of Art create solo performances (live and video), complex color photo prints of invented conceptual worlds, experimental animations, sculptures confronting issues of identity and baroque construction using industrial materials, and paintings dealing with vignettes of dark American scenes.

Hoffberger School of Painting MFA candidates emphasize a deeply held relationship with a symbolic order, often with pop sources taken from the Internet, films, or pulp fiction. While painting is a primary vehicle, the works themselves often contain fragments from multiple disciplines, and the thinking behind them embraces an intuitive grasp of concepts stemming from contemporary mathematical, scientific, or philosophical thought. Candidates in the newly restructured MFA in Photographic and Electronic Media are examining the impact of technology on the diverse practices of photography-creating work that utilizes techniques of digital cinema, interactive environments, sound installations, Web-based practices, social networking, and wireless media.

These emerging artists are fully engaged in defining the expanding role of the artist in contemporary society and exploring new possibilities for creative expression afforded by emerging technologies.

MICA's galleries are free and open to the public. Hours are Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sunday, noon-5 p.m.

For more information, call 410-225-2300.

Image caption: Katherine Mann '09, Filigree 2, watercolor, acrylic, Sumi ink on hanging cut papers, and mirrors, 2009.

 

Founded in 1826, MICA is among the top visual arts colleges in the nation. It enrolls 1,714 undergraduate and 218 graduate students from 48 states and 52 foreign countries, offering programs of study leading to the bachelor of fine arts (B.F.A.), master of arts (M.A.), and master of fine arts (M.F.A.) degrees. It also offers post-baccalaureate certificate programs and a full slate of credit and noncredit courses for adults, college-bound students, and children. MICA is recognized as an important cultural resource for the Baltimore/Washington region, sponsoring many public and community-outreach programs-including more than 100 exhibitions by students, faculty, and nationally and internationally known artists annually-as well as artists' residencies, film series, lectures, readings, and performances.

Click on the artist's name for a full bio and gallery of art or design work.

Thesis Exhibition I

Featuring: Helen Armstrong (Graphic Design), Kristian Bjornard (Graphic Design), Kim Budd (Photographic & Electronic Media), Danielle Davis (Graphic Design), Stephen Doolittle (Mount Royal School of Art), Joo Ha (Graphic Design), Joshua Haycraft (Mount Royal), Matthew Janson (Mount Royal), Jin Young Kang (Mount Royal), Joshua Lampman (Photographic & Electronic Media), Lindsey Muir (Graphic Design), Ryan Smith (Photographic & Electronic Media), David Ubias (Mount Royal), and James Williams II (Mount Royal).

Thesis Exhibition II

Featuring: Giselle Lewis-Archibald (Graphic Design), Ryan Clifford (Graphic Design), Seth Crawford (Rinehart School of Sculpture), Joe Galbreath (Graphic Design), Shannon Heaton (Photographic & Electronic Media), Patrick Hunt (Photographic & Electronic Media), Alicia (Hwa Hyun) Kim (Hoffberger School of Painting), Jong Sun (Jay) Lee (Rinehart), Kim Manfredi (Hoffberger), Jenny Mullins (Hoffberger), Sarah Sachs (Photographic & Electronic Media), Tony Venne (Graphic Design), and E. Piatt Wilson (Photographic & Electronic Media).

Thesis Exhibition III

Featuring: Amita Bhatt (Hoffberger School of Painting), Alan Callander (Photographic & Electronic Media), Karla Cott (Mount Royal School of Art), Pete Cullen (Mount Royal), Nina Glaser (Hoffberger), Clarissa Gregory (Mount Royal), Katherine Mann (Hoffberger), Tiffany Plante (Rinehart School of Sculpture), Robby Rackleff (Mount Royal), Kat Rohrbacher (Hoffberger), Scott Shanley (Hoffberger), Amber Sowards (Photographic & Electronic Media), Judy Stone (Rinehart), Sandy Triolo (Photographic & Electronic Media), and Emily Wathen (Photographic & Electronic Media).