As the semester’s end draws nearer, seniors in KSC’s Studio Art and Graphic Design programs are putting in the hours to pull together a body of work ready for display. Their works will be displayed in the annual Art & Design Exhibition at the Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery on campus.
Bugzy Richards, a senior pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree in studio art, said they felt the collaboration among BFA students has been extremely positive.
“Everybody’s super ready to collaborate and work together to make this show the best it can absolutely possibly be,” Richards said. “There’s a throughline between all of it and it’s really sweet, like talking about passing of time and fragility and reverence to nature. It’s really exciting.”
Richards said a diversity of minds is a great tool for artists to have access to, so they may improve their work. They expressed gratitude for the collaborative opportunities they have found in their time at Keene State.
“I work collaboratively a lot of the time, not only the art department, but collaborating with other departments,” Richards said. “How can I take from microbiology and use those cellular forms in my art? How can I engineer something correctly? I’ve been in engineering classes, I’ve been in environmental science classes, I’ve even been in a food science class. That is just as much art as [an art class project] is.”
Richards added that having access to a dedicated studio space is another unique privilege of being in a college environment.
“These studios have been my home. This is where I’m at, like, all the time. [I am] just working as much as I possibly can,” Richards said. “I’m so insanely lucky and just so grateful for what I’ve done and so grateful for who I’ve become and the people who’ve gotten me here.”
Jack Mohr, a senior pursuing a BFA in graphic design, also spoke about collaboration between peers in the program.
“I feel a lot closer to my classmates,” Mohr said. “I can go to them outside of class hours for help on something or just even a second eye on the things that I’m working on. Everybody’s such a strong designer on their own, but together everybody collaborates very well and creates products that are amazing for everybody to witness. Having their opinion on what I’m working on, [which] I guess would be considered like a professional opinion as we’re graduating, is really helpful, and also gets us closer. It’s a connection that you’ll have for the rest of your career, too.”
Mohr said one of the greatest strengths of the graphic design program is the focus on producing well-rounded designers.
“Everybody gets a taste of each individual field, whether that’s motion or branding or packaging,” Mohr said. “Everybody who goes through the program really gets a taste of it all so that you can make the decision which one you like more.”
Mohr added this approach has helped him discover what he wants to pursue after graduation.
“For me personally, I want to go more in the corporate direction and work in-house at any kind of big company or corporation as a designer or art director. That kind of thing,” Mohr said.
For the immediate moment, though, Mohr recognized the need to focus on preparing for the exhibition.
“I’m a little stressed out. I know the rest of my classmates are also stressed out, getting in those last-minute orders or last-minute tweaks and edits,” Mohr said. “The best part about it is once you have your portfolio book printed, then it’s like, ‘Alright, that’s what it is.’ But right now we’re right in the vortex of it all.”
BA studio art senior Mallory Miron said all her interactions with art and design faculty have been very positive.
“All of the art professors are some of the best professors I’ve had, or teachers in general,” Miron said. “I feel like it’s very welcoming so it’s easy to grow because you don’t have that fear of failing in front of people, because we’re all at the same level. It’s just a really good community in this program.”
Miron said she has been able to use time in her classes to be productive on her projects for the exhibition.
“It just feels good to be able to consistently make art and have that be my only priority,” Miron added.
Miron said she started at KSC as a graphic design major and feels she has gained a thorough experience during her time at the college.
“I feel like I kind of got a taste of both [programs], and it feels like you’re going somewhere, like you’re going to end up where you need to be when you graduate,” Miron said.
BFA graphic design senior Julia Baer said the job market for art and design students can be difficult.
“A lot of us have been applying places and some people have heard back, some haven’t,” Baer said. “I think it’s definitely tough to find stuff that pays adequately.”
Baer said the stress of trying to prepare for the future is a motivating factor at this busy point in the semester.
“I got to get this stuff together so I can start applying to jobs, so I can start getting myself out there,” Baer said. “I got to buckle up and get going, and I really want the show to be great.”
Baer said she was split between studio art and graphic design at the beginning of her college career.
“I kind of wanted to be a studio art major, but then I’m like, ‘Man, I need to get a job,’” Baer said. “So I decided on graphic design. I really didn’t know what it was, but I absolutely love it now. I feel like it’s a great fit, which was kind of unexpected.”
BFA studio art senior Emily Russman said she originally came to Keene State to be an education major, but she ended up falling in love with the combined educational and artistic experience of gallery coordination. She detailed her experience as part of a fellowship program based out of the Thorne gallery.
“[The fellowship has] been kept up basically to have someone in the gallery who is learning from the leadership, like the director, which is [Clinical Assistant Professor of Art & Design] Miles Warner now, and [Faculty Collections Assistant] Laura Adams and to learn the processes of how they run things and what goes on behind the scenes,” Russman said.
She also emphasized the role of the art and design faculty in her growth as an artist.
“They opened up my mind to things that I don’t think I ever could have thought of,” Russman said. “I was always interested in art … but I think they showed me the larger world that exists and why people do things a certain way. You learn the functions of these things and the purpose of why artists make certain moves and you can’t look at anything the same way again.”
Russman added that she feels the growth all the seniors have experienced will be easily noticed by attendees of the exhibition.
“For those seniors that are graduating, it’s the culmination of all their work,” Russman said. “To see the effort and the curve of learning, you’ll see some of the work will be over time. There will be a number of pieces over the past maybe few years, and you see the growth, and you see the difference, which I think is just amazing.”
Warner said he and the other faculty members are involved with the gallery exhibition as liaisons, supporting and advising the students but ultimately leaving the key decisions about flow, placement and theming to the featured artists to make as a group.
“You figure out how to edit,” Warner said. “‘What should I show in this space with this spot that I’m allotted in here, and how does it all best fit together?’ [The students are] learning that kind of professional skill set.”
Warner also spoke to the stress levels many seniors are experiencing and how the faculty responds to those feelings.
“One of the good things about Keene State is we’re small enough to be able to kind of cater to each kid,” Warner said. “I think each student’s different and we push them a little bit differently, especially when we get to this stage and that foundation is already kind of set. They get that hands-on touch.”
He added the faculty work closely with one another, which can also be beneficial for students to observe.
“They work tighter with us towards the end and see our process for problem solving, which I think is an invaluable thing,” Warner said. “We work really closely together and we do things completely differently. It’s good for the kids to be able to see all that.”
Professor of Art & Design Paul McMullan, who previously served as director of the Thorne gallery, added that the exhibition reception is the most popular event hosted at the gallery each year.
“It’s a fun night for the art department. It’s one of our big days,” McMullan said. “The kids love it. They all get dressed up. … There will be food and non-alcoholic beverages and coffee. It’s a good night for everybody.”
Professor of Art & Design Randall Hoyt, chair of the graphic design program, said the promotional materials for the exhibition are based on the ideas of graphic design seniors.
“The look and feel of the identity of the show changes, and it changes how things are exhibited because the identity of these elements become part of the exhibition,” Hoyt said.
Hoyt spoke on the intended takeaway for those who visit the exhibition.
“We hope to wow them. We want people to come in and just be impressed at the level of wit, humor and professionalism that these students exhibit,” Hoyt said. “I want someone to say something like, ‘Wow, I didn’t know this was happening at Keene State College,’ and to be surprised and excited.”
The Art & Design Exhibition Reception will take place from 4-7 p.m. on Friday, April 17 in the Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery.
Charlotte King can be contacted at
cking@kscequinox.com
