For the past 5 years, the MCAD MFA program has partnered with other arts organizations to co-sponsor funded MFA Launch programs, providing opportunities for MFA students and alumni to create new work. This past summer, as part of a new Launch program at the Minnesota Center for Book Arts (thanks to Anika Schneider, MFA ’19), [...]

Second year MFA student Nick Chatfield-Taylor works with spaces and supporting-act objects—disposable party decorations, plastic packaging, air, fog—to elevate these forgotten materials and separate them from their former lives, while making a minimal impact on the surrounding environment. Nick’s work was recently on exhibit at the Soo Visual Arts Center (SooVAC) for their juried group [...]

Written by Alexis Schramel | Pictures by Eric Butler A BIG congratulations to Joy Li! This past semester Joy Li ’23 curated Soft Power highlighting the relationship between experimentation in textiles and concepts surrounding strength. Fifteen university faculty members were chosen across Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Recently I was lucky enough to interview her regarding [...]

Written by Alexis Schramel | Pictures by Eric Butler Last week I had the pleasure of interviewing Lokho Kotile ’23 on her first solo exhibition! Her exhibition, Warri Keessan Ess? / Where is Your Home?, was on view at Soomaal House of Art until March 19, 2022. This exhibition featured photos, film, installation, and poetry inspired [...]

January 2022 witnessed the annual Wisher Residency in Park Rapids, Minnesota as a part of MCAD MFA Launch Programming with Kendall Dickinson ’20, Genie Tran ’22, and Alexis Schramel ’23. This residency is generously sponsored by MCAD alumnus Rob Fischer (BFA ’93) and partner Sara Woster at their summer-studio/winter-AirBnB for up to three MCAD MFA participants. Along [...]

Written by Kay Heino Lokho Kotile ’23, is having her first solo show at the Soomaal House of Art in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The exhibition will be titled, “Where Is Your Home,” and will include a collection of images, videos, and installation. The opening day of the exhibition will be on Saturday, February 19th, 2022 at [...]

We want to congratulate May Ling Kopecky ’22 whose work “Double Vision” was accepted in the MFA online exhibition titled “COHORTS: alone – together.” This is an international online exhibition sponsored by the MFA Art program at the University of Montana. This is the 7th year of the annual exhibition, and they had 690 applicants from 102 different [...]

Written by Alexis Schramel | Photos by Amanda Rose Drum roll please! Congratulations to Amanda Rose ‘23! Amanda has been selected as the new gallery assistant for Homewood Studios as part of our latest Launch Program. Homewood Studios is located in the Homewood neighborhood of North Minneapolis and run by Beverly and George Roberts. Their dedication [...]

Written by Alexis Schramel | Photos by Alexis Schramel What is a day in the life of a Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA)? To answer this question, it is important to remember that not all successful GTA positions look the same. These positions can feature lecture-based to studio-focused classrooms, in-person to virtual learning, and a variety [...]

This summer, Cailey Birchem ’22 participated in our first ever Launch Program with the Highlights Foundation by attending a two-week workshop, Deep Dive into Children’s Book Illustration. The Highlights Foundation positively impacts children by amplifying the voices of storytellers who inform, educate, and inspire children to become their best selves. Birchem was one of five MCAD MFA artists who attended this [...]