Written by Rosario Parker Gordon ’23 | featured photograph courtesy Kathryn Savage via Instagram (@kdsreads)
As we end 2022 and move into 2023, we are lucky enough to be able to reflect on the various accomplishments of not only our MFA students, but those in our greater MFA Community, such as faculty members and mentors. This past Fall 2022, some of our MCAD MFA Community members were able to share new written works with the world. These writers include Billy Franklin (faculty), Katherine Woodman-Maynard (mentor), Peng Wu (faculty & MFA’13), and Kathryn Savage (faculty). The following works* are just one small sampling of the immense accomplishments of the many writers and creatives circulating in the MCAD MFA circle. Must-reads, all!
Authored and edited by Billy Franklin (faculty), with a foreword by Rico Paul Vallejos, this book is “a richly illustrated and personal presentation of the lives and careers of twelve Latin American Artists in Minnesota.” This text is published by University of Minnesota Press and can be purchased as an e-book as well as in print.
The Great Gatsby: A Graphic Novel Interpretation
Illustrated by Katherine Woodman-Maynard (mentor), this adaptation of one of the great American novels is stunning. This illustrated adaptation stays faithful to the original, with excepts from Fitzgerald’s original text, but with whimsical and magical twists. In addition to illustrating, Woodman-Maynard has in-depth process documentation on her website for those more curious readers to get a peek into what it takes to illustrate a watercolor graphic novel. This graphic novel is published by Candlewick and can be purchased in print or e-book format.
Letter to My Father in the Other World Explaining Four Types of U.S. Visas
In this deeply personal essay, imagined as a letter to his father, Peng Wu (faculty & MFA’13) shares his experiences as an immigrant, and how they have impacted his life, career, and relationships. What does it mean to be labeled indefinitely temporary? This article can be read on the MNArtists website.
Published by Coffee House Press, this essay from Kathryn Savage (faculty) explores both human and environmental health, and the cyclical impact both have on each other. Savage draws from familiar settings, both familial and environmental, addressing a polluted aquifer and family burdened with a toxins-linked disease She stretches and perforates the edges that create boundaries between ourselves, and the natural world. This book can be purchased in print or e-book format.
