Marquee at 134th spring commencement

Nearly 250 Columbus College of Art & Design students graced the stage of the historic Ohio Theatre to receive their diplomas on Saturday, May 11, 2013.

The 134^th annual commencement in downtown Columbus included an address by nationally renowned artist Mel Chin, who was also awarded an honorary degree by the college.

James E. Kunk, vice chair of CCAD’s board of trustees; Dennison W. Griffith, CCAD president; Kevin J. Conlon, vice president for academic affairs; and director of graduate studies and professor Ric Petry conferred the nine master of fine arts degrees and the bachelor of fine arts.

Student government president and Advertising & Graphic Design major Cailyn Driscoll addressed the audience of peers and family, followed by recognition of the nine outstanding seniors:

• Lillie Templeton, Advertising & Graphic Design
• Tyler Crowley, Animation
• Patrick Kain, Cinematic Arts
• Katharine Hire, Fashion Design
• Stefanie Cook, Fine Arts
• Wesley Talbott, Illustration
• Justin Brown, Industrial Design
• Katelyn Venia, Interior Design
• Kayla Holdgreve, Photography

President Griffith introduced the 2013 class valedictorian, Advertising & Graphic Design major Lillie Templeton.

Following the valedictorian’s address, Griffith spoke to the graduating class. He offered them a heartfelt farewell and encouraged them to spread their talent and the message of love across the world.

Check out a video from the 2013 commencement here.

The 2013 Art of Illustration poster, created by Illustration senior Taylor Hicks

The Art of Illustration show is a student-run and -organized exhibition that is now in its 16th year. The juried show features illustrations from all majors and alumni who participated when they were students are now coming back to act as jurors.

This year the five Illustration student organizers included sophomore Haleigh Richards and seniors Lexie Holliday, Josh Parkinson, Wes Talbott, and chair Andrew Thompson. The students chose five judges to look over 291 submissions for the show that runs March 16–30. The judges included four CCAD alumni: Scott Hull (Advertising & Graphic Design 1977), Steve Prescott (Illustration 1995), Jason Jourdan (Illustration 1998), and Graham Erwin (Illustration 2011). The fifth judge was artist representative Frank Sturges.

The judges gathered on campus and spent the day going through submissions, offering thorough critiques and advice on every piece, whether accepted or not. Ultimately 40 submissions were accepted into the show.

“The show is and has always been entirely organized and run by the students,” said Stewart McKissick, Illustration professor and alumnus. “They selected and contacted the judges, organized where and when the judging would take place, and researched and collected donations for the opening reception at the gallery, as well as prizes for entry winners.”

This is the third year for the show to be held at Rivet Gallery, a gallery located in Columbus’ art district, the Short North.

“Rivet has been very generous to us, allowing students to sell their work from the show with no commission fee to the gallery,” McKissick said.

Having the exhibition at an off-campus external location for the last three years has allowed it to function as a professional, juried show.

Erwin, who does preproduction work and design for a custom screen printing shop and freelance illustration for a wide range of clients, has witnessed the show expand as a student and now as an alumnus.

“I first submitted work for AOI as a sophomore,” Erwin said. “Although my piece wasn’t chosen that year, it definitely lit a fire for the years to come, and I began approaching every piece as if it could be a submission for one competition or another. I continued to submit work my junior and senior years, where I had pieces accepted and awarded.

“The Art of Illustration show was an important part of my illustration training,” Erwin said. “It was my first experience where my work was looked at by professionals with a critical eye. I think it is important for the show to now be held at Rivet, where students can see their work in a real-world gallery setting.”

The show allows students the ability to access professionals to evaluate their work and have critiques by people other than their peers and professors.

“This process shows students the importance of submitting and getting their art into the real world,” Hull said. “And also accepting the rejection that may come along with this.”

Hull, founder of Scott Hull Associates and illustration representative, has worked as a juror twice now for the show and views helping out students at CCAD as highly rewarding.

“Helping young talent navigate their creative dream is a passion of mine,” Hull said. “I think it is a good practice to have alumni come back as jurors for this particular show, since they are able to understand the CCAD culture a little better and they want to offer any and all help to the students.”

Originally, the show was solely coordinated by Illustration students, and they were the ones submitting work, but as the show has grown so has participation from throughout the college.

“What’s exciting to see is the ever-increasing interest and participation now by the majority of our majors,” McKissick said. “It is an excellent leadership opportunity for the students who work on the committee, and it is a chance to have students learn about aspects of the art world beyond just the making of it.”

The show’s award ceremony was held during its opening reception March 16, 7–10 p.m. Selected work will be honored with first, second, and third place, and each judge selected a work to be awarded Judge’s Choice. The show will be up through March 30.

“I can honestly say that every year is another great memory for us,” McKissick said. “And we’re always very proud of what the students accomplish.”

Erwin is from Columbus and attended Whetstone High School; Hull is from Danville, OH, and attended Danville High School; Jourdan is from Mansfield, OH, and attended Mansfield Senior High School; McKissick is from Franklin, PA, and attended Franklin High School; Prescott is from Gates Mills, OH, and attended Mayfield High School.

Jerrica Fields at the Spring 2012 CCAD Art Sale

The CCAD Art Sale has become a staple in the Columbus community as a great place to buy local art. More than 100 vendors, consisting of CCAD alumni, faculty, staff, and students, will be set up on Saturday, Dec. 1 to display and sell their work in the Loann Crane Center for Design.

Fine Arts alumna Jerrica Fields (2011) will be participating in her fifth sale this winter. She’ll be selling handcrafted and crocheted jewelry designs in copper and sterling silver, along with her paper goods that include hand-bound notebooks, journals, planners, cards, and magnets.

“There are people at CCAD who are proud of me, and I want to show them how much I have grown because of their help and continued support,” Fields said about why she returns to CCAD to sell her work. “Every year I have repeat customers who tell me they can’t wait to see what new design I’ll come up with—that alone makes what I do worth it.”

CCAD’s doors open at 9 a.m. for first-choice admission, and general admission is 10 a.m.–2 p.m. The spring sale welcomed more than 1,400 customers and raised more than $5,000 through admission fees, which goes straight into the scholarship fund.

Michael Bonardi at the Spring 2012 CCAD Art Sale

“People who attend the sale, especially in the first-choice time period, know how important this sale is to us [the vendors],” Fields said. “We get to show them what we’ve learned and how we are incorporating it into our daily lives as artists and what their money is helping facilitate. People who come to an art college to buy art are here to see what CCAD artists are all about, including craftsmanship, sweat, ambition, pride, and good old-fashioned hard work.”

Fields spends weeks preparing for the sale. After taking inventory of her pieces and hand-crafting her business cards she does a mock-up of her display.

“I have grown so much as an artist, so I love to see the students at the sale and offer them some advice and encouragement,” Fields said.

One of those students is Illustration senior Wes Talbott. He will be selling his prints at what will be his third CCAD Art Sale.

“The Hunter” by Wes Talbott

“Having a table at the sale helps me understand how the general public reacts to my work,” Talbott said. “The response you get from the trained eye of a teacher can be a lot different than the response you get from a customer; both are very helpful to hear.”

Fine Arts alumnus and CCAD admissions counselor Michael Bonardi (2004) is a seasoned professional when it comes to the sale, with this December sale marking his 24^th: eight as a student and 16 as an alumnus.

Bonardi will be selling his blown glass, porcelain, digital photography, and other experimental photographic works.

“For the sale I try to keep a steady inventory of work,” Bonardi said. “Every year I try to add something new into what I present, whether it is a new body of work or different display structures.”

Bonardi’s home entryway doubles as a storage space and gallery for his current work.

“The customer that comes to the CCAD Art Sale knows that all the vendors have a common bond of being a part of the CCAD family,” Bonardi said. “And by coming to the sale they are not only supporting our work, but they are supporting future CCAD artists and students.”

The CCAD Winter Art Sale is Saturday, Dec. 1. Enter at 9 a.m. for first-choice admission ($50) and 10 a.m. for general admission ($5). Come celebrate art, the Columbus community, and above all our CCAD vendors. Click here for more information on the sale.

Screenshot from the animated short film “Reversion”

Animation sophomore William Oglesby and Illustration senior Wes Talbott were a part of an international team that won a 2012 Suzanne Award for the Best Design Short at the Blender Conference in Amsterdam.

Their entry, Reversion, is an 11-minute film from writer and director Giancarlo Ng. Talbott and Oglesby worked on the short with nearly 20 other artists and programmers.

The awards were presented as part of the Suzanne Animation Festival, which invites filmmakers, artists, animators, designers, and scientists to submit their work for judging as part of the Blender Conference.

The conference hosts a mix of technical talks, scientific presentations, case studies, and workshops by artists and developers focusing around Blender, an open-source content creation suite.

The conference was held Oct. 12–14, 2012.

AOI poster created by junior Wes Talbott

CCAD’s annual Art of Illustration (AOI) exhibition opens March 3 at Rivet Gallery in Columbus’ Short North arts district.

The student-produced exhibition is in its 15^th year and is part of a collegewide illustration competition that is juried by local professional illustrators.

The exhibition, which used to be shown on CCAD’s campus, moved to Rivet Gallery last year. The exhibition will once again debut during Gallery Hop, a first-Saturday-of-every-month event in the Short North.

“We wanted to showcase the best illustrative work created by students of CCAD and give them a chance to have their work exhibited in a gallery off campus,” said Brianne Schulze, a student organizer of AOI. “This is our second year working with Laura Kuenzli at Rivet Gallery, and she has been a big help to us throughout the entire process and in giving the exhibited artists an opportunity to sell their work.”

This year the show is organized by four Illustration students: seniors Lexie Holliday and Brianne Schulze, and juniors Andrew Thompson and Wes Talbott. Advisors are Professors Stewart McKissick (CCAD 1979) and Walter King (CCAD 1981) and Chair of Illustration Chris Payne.

Left to right: Chris Seaman, Jeff Carlisle, Lora Innes, Chris Payne, Adam Watkins, and Maxe Smith

The panel of judges included alumni Lora Innes (CCAD 2002, Media Studies), Chris Seaman (CCAD 2000, Illustration), Adam Watkins (CCAD 2004, Illustration), Maxe Smith (CCAD 2009, Illustration), and Jeff Carlisle (CCAD 1997, Illustration). They evaluated 190 submissions, narrowing the pool down to 41 accepted illustrations for the show.

Awards will be given for first, second, and third place. Six pieces were also chosen as  judges’ picks and will receive awards. The show is sponsored by Chipotle, Starbucks, r designs & printing, Noodles and Co., Dick Blick Art Materials, Kroger, and Giant Eagle.

Art of Illustration will open March 3 at Rivet Gallery, 1200 N. High St., with a reception from 7–10 p.m., during which awards will be given. The show will run through March 28, 2012.