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Here, we blend the bold and the in-between — milestones, insights, and sparks of what’s next. It’s the creative space where ideas unfold in real-time.

  • Q&A Session 5: Foundations, Studio Art, and Visual Art

    Q&A Session 5: Foundations, Studio Art, and Visual Art

    The fifth informal summer Q&A with the Department of Art and Design faculty was held Tuesday, July 21, 2020, 1:00 PM – 1:45 PM CDT. The course areas of Foundations, Studio Art, and Visual Art were represented. Meeting Details: Tuesday, July 21, 2020, 1:00 PM – 1:45 PM CDT https://mtsu.zoom.us/j/91604848796  …

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  • Art and Design Summer Q&A Virtual Sessions via Zoom

    Art and Design Summer Q&A Virtual Sessions via Zoom

    Join the MTSU Art and Design faculty for an informal Q&A this Summer 2020! Please feel free to pop into any of the open meetings listed below. If you have questions about the format, please reach out to Associate Professor Nicole Foran at Nicole.Foran@mtsu.edu.  Q&A Session 1: Foundations, Drawing, Graphic Design, Art History,…

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  • Foundations of Digital Art and Design Zoom Virtual Meeting

    Foundations of Digital Art and Design Zoom Virtual Meeting

    Department of Art and Design, Associate Professor, Erin Anfinson invites you to join her for a Zoom meeting to discuss her course Art 1650 Foundations Digital Art/Design.  Thursday, July 16, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. CDT

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  • Natalie Patton Quiltessa

    Natalie Patton Quiltessa

    Video highlights Natalie Patton Quiltessa’s recent exhibit  in the 210 Gallery which was organized and curated by Art and Design students Ana Cannon, Chelsea Gardiner, and Shanice Scudder. Video courtesy of Web4U2

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  • Virtual Talk with Richard Goodwin via ZOOM

    Virtual Talk with Richard Goodwin via ZOOM

       Recently, MTSU Graphic Design Professor Tony Rodriguez and award-winning illustrator and product designer, Richard Goodwin conducted an in-depth talk on the toy industry. Richard spoke on the various strategies that he utilized as he made his way up the “toy design mountain.” Goodwin also unveiled his process of composing 2D and 3D model-refinement concepts…

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  • Arrowmont Windgate University Fellows Scholarships

    Arrowmont Windgate University Fellows Scholarships

    Applications for 2020 are closed, for information on 2021’s opportunities contact erin.anfinson@mtsu.edu.

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  • Dominique Ramsey: Illustrator and Character Designer

    Dominique Ramsey: Illustrator and Character Designer

    12 p.m.—Monday, March 2, 2020. MTSU Todd Hall, Room 348 This Google Hangouts chat will take an in-depth look into the artist’s personal process for award winning illustration and visual development. In other words, less talk, more illustration! Also, Ramsey will put together a two-hour LIVE character design illustration from start to finish in…

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  • Art and Design Work Sale to Support Department Scholarships

    Art and Design Work Sale to Support Department Scholarships

    While our November 5 and 6, 2019 sale has concluded you may still wish to peruse our fantastic art and design items remaining. Funds raised from each item sold support the Department of Art and Design’s Scholarships, their outstanding recipients, and participating artists. For a sampling of items in the sale visit: Scholarship Sale. For additional information…

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  • Study Abroad: International Watercolor Workshop

    Study Abroad: International Watercolor Workshop

    Art and Design congratulates Painting Professor Sisavanh Houghton for her approved Study Abroad proposal International Watercolor Workshop Study set for May 2020. Her itinerary includes Strasbourg (France); Basel (Switzerland); Salzburg (Austria); and Munich, Regensburg, and Wurzburg (Germany). All interested MTSU students should contact Sisavanh.Houghton@mtsu.edu. (3 credit hours for upper division studio class)

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  • Stones River National Battlefield Artist-in-Residence Program Opportunity

    Stones River National Battlefield Artist-in-Residence Program Opportunity

    Artist-in-Residence Program opportunity in Rutherford County at Stones River National Battlefield during 2020. Application deadline is October 31, 2019. Full details: https://www.nps.gov/stri/getinvolved/air.htm

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MTSU Art Festival

ARTISTS WANTED

Are you interested in selling your artwork?

Then, be a part of the MTSU Art Festival Saturday, October 22, 2022, in collaboration with

‘BORO INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL

For Details, Visit: @MTSUARTFESTIVAL

Submit Your Work

MTSUARTFESTIVAL@GMAIL.COM

Spacing Limited, Apply by October 5, 2022

Email to Submit

Beholding ME | Todd Art Gallery

4 p.m. – Friday, September 30, 2022, join us in the Todd Art Gallery, Todd Hall, Room 224A, for a reception to celebrate

Beholding ME: Video Artworks from the Middle Eastern Diaspora

on exhibit through October 10.

The exhibition presents a dynamic group of video artists from the Middle East and surrounding Diasporas to explore issues of gender, politics, colonialism, culture, and identity through videos and documentaries. In addition, the exhibition aims to analyze and reconceptualize the existing narratives of Middle Eastern communities in the United States.

Curator: Mohammed Meerzaei

Exhibition Dates: Wednesday, September 21 – Monday, October 10, 2022

Todd Art Gallery, Todd Hall, Room 224A

Department of Art and Design | MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY

Curation Liaison: Raheleh Filsoofi

Exhibition Sponsors: MTSU Department of Art and Design/Todd Art Gallery, MTSU program in Middle East Studies, MTSU Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Vanderbilt University Department of Art, Vanderbilt University Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities.

Image Center: My Existence is Political, detail, Bezair Aradini

Exhibition Sponsors: MTSU Department of Art and Design/Todd Art Gallery, MTSU program in Middle East Studies, MTSU Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Vanderbilt University Department of Art, Vanderbilt University Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities.

Participating Artists: Bezair Aradini, Nuveen Barwari, Farhad Bahram, Sarah Brahim,

Ronnie Karfiol, Habiba El-Sayed, and Setareh Ghoreishi

Background Image: Nikita Chisnikov, detail

COMMON GROUND LECTURE SERIES

Mark your calendars for a lecture and illustration demonstration by Jessie Lin Wednesday, September 14, 2022. at 6 p.m. via Zoom! 

https://www.jessielin.net/ 

Jessie is an award-winning illustrator from Shanghai, China. She works in various artistic fields, including editorial, advertising, surface design, children’s books, and more! Lin works in traditional and digital formats and is prepared to pull back the curtain on her process for all MTSU students via Zoom! 

Zoom information to join the meeting is below.

Selected Clients: 

Johns Hopkins NursingDeseret MagazineAdobeAFT Health CareAmerican EducatorNotre Dame MagazineKnowable Magazine, Sky & Telescope Magazine, Madison MagazineSmithsonian Magazine5280 Magazine, Moxy Hotel, Sanlian Life Week Magazine (三联生活周刊), New Weekly Magazine (新周刊), Lendlease, Palace Food Beijing, National Geography China, Ping An Insurance, Panasonic, Daniel Wellington, China World Summit Wing, INOHERB, Guomai, etc.

Honors & Exhibitions: 

2022 Brightness Illustration Awards | Editorial Third Place

2022 American Illustration 41 | Chosen Winner

2022 Creative Quarterly 100 Best Annual

2022 Communication Arts | Short List

2021 iJungle Illustration Awards | Merit Awards

2021 Creative Quarterly 66 | Runner-up 

2021 Society of Illustrators 64 | Selected Winner

2021 World Illustration Awards | Shortlist

2021 3×3 Illustration Annual No.18 | Honorable Mention

2021 The ADC 100th Annual Awards | Shortlist 

2021 Communication Arts | Short List

2021 Associated Collegiate Press fall Clips and Clicks | First Place 

2020 Brightness Award | Theme: Freedom

2020 Creative Quarterly 61 | Runner-up 

2020 Red Dot Communication Design Awards

2020 Applied Arts Student Awards

2020 3×3 Illustration Annual No.17 | Merit

2020 Creative Quarterly 59 | Runner-up 

2020 Communication Arts | Short List

2019 iJungle Illustration Awards | Merit Awards

2019 Open Studio Night SCAD

2019 Adobe Design Achievement Awards | Top Talent

2019 3×3 Illustration Annual No.16 | Merit

2019 Applied Arts Student Awards 

2019 Creative Quarterly 56 | Runner-up

2019 Mable House Exhibition

2017 Cheltenham Illustration Awards

 

Topic: Jessie Lin (Common Ground)

Time: Sep 14, 2022, 06:00 PM Central Time (the US and Canada)

 

Join Zoom Meeting

https://mtsu.zoom.us/j/87966816840

Meeting ID: 879 6681 6840

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Meeting ID: 879 6681 6840

Find your local number: https://mtsu.zoom.us/u/kdsqqhRmmK

 

 

 

 

 

Tony Rodriguez

Editorial Illustrator 
Assistant Professor of Illustration
Middle Tennessee State University 
(p) 813-334-1585 
(e) tonyrodriguezillustration@gmail.com
(w) www.tonyrodriguezillustration.com

Houston Fryer and Jennifer Seo presenting at 2023 FATE (Foundations in Art: Theory and Education) Conference!

2023 FATE (Foundations in Art: Theory and Education) Conference Art and Design Lecturers Houston Fryer and Jennifer Seo presenting their proposal Session 50, “I Don’t Get It And It Makes Me Feel Weird: Understanding conceptual art with emotional intelligence”  

Every two years FATE holds a national conference for college-level instructors in Art Foundations and Art History to present, share, and discuss ideas on how to teach well. FATE members can attend, have access to network information, and present at the biennial conference. For more information on FATE visit: https://www.foundationsart.org/home 

Fryer and Seo submitted a proposal as co-chairs for our presentation noted above and the MTSU Department of Art and Design is pleased to announce their inclusion in the 2023 FATE conference in Denver, Colorado. The upcoming conference is at the point where it is accepting papers for the 62 total Sessions, of which Fryer and Seo’s is 50 in the PDF of Sessions

Visit the complete list of Sessions: Call for Papers (FATE 2023) (mtsu.edu)

Visit Fryer and Seo’s Session Proposal: FATE.pdf (mtsu.edu)

Guitar Pedal Illustration Challenge II

GUITAR PEDAL ILLUSTRATION CHALLENGE II

IN COLLABORATION WITH NASHVILLE’S MYTHOS GUITAR PEDALS

MTSU’s second 15-hour illustration challenge in partnership with Nashville’s Mythos Pedals is this Fall 2022! Register by filling out your name and email on the registration sheet outside Todd, Room 215. The deadline to register is 11/1/22.

The challenge will revolve around creating an original illustration that will be printed on a guitar pedal and then sold as a limited run of pedals to guitar players all over the globe. Students will produce their illustration submissions within a 15-hour window for a shot at victory! Also, we’ll watch movies, listen to music, and hang out for the day and into the evening as we finalize our submissions. (You can also work from home if you’d like).

All participants MUST reconvene in Todd Hall, Room 348, the following morning for winner announcements. The winner will be PAID $200.00 and receive a FREE working guitar pedal with their artwork printed on it!

For more information, take a flyer from the paper holder outside Todd Hall, Room 215.

Work time: Friday 11/4 8:00 am – 11:00 pm

Winner announcements: Saturday 11/5 – 11:00 am

Where: MTSU Todd Hall, room 348

Eligibility: All MTSU students welcome (vector drawing mandatory)

Questions: Contact Professor Rodriguez at Tony.Rodriguez@mtsu.edu  

RECEPTION/ARTIST TALK

Join the MTSU Department of Art and Design, 2–2:45 p.m., Wednesday, August 31, 2022, for a Reception and Artist Talk. Many of our participating professors will be on hand for you to speak and visit. Also,  our new Chair, Jimmy Mumford will speak briefly and offer a period of Q&A for attendees to discover our latest plans, events, and activities!

Biennial 2022: An Art and Design Faculty Exhibit

The MTSU Department of Art and Design is pleased to announce an exhibition of selected works by its professors entitled Biennial 2022: A Faculty Exhibition. Scheduled in the Todd Art Gallery, Todd Hall, Room 224A, faculty work opens the department’s fall show calendar and is available to the public from August 22 to September 10, 2022.

Representing the department’s course areas of Art Education, Foundations, Graphic Design, Illustration, and Studio Art, which includes Ceramics, Painting, Print Media, and Sculpture, the Biennial showcases a unique fusion of art from the department’s many components. Those participating include Erin Anfinson, Michael Baggarly, Stefanie Cobb, Doug Dabbs, Kimberly Dummons, Kelsey Duncan, Houston Fryer, Jarrod Houghton, Sisavanh Houghton, Noël Lorson, Mark McLeod, Paige Medlock, Jimmy Mumford, Jean Nagy, Melissa Newman, Kathleen O’Connell, Tony Rodriguez, Nick Satinover, Gypsy Schindler, Sheri Selph, and Stephanie Simkin. The exhibit is multi-purposed in its presentation. On a basic level, it introduces the artwork of newer faculty to Art and Design students, MTSU’s campus, and the larger community. And concurrently, it showcases the continuing artistic pursuits of the department’s more senior professors. Thus, it offers attendees a full range of opportunities to witness a striking and expressive statement of contemporary visual art found at MTSU.

As a focused student endeavor, this exhibit intends to engage its viewers, whether university students or lifelong learners, in what Dr. Paige Medlock, Art Education, sees as visual art’s cultural significance. It] creates a space where viewers can pause, reflect, and shift the way they see themselves, their context, the artwork, and the artist’s context, and potentially allow a new perspective to shed light on thinking and being in the world.

A reception for Biennial 2022 is scheduled for 2–2:45 p.m., Wednesday, August 31, at Todd Art Gallery, MTSU Todd Hall. Art and Design’s new Chair, Jimmy Mumford, is set to speak, offering his observations on the exhibit, his personal artistic philosophy, background, and participating in Q&A.

New Student Orientation

Are you a new or transfer student to the MTSU Department of Art and Design? Join this mandatory meeting Wednesday, August 32, 2022, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The location is Todd Hall, Room 204. Questions? Email Erin.Anfinson@mtsu.edu 

Common Ground Artist Lecture Series

Join MTSU Department of Art and Design for this Semester’s Artist Lecture Series, Common Ground. Presting artists include Imen Yeh, Dana SanMar, and Emmett Hobbes. Select a button below for details and Zoom Meeting information.

 

Common Ground Lecture Series

 

Imen Yeh—Project-Based Fine Artist, February 9, 2022

 

Imen Yeh

 

Dana Sanmar—Illustrator and Graphic Designer, March 2

 

Dana Sanmar

 

Emmett Hobbes—Comic Book Artist, April 6

 

Emmett Hobbes

 

For more information:Lecture Artists

Alum Visiting Artist Beizar Aradini

Lecture and Discussion with Art Capstone* featuring Alum Beizar Aradini

11:25 a.m.–2 p.m., Tuesday, November 17, 2021

Todd Hall, Room 354

All are Welcome to Attend this Free and Open Event

Best in Show - Beizar Aradini, Nashville, My Existence is Political —Fiber/Textile

*Art Capstone – An Art and Design course that focuses on public practices related to art-making, such as interdisciplinary critique, presentation, research methodologies, and self-analysis. Students create artwork in response to their critical inquiry and present it in a group exhibition at the course’s conclusion.

Beizar Aradini (b. 1991) was born in Mardin, Kurdistan, and immigrated to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1992. Her work unravels her family’s story as immigrants and examines cultural displacement through craft and fiber arts. Aradini has been featured in many exhibitions nationally and in Bê Welat: The Unexpected Storytellers at nGbk Gallery in Berlin, Germany. Her artwork has also been exhibited at the Frist Art Museum as part of the We Count: First-Time Voters exhibition, which received an Award of Excellence from the Tennessee Association of Museums. In addition, her work was featured in local publications such as Four Women Artists Reflect on Peoples and Places in the Nashville Scene and The Ties That Binds in Native Magazine. In 2021, she was awarded Best in Show of Tennessee Craft 2021 Biennial at the Tennessee State Museum. Recently, Aradini was selected as an artist-in-residence at Arquetopia International Artist Residency and completed an Andean Textile and Weaving workshop during her month-long stay in Urunamba, Peru.