The 2023 Master of Fine Arts Exhibition, which runs March 11-May 21 at the MSU Broad Art Museum, will feature the work of the four MFA candidates who are graduating this spring. The exhibition is the culmination of a three-year program that allows students to push the existing limits of art while exploring their creative practice under the supervision of a faculty guidance committee.
The MFA candidates whose work will be featured in this year’s exhibition include Kelsey Blacklock, Ursula Heder, Lewis, and christian olid-ramirez, all of whom have unique backgrounds and experiences.
These student artists/scholars each worked with their committees to refine their research and artistic goals and to develop a unique project and written thesis. Each student artist/scholar did extensive study in a medium or area of concentration, combined with coursework in the history of art and related fields, which helped situate their work within the broad field of contemporary art and design practices. The MFA Exhibition serves as evidence of their achievements and continuing artistic and scholarly promise.
“It’s been an honor to work with this year’s four graduating MFA students. Their work is not only insightful and ambitious, but reflects extensive research, careful thought, and a high level of innovation and skill.”
Rachel Winter, Assistant Curator
The opening reception for the MFA Exhibition is Friday, March 24, from 6 to 8 p.m. during which there will be a short awards program to announce the Selma and Stanley Hollander Fellowship for Graduate Study and the annual John and Susan Berding Family Foundation endowed Master of Fine Arts Prize. This year’s invited guest juror is Elliot Josephine Leila Reichert, Curator of Contemporary Art at the Eskenazi Museum of Art, who will be in attendance to announce these awards. Tickets to the 2023 Master of Fine Arts Exhibition Opening Reception are free, but the MSU Broad Art Museum asks that you reserve them online in advance.
A 2023 Master of Fine Arts Exhibition Tour also is scheduled for Sunday, March 26, from 1 to 2 p.m. where Michelle Word, Director of Education at the MSU Broad Art Museum, will take participants on an interactive tour of the MFA Exhibition. Tickets to this tour are free, but the MSU Broad Art Museum asks that you reserve them online in advance.
The 2023 Master of Fine Arts Exhibition is organized by the Department of Art, Art History, and Design and the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum at Michigan State University with curatorial oversight provided by Rachel Winter, Assistant Curator. Support for this exhibition is provided by the Graduate School at MSU and the John and Susan Berding Family Endowment.
“What audiences will see in the exhibition is a small window into their larger artistic practice, and a preview of what is to come as these artists leave MSU and embark on new opportunities to further their promising artistic careers.”
Rachel Winter, Assistant Curator
Working one-on-one with the MFA students, Winter said this project brings her joy every year.
“It’s been an honor to work with this year’s four graduating MFA students. Their work is not only insightful and ambitious, but reflects extensive research, careful thought, and a high level of innovation and skill,” Winter said. “What audiences will see in the exhibition is a small window into their larger artistic practice, and a preview of what is to come as these artists leave MSU and embark on new opportunities to further their promising artistic careers.”
