20/20 (2023)

What a time to have been in art school. Imagine moving to New York to begin your career as an artist and, bam, halfway through your first year at the School of Visual Arts, a global lockdown. As if art school isn’t hard enough; as if navigating New York isn’t hard enough.

But that’s not all. Then we had nationwide protests

When I encountered Ryan Yu’s ceramics, I was puzzled

beautiful composition of handmade objects. Downstairs,

against police brutality, an insurrection at the U.S. capital,

by their familiar shapes but clear inutility. I learned the

just to the left of the building’s entrance, was a large gal-

the resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Russian

vases and pitchers had been generated using artificial

lery space featuring the sculpture of Nicholas DelCastillo,

invasion of Ukraine—not to mention the continued Syrian

intelligence—the ubiquity of such technology I’m sure will

whose taxidermied works are part of a fictionalized lab

refugee crisis, the rise of misinformation and hate speech

be felt even more by the time this essay is printed. These

experiment to create a new breed of animal. Delcastillo

across media platforms, the unprecedented weather

sculptures are elegant experiments that seemed prescient

treats this experiment as a proxy for himself; he writes in

events killing many and displacing many more. There’s a

of an AI-generated reality where everyday objects are all

the wall text that he too felt like a unique species.

term, polycrisis, that I was recently introduced to, describ-

slightly off. For a generation raised on the Internet, there

ing how the concurrency of crises increases their impact.

was a surprising affinity for traditional media. Though

by Christopher Lochmann; stunning and sad clownlike

The mental health crisis resulting from the pandemic alone

some works—like those of Qiqi Pan that use string and

portraits by Isabella Perna; figurative scenes from horror

is jarring. It’s easy to see how a younger generation,

clay to create a ruddy web resembling neural pathways or

movies by Sol Jin Park; Cy Twombly–esque gestural

whose life has been occupied by these compound pres-

abstracted social networks—are harnessed in tech. Or

paintings by Zun Liu; the minimal abstract landscapes by

sures, would be troubled by what’s to come next.

Yali Reichman’s wall works that appear to bring digital

Zhiyi Lan. An entire room was occupied by colorful

I couldn’t help but have this recent past in mind when I

models to a minimalist sculptural aesthetic. Or Cheyenne

shower curtains with words written in Chinese and English

visited SVA to tour the studios of the graduating BFA Fine

Preston’s large design sketch of a file cabinet on anach-

by Lan Guo, which reminded me of the preoccupation

Arts cohort. And what was the first work I encountered?

ronistically fibrous canvas. These are works acknowledging

many of these students had with language. The letters

The surrealistic pink-and-gray floating horse head paint-

a world online, yet their makers clearly desire the physicality

overlap with one another, distorting any meaning. The two

ings of Shengjie Jiang. Giorgio de Chirico and Leonora

of material-based practices.

scripts suggest an artist straddling two worlds.

Also on display were skillful paintings. Little tableaus

For these students, having made these artworks is a

Carrington serve as precedents for the nearby architec-

Others look back, perhaps as a way to anticipate

tures of Christian Kwon and floating baby heads (with

what’s next. In adjacent galleries were document-based

great achievement. These collected works represent a

gravitational pulls) of Shirley Yi Li. The enlarged mushroom

installations by Blush Berrios, Liv McGuinness and

small sample of the output of this graduating class, but

and insect sculptures of Ziyao Xie appear like a scene

Basharat Ali Syed. These artists take the ephemera of

each student endured a lot to get here. A big congratula-

from Alice in Wonderland. Faces painted by Lizhang Li

a lived experience and craft narratives about ancestry

tions to all. Walking through the open studios affirmed in

have swapped eyes and mouths, disturbing an otherwise

and family trauma. Especially personal was McGuinness’s

me the idea of art as an impulse. These students shared

banal classroom scene. I’ve always taken André Breton’s

juxtaposition of documents that trace her birth in Vietnam

works that strive to understand this bizarre and frightening

project as an exercise of world-building out of the wreck-

to her upbringing by a white Long Island family. She deftly

historical moment, and they did so generously. “What’s

age of World War I (an earlier era of polycrisis?), and I see

plays with cultural signifiers but also the complex emotions

going on?” they asked. And they were compelled to make

these artists taking a cue from the Frenchman in their

that come from both adoptees and immigrants. Similar to

and discover. That this impulse persists in this era of poly-

impulses to visually interpret the hypnagogic past few years.

these projects is Rhesa Paul’s brilliant blue installation of

crisis is a gift.

But it hasn’t just been COVID-19 that’s felt dreamlike.

jars and baskets that unites the personal and historical in a

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Marko Gluhaich Associate Editor Frieze Magazine

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Curator’s Choices 7

BASH AR AT ALI SY E D

CLOCKWISE: Opaque X Rays • 2023 • Digital print on semi-transparent paper, wood, acrylic glass and screws • 14 x 20 in, 16 x 20 in, 16 x 20 in Opaque X Rays (detail) • 2023 • Digital print on semi-transparent paper, wood, acrylic glass and screws Opaque X Rays (detail) • 2023 • Digital print on semi-transparent paper, wood, acrylic glass and screws

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Susceptible Fragility • 2023 • Wood, Acrylic glass, Box fans, mesh fabric, cashmere fabric and galvanized steel wire • Behind: 22.5 x 22.625 x 67 in; Front: 22.5 x 22.625 x 65 in Susceptible Fragility (detail) • 2023 • Wood, Acrylic glass, Box fans, mesh fabric, cashmere fabric and galvanized steel wire

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BLUS H B E R R I O S

LEFT TO RIGHT: Liquid Memory: Pitt Street (Hangers) • 2023 • Thermal Stencil on scoby • 6 x 9 in Liquid Memory: Pitt Street (Dresser) • 2023 • Thermal Stencil on scoby • 6 x 9 in

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Mother Stands For Comfort (detail) • 2023 • 3D Powder Printed Shells, Nylons, Sand • Dimensions Variable Mother Stands For Comfort • 2023 • 3D Powder Printed Shells, Nylons, Sand • 4 ft Sandy • 2023 • Laser engravings on wood and cardboard • 7 x 28 in

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C HEY E N N E PR ES TO N

CLOCKWISE: Masterful Delirious Delineations of Self • 2023 • Graphite and ink on acrylic wash dyed muslin with sandbags, hemp cord, and metal • 59 x 66 in Installation view • 2023 Not Knowing, Never Knowing (Here but Hollow) (detail) • 2023 • Graphite and ink on acrylic wash dyed muslin with sandbags, hemp cord, and metal

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Grey Drawing (installation view) • 2023 • Pen, Sharpie, and Ink on Paper • Dimensions variable

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C HRI S T I A N KWO N

CLOCKWISE: Desert • 2022 • Acrylic on Canvas • 22 x 28 in Disguised • 2022 • Acrylic on Canvas • 36 x 24 in Reveal • 2023 • Acrylic on Canvas • 18 x 24 in

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Installation views

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C HRI S TOP H E R LO CH M A N N

LEFT TO RIGHT: Carpet • 2023 • Watercolor on tracing paper, glue, metal rod • 12 x 14.5 in Olympia • 2023 • Watercolor on tracing paper, glue, metal rod • 10 x 12 in

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Installation view

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Chairs (Torture) • 2023 • Watercolor on tracing paper, glue, metal rod • 12 x 15.5 in Dancers • 2023 • Watercolor on tracing paper, glue, metal rod • 12x 12 in

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I SAB E LL A P E R NA

LEFT TO RIGHT: Loud 3 • 2023 • Oil on Wood Panel • 16 x 20 in Loud 1 • 2023 • Watercolor on tracing paper, glue, metal rod • 18 x 24 in

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Installation view

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Quiet 2 • 2023 • Oil on Wood Panel • 10 x 10 in Loud 2 • 2023 • Oil on Wood Panel • 29 x 37 in

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LAN GU O

LEFT TO RIGHT: Ultimate Red • 2022 • Fabric, metal, plastic • 80 x 80 in Ultimate Red (detail) • 2022

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CLOCKWISE: Under-Explanation • 2023 • Plastic and metal rods • 72 x 72 in each Under-Explanation (detail) • 2023 Under-Explanation (detail) • 2023

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LI V MC GU I N N E S S

CLOCKWISE: I LOVE YOU ____. • 2023 • Video • 6:49 min.

Untitled Fragments (detail) • 2023 • Inkjet photo transfer, modge podge Installation view

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I LOVE YOU, MOM • 2023 • Inkjet photo transfer, modge podge • 78.5 x 80 in

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LI Z H A N G LI

LEFT TO RIGHT: Installation view

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A Lovely Day • 2022 • Oil on canvas • 52 x 34 in

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Untitled • 2022 • Oil on Wood Panel • 36 x 48 in After I Wake • 2023 • Oil on Wood Panel • 34 x 36 in

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NIC H OLA S D E LCA ST I L LO

LEFT TO RIGHT: IKONS • 2023 • Slip cast taxidermy forms, glaze • 35 x 5 x 8 in

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Fetal Ranbi • 2023 • Silicone, Mica powder, glass jar • 4 x 4 x 9 in IN VITRO (detail) • 2023 • Installation view

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LEFT TO RIGHT: IN VITRO (detail) • 2023 • Installation view Reproductions • 2023 • Ceramic taxidermy forms, glaze • Dimensions variable

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QIQI PA N

CLOCKWISE: CUBIC • 2023 • Red paint, wood, cotton, thread, ceramic • 53 x 48 x 26 in ECSTATIC • 2023 • Paper on xuan paper • 24 x 36 in CUBIC (detail)

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Installation view

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R HESA PAU L

LEFT TO RIGHT: Process Wall II, Looking to See if the Sun Left My Hands • 2023 • Found, preloved, crafted objects, cyanotypes on canvas and paper • Dimensions variable A Process Proceeding • 2022 • Deconstructed found basket, found bamboo basket handle • Dimensions variable

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A Palm Is Not A Tree • 2023 • Oil and cotton thread on canvas • 45 x 74.5 in

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RYAN YU

LEFT TO RIGHT: Installation view Assembly Line • 2023 • Ceramic • 10 x 6 x 5 in

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CLOCKWISE: Installation view Untitled • 2023 • Ceramic • 14 x 14 x 10 in Untitled • 2023 • Ceramic • 14 x 14 x 10 in

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Installation view

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SHENGJI E J I AN G

LEFT TO RIGHT: Installation views

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LEFT TO RIGHT: The Second Before...#3 (detail) • 2023 • Oil on Canvas • 56 x 28 in The Second Before...#2 • 2023 • Oil on Canvas • 30 x 40 in

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SOL JI N PA R K

LEFT TO RIGHT: Condensed Emotions • 2022 • Acrylic on canvas • 11 x 14 in Possession • 2022 • Acrylic on canvas • 18 x 24 in

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Possession 2 • 2023 • Acrylic on canvas • 20 x 24 in Thirst (red) and Thirst (blue) • 2022 • Etching on paper • 6 x 9 in each Family Gathering • 2022 • Sculpey clay • 18 x 18 in

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SHIR LE Y L I

LEFT TO RIGHT: Installation view • 2023 • Acrylic on canvas • 20 x 24 in Claw Machine (detail) • 2023 • 3D powder print, plastic bag, latex rubber, tube, fish hook, wire • Dimensions variable

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Babyhead: Influx (detail) • 2022 • Oil on Canvas • 43 x 53 in Babyhead: Suspension • 2022 • Oil on Canvas • 48 x 60 in

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YALI R E I C H M AN

LEFT TO RIGHT: Installation view Thee fond boy • 2023 • Wood, staples, spray and acrylic paint • 36 x 48 in

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Woodguy is getting married • 2023 • Wood, staples, glue, paper, acrylic and oil paint • 84 x 84 in Number 20 (Becoming the self-centered narcissistic series) • 2022 • Oil pastel on paper • 43 x 60 in

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Z HIY I L AN

LEFT TO RIGHT: Untitled • 2023 • Wall paint on wood and glass • 19 x 30 in Installation view

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Installation view Untitled • 2023 • Mix media on wood • 15 x 22 in

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The Bath Tub • 2023 • Oil on Canvas • 53 x 31 in

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Z I YAO XI E

CLOCKWISE: Installation view Installaview view (detail) Installaview view

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LEFT TO RIGHT: Lightbulb Fly • 2022 • Chicken wire, plaster, bandage • 32 x 40 in From left to right: Coral Reef, Mushroom (blue), Untitled, Mushroom (red) • 2022 • Ceramic • Dimensions variable

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ZUN LIU

CLOCKWISE: Installation view Untitled • 2023 • Mixed media • Dimensions variable Untitled • 2023 • Mixed media • Dimensions variable

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CLOCKWISE: Installation view Who are you? (detail) • 2022 • Oil on wood • 40 x 51 in

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TWENTY / TWENTY Cover artwork by Ryan Yu Inside cover artwork by Rhesa Paul Photographs by Xuemeng Zhang and Guanyu Chen

Essay by Marko Gluhaich

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CURATOR’S CHOICES Basharat Ali Syed

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Blush Berrios

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Cheyenne Preston

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Christian Kwon

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Christopher Lochmann

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Isabella Perna

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Lan Guo

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Liv McGuinness

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Lizhang Li

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Nicholas DelCastillo

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Qiqi Pan

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Rhesa Paul

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Ryan Yu

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Shengjie Jiang

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Sol Jin Park

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Shirley Li

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Yali Reichman

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Zhiyi Lan

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Ziyao Xie

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Zun Liu

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From figure studies to cutting-edge conceptual approaches, our department prepares the fine arts student to enter a myriad of professions and graduate programs. Courses in art history and contemporary art theory inform creative approaches to diverse aesthetic practices. In addition to traditional media, SVA offers experimental practices in digital sculpture and the emerging field of bio art.

BFA Fine Arts at the School of Visual Arts is unique. At SVA , the fine arts student can choose an individualized course of study. Our new Fine Arts Digital Lab hosts private workstations equipped with up-tothe-minute software and instruction.

Our digital sculpture initiative boasts computer-driven cutting machines for fabricating sculpture. Painting courses include projects in direct observation or photo-based imagery as well as methods for producing abstract and narrative work. Our faculty consists of professional artists, critics and curators whose work has achieved both national and international recognition. In addition, BFA Fine Arts sponsors many events and field trips to museums, galleries and artists’ studios to prepare the student for professional-level experience in the arts. With Chelsea’s art scene at our back door, students stay tuned in to art history in the making.

Networking opportunities inside

and outside SVA prepare our students for job placements and career development. For example, you might land a studio job assisting an instructor or a visiting artist, which could become access to a gallery, which could lead to your first show. In the senior year, we invite gallery dealers and curators to open-studio events that showcase your work. It is a twice-yearly chance for you to make important networking connections. In addition, we focus on all avenues of creative production. Our alumni have worked at top art museums, animation studios, education venues, art therapy practices, public art and other allied professions.

You have access to more than 90 instructors in the studio art department—a number unmatched in size and excellence anywhere else. These artists of stature are a vital part of the New York creative scene, whose work you can see in the galleries, museums and even the public spaces of the city.

Connect with the ones who inspire and support your creative efforts—the artists you gravitate toward will act as your mentors and help you achieve your artistic goals. Becoming a fine artist in New York City is to see and feel the fluent dynamics of creation as an interchange of ideas and visual experiences supporting your creative talents now and in the future.

BFA Fine Arts