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Color Commentary by Dan Halm and Greg Herbowy
MFA Illustration as Visual Essay Turns 30 Thirty years ago, SVA introduced its MFA program in illustration, now known as Illustration as Visual Essay. It was the College’s second graduate-level offering, after MFA Fine Arts, and it has proved enduringly influential, with its graduates going on to noteworthy success in a range of creative pursuits (see “We Tell Stories,” page 4). Despite the wide variety in its alumni’s careers, the program has, from the start, maintained a steady focus on the artist’s role as a storyteller. In that spirit, Visual Arts Journal got in touch with MFA Illustration as Visual Essay faculty, staff, alumni and students, and asked them to share some memories of their time at SVA.
ORIGINS MARSHALL ARISMAN, FOUNDER AND CHAIR I started teaching
illustration at SVA in 1965, and was chair of the undergraduate program from 1970 to 1984. I realized that while three years (it was a three-year program back then) was enough time for students to develop the basic skills, a graduate program would give them the time to develop a personal vision. There were very few MFAs in illustration at the time. But David Rhodes supported it, and the program was approved. KIM ABLONDI, DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS I’ve just started my
22nd year with the department. It’s gone by so quickly. I’m always amazed by what our students do, because I see them as kids. But they come here and commit and they graduate and make lives for themselves.
through my art, and in 2010 I decided I really wanted to make children’s books. I would go to the library and take out 30 books at a time and read the authors’ bios. And I saw SVA listed so many times. MARSHALL ARISMAN Our best recruiters are our alumni. DANIEL ZENDER, CLASS OF 2014 I studied graphic design as an
undergrad. I was interested in illustration, but hadn’t quite figured out what I wanted to be doing. . . . I had been aware of the program for a long time, because illustrators I like—like Sam Weber [2005] and Yuko Shimizu [2003]—were graduates. I talked with Keith Negley [2013] at length before I decided to enroll. ADA PRICE, CLASS OF 2014 I was teaching in the Memphis
MARSHALL ARISMAN Our students come from all over. This year,
we have students from Iran, Kuwait, Israel, Uruguay, Colombia. . . . We once had [film director] Spike Jonze’s mother in the program. She was 65 at the time. But usually the ages run from 21 to 40. Every year, we tend to get a couple of people who have no art background—English lit majors, biology majors. We’ve had a women’s studies major. AMANDA MOECKEL, CLASS OF 2015 Before starting the program,
I did a lot of work in animal advocacy—investigating farms, civil disobedience, grassroots organizing. But I decided at some point that the best way I could make a contribution would be VISUAL ARTS JOURNAL
College of Art’s sequential narrative department, which was run by Joel Priddy [1999]. He told me about the program. He said it was perfect for cartoonists, since it had such a narrative and storytelling focus. NATHAN FOX, CLASS OF 2002 One of my painting instructors at
the Kansas City Art Institute was John Ferry [1994]. John always spoke highly of the program, and I really respected the way he saw the world. Also, when I was a junior, Marshall came to speak at the school. And there’s that “aura of Marshall”—it’s all about “Who are you?” and “What’s your voice?” and “How do you solve problems?”