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The Daily Hub

A roundup of ideas and projects from around the Institute

  • Anthony Cudahy, BFA ’11; Lizzy Lunday, MFA Fine Arts (Painting and Drawing) ’19; and Vanessa Gully Santiago, visiting instructor, are among the artists selected for NYLON’s 10 Painters to Watch 2023 edition. “For the 2023 Art Issue, NYLON brings you the newest crop of talented and thrilling artists, those who are pushing the boundaries in the ever-evolving medium of painting — and they’re only getting started.”

  • Rodney Leon, BArch ’92, designed the recently opened Cultural Museum of African Art in Bed-Stuy, which features more than 3,000 ancient artifacts. “Our challenge was really to balance and provide enough space for the artifacts to be exhibited,” Leon said. “No matter what, we were going to do whatever to help bring this public space to fruition.”

  • Sahar Khraibani, acting assistant chair of undergraduate communications design, received a 2023 Arts Writer Grant from The Andy Warhol Foundation. The work enabled by the grant will entail “a series of articles on the artistic modes of production employed by queer artists from the Arab world and its diaspora.”

  • Martha Molfetas, visiting assistant professor in the Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment, was chosen as New America’s Senior Planetary Politics Fellow for 2024. “New America’s Fellows Program invests in thinkers—journalists, scholars, filmmakers, and public policy analysts—who generate big, bold ideas that have an impact and spark new conversations about the most pressing issues of our day.”

  • Maria Montes Duran, BFA Photography ’25, received the New Generation Prize of the PHMuseum 2023 Women Photographer’s Grant for her photography series ¿Cómo te sientes ahora? “My visual style has been influenced by my Hispanic-American heritage and it is a consistent theme in my photos. I explore this through various methods and connect these disparate parts through one investigation of my culture,” she said of the project, which will be displayed at the Photo Vogue Festival 2023.

  • Cultured Magazine selected Isabelle Brourman, MFA Fine Arts (Painting and Drawing) ’19; Theresa Chromati, BFA Graphic Design ’14; and Emma Stern, BFA ’14, for its 2023 Young Artists List, which recognizes up-and-coming artists to watch. “The makers featured here, all 35 or younger, are a testament to the resourcefulness and optimism required to choose not only the work, but also the life of an artist.”

  • Andreas Palfinger, MArch ’25, discusses his creative interests, career, and views on artificial intelligence in an interview with Visual Atelier. “A.I. definitely created interesting new workflows, positioning human creators as art directors who work with non-human creators,” he said.

  • Creative Bloom profiled Xiangni Song, MFA Fine Arts (Painting and Drawing) ’22, showcasing her work and exploring her transition from illustration to fine arts. “Today, painting, drawing and ceramics are Xiangni’s medium of choice, and her art deals with themes of identity, self-observation and the imagination.”

  • Fernando Ortiz Báez, BA Critical and Visual Studies ’14, was recently recognized by El Diario Nueva York as one of the most influential Latino men in the tristate area for his work in economic development and community engagement in the Bronx and Upper Manhattan. “There are beautiful spaces, economic development, employment opportunities, mobilization,” he said. “I think the best way to combat poverty is by giving people economic opportunities.”

More Pratt Institute News

A group portrait of nine smiling Project SEARCH interns dressed in formal and semi-formal attire, seated together on wooden steps in a brightly lit interior space. The group includes a diverse mix of individuals, with some in suits, button-down shirts, and one wearing a white ruffled dress. They appear proud and celebratory, possibly marking their graduation or completion of the program.

Workplace Ready: Project SEARCH Interns Graduate

New York City high school students received career training through Project SEARCH, a national program focused on workforce-readiness for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Pratt Names Courtney Knapp New Chair of the Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment

From Pratt Institute News

An award-winning scholar and professor in the Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment’s Urban and Community Planning program, Knapp will assume the role on July 1, 2025, succeeding Eve Baron, who is stepping down to join the full-time faculty.
Two smiling individuals dressed in formal attire pose on a red carpet holding Tony Awards. The man on the left wears a blue tuxedo with a colorful bow tie, while the man on the right wears a black suit with decorative details and a white high-collared shirt. The background includes logos for CBS, Paramount+, and the Tony Awards.

Alumni Harvey Fierstein and Paul Tazewell Shine at the Tony Awards

From Pratt Institute News

Esteemed writer and actor Harvey Fierstein was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to the theater; Oscar-winning designer Paul Tazewell won for Best Costume Design in a Musical.