Moore College will celebrate Class of 2020 digitally

Kenyssa-Evans_Else-Where
‘Else/Where’ by Kenyssa Evans ’20, BFA Photography & Digital Arts.
Provided

With the cancellation of many events, plenty of students have had to shift their end of the year achievements and celebrate at home—including the seniors at Moore College of Art & Design. Typically at the end of an academic year, the cultural institution celebrates its undergrad’s achievements with a Senior Show exhibition, where student artists present their work to the public and potential employers in The Galleries at Moore. With social distancing still in full effect however, the Moore still wants to commemorate the year and celebrate the creative endeavors of its seniors, so they decided to launch a new website to honor the entire graduating Class of 2020 and their work. 

According to the release, titled ‘The Class of 2020,’ the exhibition provides a digital platform to promote the outstanding work of all BFA students graduating this year, as well as three graduating MFA/MA students in Moore’s Socially Engaged Art programs, to showcase their thesis projects to the world. All undergraduate majors are represented in the exhibition: Animation & Game Arts, Art Education, Art History, Curatorial Studies, Fashion Design, Fine Arts, Graphic Design, Illustration, Interior Design and Photography & Digital Arts.

 

‘Cell Wars’ by Kimberly Ismael ’20, BFA Graphic Design. Provided

“In the wake of the unexpected closure of our beloved campus and The Galleries at Moore, which host our annual thesis exhibitions, we are thrilled to find a new way to honor the exceptional work and achievements of our 2020 graduating students,” said Cecelia Fitzgibbon, President of Moore College of Art & Design, in a release. “Our dedicated staff and faculty have collaborated over the past few weeks to create this online legacy project, as a professional resource for our students and a future time capsule of the stunning and significant work they did during their years at Moore. We invite the hundreds of employers and collectors who previously attended this show, as well as the public, to see the remarkable work created by our talented and resilient graduates.”

The new website was designed to not only showcase the unique and skillful accomplishments of the graduates, but to also offer a digital ‘calling card’ for each individual artist. With the cancellation of the exhibition, which typically acts as a useful resource to network for the students, the new site will offer a vital resource for professionals to still connect with the graduates in lieu of COVID-19. 

‘Roof Top Restaurant and Bar’ by Alexa Rosenblatt ’20 BFA Interior DesignProvided

The staff at the Moore was also deeply involved with helping this commemorative project come to fruition with members acting as a ‘gallery representative’ for each student. Each representative helped their student prepare images of their artwork to upload to the site, as well as the accompanying information, while staff from the Locks Career Center worked with the students to prepare their resumes as well.

“This show marks an important moment for our graduating class and is critical to their successes as they venture out into their professional fields,” said Gabrielle Lavin Suzenski, Rochelle F. Levy Director, The Galleries at Moore, in a release. “With the help of our dedicated Galleries team, we continue to treat this virtual experience as we would any in-person exhibition, with the same expectations around presenting only the highest visual and interactive quality of work and writing to our visitors and extended community.”

‘Throughout the Wetlands’ by Stephanie Weinger ’20, BFA Illustration. 

As a special bonus, each piece of art will be for sale, as it typically would be for a normal end-of-the-year exhibition. Any Philadelphians interested in a piece of art can visit The Art Shop at Moore digitally through their online portal at moore.myshopify.com

For more information on the Moore College of Art & Design, visit moore.edu. To check out the new website featuring ‘The Class of 2020’ exhibition launching this Friday, visit Moorethesis.com.