HWC DAA Spring 2025 Student Exhibition

April 16 - April 29, 2025
Closing Reception: Tuesday, April 29, 3:00-4:30pm

Juror: Shanna Zentner
Curator: Anneli Goeller
Exhibition poster with a background photo of multiple colorful ghostly figures standing around a tree in a winter forest. The text on the poster says HWC Department of Art and Architecture Student Exhibition, April 16 to 29, Closing Reception 04/29, 3:00 to 4:30pm.
Juror Statement
This collection recognizes an emergent theme in the student artworks that explores loneliness, loss, and love. As we navigate an era marked by intense social, political, and ecological anxiety, these works reflect the profound emotional landscapes shaped by contemporary life. Many pieces in this collection delve into the personal experience of isolation, while others offer paths towards reconnection and inspiration. 
The artworks here span a spectrum of emotional responses—from those that accentuate solitude and distance, to those that offer glimpses of hope and tenderness. The theme is explored through varying relationships: family, pets, community, tradition, nature, and the body. Whether through scenes devoid of people or portraying a single, solitary figure, the works evoke a deep sense of quiet introspection. 
The artists draw on both personal and cultural traditions, using their craft to re-anchor themselves in the midst of personal and collective uncertainty. In this way, the collection offers meditations on how to confront loss and loneliness as well as a space where art becomes a bridge—connecting us to what is gone, what remains, and what still offers hope in a fractured world.
- Shanna Zentner
Exhibition Pieces
Multimedia drawing of a toddler girl bathed in sunlight and sitting against a floral-patterned fabric.

Abigail De Leon, Light Let In, Watercolor & Colored Pencils, 2025

Black and white charcoal drawing of a school hallway with various doorways and lockers.

Adomah Crisp, Floor 8 Hallway Linear Perspective, Charcoal Drawing, 2025

Extremely abstracted figure painted in various colors with a cigar

Ahmad Haynes, The Smoker, Gouache Painting, 2024

Black and white print of an abandoned underground train station.

Allie Crow, not in service, Stone Lithograph, 2024

Black pen drawing of a building with trees in the foreground.

Anastasiia Kondratiuk, Hotel Kyiv, Black Ink Pen on Paper, 2024

Black and white print of a floating ghost woman and a scared man surrounded by floating jack-o-lanterns in the air.

Angel D. Martinez, Ghosts and Floating Pumpkins, Lithograph, 2024

Black and white pencil drawing on white paper of a boy wearing a Mexican wresting mask with thread stitched throughout.

Angelli Garcia, Lucha Por Mi ("Fight for Me"), Pencil on Paper & All-Purpose Thread, 2025

Digital drawing of a suited man standing in front of a door with a sign overhead that says Law. The door and surrounding walls are decorated with an outdoor scene of rolling meadows and bare trees against a cloudy sky.

Anh To, Before the Law, Digital Drawing, 2024

Photo of a woman wearing a fur coat and hat behind a green iron gate at night.

Ashley Garcia, La Payasita Triste, Digital Photograph, 2024

Ceramic tin of sardines

Becca Bowlin, Sardine Tin, Ceramic, 2024

Photo of a woman looking over her shoulder, bathed in pink and blue light

Catalina Ocampo, And I'm Still So Blue, Film Photograph, 2025

Digital image of blurred fire rising from the bottom

Daniel Trejo, Hellfire Rise, Digital Art, 2023

Doll with large green eyes, blonde curly hair, and a lacy blue dress and headband. The doll is holding a pink crocheted heart and there is a pink crocheted heart laying next to the doll as well as a larger lacy headband.

Dioselin Trejo, Candy, Fabric & Yarn, 2024

Photo of a retro red restrooms sign bathed in pink light

Eduardo Santes, Untitled, Photograph (Inkjet Print), 2023

Black and white photograph of a woman standing at a chain link fence

Elizabeth Kotz, Nikhita's World, 35mm Film Photograph (Silver Gelatin Fiber Print), 2024

Black and white photograph of an older man standing with wings made of light behind him

Fernando Criollo, Light Angel, Film Photograph, 2024

White curly hair over a black background

Franco Ledezma, My Heredity, Photogram, 2025

Two watercolor images over a white background with black text in between that says which is the best breath. The top watercolor is a Chicago city scene featuring the bean and Willis Tower. The bottom watercolor is a nature landscape with mountains and a lake.

Gabe Perrusquia, Breath, Watercolor Painting, 2025

Mulitmedia drawing of a young child dressed in a suit with blue flowers on the bottom left corner and lace surrounded the edges of the paper

Giselle Rios, En Memoria, Charcoal, Pencils, Colored Pencils & Tissue Paper

Black and white photograph of two people standing at the bedside of a person laying down with their eyes closed

Harrison Crain, Witnessing the death of a virgin, 35mm Black & White Film Photograph, 2024

Black and white print of a swan with its wings raised up in front of the word viola in all caps

Helena Cuene, Viola, Linocut Print, 2025

Print of a green parrot and a brown frog separated by a few white flowers

Isabel Feliciano, Endangered Species: Puerto Rican Parrot with Coqui Frog, Lithograph, 2025

Colorful collage-style painting of various Chicago icons including the flag, Chicago River walk sign, road signs, and the Willis Tower with the words "Everything will change" written in bubble letters towards the top

Jamie Hwang-Black, Everything Will Change, Acrylic Painting, 2024

Photograph of three multicolored ghostly figure standing around a tree in a winter forest.

Jane Koppitz, The Soul Eclectic, Film Photograph, 2025

Small sculpture of a tree with a swing hanging from one of the branches.

Jaylene Flores, I loved that tree, Wire, Cardboard, Yarn, Popsicle Sticks & Foliage, 2025

Black and white photograph of a woman sitting on a bench and looking to the side.

Jaylynn Hansen, Time Beside Her, Film Photograph, 2025

Cooking pot covered in various colorful fabrics with floral and striped patterns. There is also a wooden spoon resting in the pot with twine wrapped around the handle and charms hanging down from the twine.

Jennie Harned, A Shroud for My Pot, Aluminum Pot, Fabric, Thread, Yarn, Kitchen Twine & Various Wrappers, 2024

Colorful digital image of a figure floating in front of a blue and purple background and holding a giant paintbrush and easel with paints splashing off of it

Jerome Riego de Dios, Picto-mancy, Digital Art, 2025

Photograph of a man reaching his hand out to catch a boombox that is in middair

Jordan Vaccaro, Catch, Digital Photograph, 2024

Painting with a female figure laying down on a green couch towards the bottom whose body melts in a large blue wave with various flowers and colorful blotches in the background.

Karen Sanchez Pavon, Waves of Womanhood, Acrylic Painting, 2024

Canvas stretched with blue fabric and various colorful circles positioned in four rows connected by diagonal, vertical, and horizontal stitches.

Kathia Gamba, Threads of Memories, Denim, Recycled Fabric, Buttons & Sequins, 2024

Digital model of three green vases in various shapes sitting on a light green table in front of a blue background

Kennedy Flowers, 3 Vases, 3D Model, 2025

Blue painted canvas with a woman's profile embroidered on top with black bracing hair connected to her head and flowing down past the bottom of the canvas.

Kristian Clayborn, Self Portrait, Embroidery Thread, Acrylic Paint & Braiding Hair, 2024

Black pen drawing of a cartoonish penguin with a large question mark and four exclamation marks positioned over its head.

Leighton Egan, Scraggly Penguin, Pen Drawing, 2025

Colorful painting separated into four quadrants with various circles, swirls, and dots.

Margaretha Singleton, Full Circle, Acrylic Painting, 2024

Digital drawing of a fairy with blue hair and orange wings losing town at a smaller figure standing in a field of grass. The background is beige with two floral decorations in the top left and bottom right corners.

Marielle Manipol, Queen of Spring, Digital Art, 2025

Charcoal drawing of three men with a red gessoed background

Milo Spoering, The Semi-Routine Degaussing of the Workhorse, Charcoal & Gesso, 2024

Digital model of a cement house with a large square paneled window. Beneath the main structure of the building is a wood-paneled deck with chairs, plants, and two people.

Moesha Manning, Industria Noctis (Industry of the Night), 3D Architecture Model, 2025

Black and white photograph of an abandoned swings surrounded by plant overgrowth.

Raina Ozarowski, Where We Left It, Film Photograph, 2024

Black and white image of a tennis ball sitting on top of a musical keyboard

Ricardo Hernández, In my darkest days, Film Photograph, 2025

Mostly black and white print with yellow accents of an elegant statue standing in front of three stain-glass windows with moon, star, and wing patterns.

Ruby Behmer, A God Forgotten, Lithograph, 2024

Obscured human body part with scrunched skin behind fiery sparks

Sara Fenton, Untitled #2, Film Photograph (Chromogenic Print), 2025

painting of a female figure in a white dress sitting in front of green leaves and a rainbow striped the background. The figure has no hands and is wearing a beaded necklace and some type of animal bone mask, completely obscuring their head.

Tristian Diaz-Garcia, Portrait of the Subconscious, Acrylic Painting, 2024

Gold-framed painting of a figure in a large red cape standing under a harsh spotlight

Troi Warren, The Spectacle, Oil Painting, 2023

Black and white photograph of a woman and man in front of a wall with blurred balloons behind their heads. The woman is making a heart sign with her hands and smiling at the camera while the man stares blankly into the camera.

Tyra Cooper, Lonely Star, Digital Photograph, 2024

Colorful print of five female figures positioned in a tableau surrounded by two tall sunflowers and a green ribbon in the sky that says tend and befriend. One of the women has an open cavity in her chest and her broken heart is laying the dirt on the ground. There are green mountains in the background and white moon and stars in a blue sky.

Victory Ali, Tend & Befriend, Lithograph & Screenprint, 2024

Black and white photograph of a female dancer bent slightly backwards and extending her arms and hands into the air

Yana Hlushchenko, Dancer, Digital Photograph, 2021

Photograph of a red mylar balloon sitting against a ceiling with a glowing exit sign nearby.

Vianey Chacon, Untitled, Photograph (Archival Inkjet Print), 2025

Painting of a far away figure wearing a red dress and holding a line that connects to the sun in the sky. White sheep in the foreground appear to be heading towards the distance figure.

Yingxin Chen, Shepherd, Watercolor & Colored Pencil, 2025

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