A yearlong celebration of the first 50 years of The Mandell Theater, which was dedicated on November 10, 1973 and is the flagship venue for Performing Arts at Drexel University. Drexel Dance Ensemble Fri Feb 9 | 7:30 PM Drexel Dance Program presents Drexel Dance Ensemble. Come see an exciting evening of dance featuring Ellen Forman Award winner Kareem Goodwin, professional guest artists, and dance faculty. Bodies exchanging ideas, dancing in community, and a visual landscape for all!. Reception immediately following the performance.
Mandell Presents: Mumu Fresh Thu Apr 18 | 7:00 PM Maimouna Youssef, also known as Mumu Fresh, is the critically acclaimed Afro-Indigenous singer, Emcee, songwriter, activist, workshop facilitator and audio engineer who’s been called a “quadruple threat” by The Roots’ Black Thought and “groundbreaking” by Oscar-winning artist, Common. With her expansive musical background ranging from Jazz, Gospel, Spirituals, traditional African & traditional Indigenous music, to Hip Hop (also celebrating 50 years!), Soul, rock and experimental acapella fusion, this concert is a multi-genre live music event not to miss. Drexel Concert Band Fri Jun 7 | 6:30 PM Reception | 7:30 Concert Drexel Music Program presents the Concert Band’s Spring Concert: Perspectives—What We Hold Most Dear. Join DUCB for a program full of affirmation of who we are as artists and musicians. Guest artists Staff Sgt. Bradley Loudis, Victor Pablo Garcia Gaetan, and Sean Bailey will join in the program featuring multiple Philadelphia Premiers of new music. Reception at 6:30 PM preceding the performance.
Plus, don’t miss the chance to visit Drexel’s other performing arts venue during Alumni Weekend 2024! Drexel Alumni Weekend Performances @ URBN Annex Black Box Theater Fri May 10 | 8:00 PM ● Sat May 11 | 8:00 PM ● Sun May 12 | 2:00 PM Drexel Theatre Program presents Clue: On Stage. Based on the iconic 1985 movie and classic board game, Clue is a hilarious comedic farce-meets-murder mystery where six mysterious guests assemble for an unusual dinner party where murder and blackmail are on the menu. When their host turns up dead, they all become suspects. Reserve tickets to all performances at www.drexelperformingarts.com
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FALL 2023 HIGHLIGHTS
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Visiting scholars, exciting events, and more. VIRTUAL FIELD TRIPS AND METAHUMANS TAKE STAGE A new course offering with Longwood Gardens offers experiential learning in the Metaverse.
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PHILADELPHIA’S BLACK BOTTOM, AS TOLD BY DREXEL THEATRE & DIGITAL MEDIA Two creative projects set out to tell the untold story of this historic neighborhood.
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CELEBRATING A DECADE OF FASHION, STYLE & POPULAR CULTURE Current student Hannah Adele Brong profiles Professor Joe Hancock, principal editor of the scholarly journal.
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SNAPSHOT! 2023 in pictures.
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Q&A WITH FRANCIS TANGLAO AGUAS Westphal’s Inaugural Associate Dean of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Anti-Racism
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RESEARCH & CREATIVITY Recent accomplishments of Westphal faculty, staff, alumni, and current students.
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DESIGNING HER OWN PATH Alum Lindsay Bedford designs a career in public art.
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A MESSAGE FROM WESTPHAL BRIDGE How to get involved with our learning community for underrepresented, minority and first-generation students.
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FALL 2023 HIGHLIGHTS The fall quarter kicked off an exciting academic year with a slate of programs and events that affirm Westphal’s research, creativity, scholarship and commitment to advancing a diverse, equitable, and just culture. Here are a few (of many) Fall 2023 highlights: RANKIN SCHOLARS-IN-RESIDENCE We hosted three Rankin Scholars - comedian and Guggenheim Fellow Kristina Wong, author of Queer Style Professor Vicki Karaminas, and Ojibwe-American musician Keith Secola - who engaged students & faculty in the classroom, and engaged the Drexel community through public events. DECOLONIZING DESIGN & THE ARTS RESIDENCY Dr. Elizabeth “Dori” Tunstall, design anthropologist and author of Decolonizing Design, held a two-day residency engaging faculty, staff and students, and received the inaugural William Sidney Pittman Prize for her visionary leadership in inclusion, diversity, equity & anti-racism. WESTPHAL’S FIRST FULBRIGHT SCHOLAR Indian film director Abhijit Chowdhury joined the Cinema & Television Department as a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence, teaching classes, engaging with students and faculty on projects, participating in academic and cultural engagements outside of Drexel, and working on his own creative endeavors. He will be here for the Fall '23 and Winter '24 quarters. ANNUAL ARFAA LECTURE SERIES Our annual Arfaa Lecture Series kicked off this fall, welcoming Ghanaian American designer, DK Osseo-Asare, who’s innovative material assemblies are optimized for massively scalable radical resilience with low carbon energetics that bring life into balance for people and place. The next Arfaa Lecture will feature Dr. Michael Schreffler, who will speak on the architectural and urban consequences of the Spanish conquest of the Inca capital of Cuzco, Peru. COLLECTIONS & EXHIBITIONS Drexel Collections presented Electrified: 50 Years of Electric Factory, a major exhibition and programming that celebrated the impact of Philadelphia-based Electric Factory and Electric Factory Concerts, from the late 1960s to the 2010s. The Pearlstein Gallery hosted two exhibitions: You Are A(nti)-Racist featured graphics, publications, and digital media by DAP (Design as Protest) Collective, and Aram Han Sifuentes’s collaborative project Messages to Our Neighbors documented and explored the intersection of citizenship, immigration, and belonging. The Robert and Penny Fox Historic Costume Collection (FHCC) presented Chasing the Dragon: China in the Western Imagination, which highlights the impact of stereotypes in fashion and arts and centers diverse voices from the Drexel community to highlight Asian American perspectives on reclamation.
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HAVE YOU SEEN US ON YOUTUBE LATELY?
With so much creativity and scholarship at Westphal, we’ve added a lot to our YouTube Channel, and are exciting to share more during the academic year! Here are some videos and playlists to check out: Chasing the Dragon: China in the Western Imagination Drexel University Symphony Orchestra Overview 2023 Drexel Fashion Show Garbage Gala 2023 Drexel University Gospel Choir 45th Anniversary Concert Retail & Merchandising Leadership Series (Playlist) Television & Media Management Symposium Series On Demand (Playlist) DNews (Playlist) Digital Media Showcase (Playlist) And SO much more! Subscribe to our channel to be notified about new videos and live events coming in Winter and Spring 2024!
Click the image or visit Westphal’s YouTube Channel
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VIRTUAL FIELD TRIPS AND METAHUMANS TAKE STAGE IN NEW COURSE WITH LONGWOOD GARDENS
STUDENTS USED THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY TO CREATE NEW VISITOR EXPERIENCES
When it came to leveraging the metaverse to build engagement and provide new experiences for visitors of Longwoods Gardens’ historical Peirce-du Pont House, student teams in the course Metaverse in the Real World (WEST T380-001H and DIGM T5800) had no shortage of ideas.
BY NATALIE KOSTELNI, OFFICE OF THE PROVOST
One team, the Metaverse Moms, proposed bringing Pierre S. du Pont and his wife, Alice Belin, back to life as holograms to host visitors and provide them with a tour and history of the gardens and house, which dates back to 1730. Plans included an app to bring this augmented reality experience to life, making it accessible to anyone with a mobile phone.
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Longwood Dragons suggested a touchscreen kiosk to create an interactive, digital fountain experience highlighting its history, inner workings and engineering, and provided visitors the ability to design their own fountain show. Team Choose Wisely proposed an augmented reality version of du Pont that would tell stories about the house and rooms. The virtual du Pont would play out scenarios he would have once participated in such as hosting guests for a dinner, providing viewers a glimpse into the past. And, lastly, Dragon Tails suggested an immersive digital art room that would be interactive and appeal to all ages. With a traveling dome, the exhibit could be taken on the road to schools and other venues to provide a virtual fieldtrip to Longwood Gardens, making it accessible to those who might otherwise be unable to visit. “I took this class to get out of my comfort zone and it was one of the best classes I have taken. It’s definitely in the top 10,” said Meelan Dullabh, a senior majoring in International Business, Business Analytics, and Marketing who was part of Dragon Tails. “I will definitely remember this class.” The variety of assignments, teachers and speakers, along with working with a “real client” made the course compelling for Dullabh. “It was great,” he said. “Everything you learn in life serves as a building block, and I think this will somehow be incorporated in my job in the future.” Metaverse in the Real World is an example of courses facilitated by the Innovation Engine, an initiative in the Provost’s Office focused on convening colleges and external partners around interdisciplinary, experiential learning opportunities that address real world challenges. “The Innovation Engine fosters academic innovation and hands-on learning that forges connections among Drexel students, faculty and external partners through academic courses and research projects,” said Paul E. Jensen PhD, Executive Vice President and Nina Henderson Provost. “The Engine serves as a sandbox for the University to develop cutting-edge curricula, provide immersive learning and enhance the student experience. At its core, it embodies what Drexel is seeking to achieve with its Strategic Plan.” The course invited undergraduate and graduate students and PhD candidates from a range of disciplines to bridge the divide between theory and practice as they worked with Longwood Gardens to explore new ideas using the latest technology. Students from a dozen disparate majors took the class. Product design, interior design, interior architecture, psychology, digital media, management and information systems, finance and real estate management were among the areas of study represented.
“This is as close to a real-world test in an academic setting we could get” Instructors for the course included: Nick Jushchyshyn, associate professor and program director of the Digital Media & Virtual Production program and the Animation, Capture & Effects Lab at Westphal College of Media Arts & Design; Raj Suri, senior vice provost for academic-industry partnerships; and Neville Vakharia, associate dean for research and planning, and associate professor of arts administration & museum leadership. “This thing people are calling the metaverse isn’t going to do us any good if we can’t apply it to the real world,” Jushchyshyn said. “I viewed partnering with Longwood as the ultimate test of these concepts. If the metaverse can be real, then it should be able to work at a place based on nature, and especially a place like Longwood, that is so engaged with the public and so incredibly special.” The course provided an opportunity for Jushchyshyn, who has been working with metaverse media technologies for decades, to test approaches that would teach students with no prior background or experience with meta-technologies and task them with collaborating on a project. “This is as close to a real-world test in an academic setting we could get,” he said. “They learned about these technologies and techniques, and then presented concept pitches based on what they learned about the value of these tools to an outside partner, in this case Longwood Gardens. I think it was a tremendous success.” Luca White-Matthews, a senior graduating this year with a custom designed major focused on problem solving and complex systems from the Pennoni Honors College, said he was drawn to the course because it focused on the real world and undertaking a “consultingstyle project” using a new technology. He was a member of the Metaverse Moms. “The class was really, really cool, super educational and a really good example of what is uniquely valuable about Drexel,” he said. “What you do is engage in the real world and do it in a way that is multidisciplinary. With this class, you learned about the tools and concepts and explored them and then treated the class like a lab and the project like an experiment. That is the unique value of Drexel. It was a great way to end my college career.” Students presented before a panel from Longwood Gardens, who peppered them with questions and compliments. Morgan Cichewicz, senior graphic designer at Longwood, participated on the panel and provided a unique perspective as a 2012 graduate from Drexel.
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It was very cool to see Longwood Gardens as a real-world case-study for students to explore and experiment with new technologies,” she said. “Legacy and innovation are strong ties between Drexel and Longwood, and Professor Nick Jushchyshyn was able to inspire students to see and explore those connections.” Chichewicz was impressed with how students brought history to life through metahumans, incorporated interactive experiences that customized a visitor experience, paid attention to accessibility and integrated art, history and technology. “It was great to see such a multidisciplinary range of students from undergrad, graduate and doctorate levels come together to explore the idea of technology in a garden space,” she said.
COURSE HIGHLIGHTS Partner: Longwood Gardens Innovation: Using metaverse technology to create visitor engagement and new visitor experience Experiential Learning: Working with and visiting Longwood Gardens on the challenge of using new technology to create a new visitor experience Interdisciplinary: Taught by professors from Westphal and LeBow. Students comprised undergraduate, master’s and PhD candidates from a range of majors and disciplines Drexel Area of Excellence: Computing, AI and Cyber Security Frontiers; HumanCentered Design; Entertainment and Culture The course is part of a broader, ongoing relationship between Drexel and Longwood Gardens that includes several research projects, courses and other work facilitated by the Drexel Solutions Institute.
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Associate Professor Nick Jushchyshyn
PHILADELPHIA’S BLACK BOTTOM, AS TOLD BY DREXEL THEATRE & DIGITAL MEDIA
BY LAUREL HOSTAK JONES Today, the neighborhood West of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River and home to the campuses of Drexel University and the University of Pennsylvania, is known as University City. From the turn of the 20th century until the 1960s, however, the area was home to a close-knit community known as Black Bottom. The predominantly Black neighborhood was largely razed between the 50s and 70s in a redevelopment project organized by Penn, Drexel, Presbyterian Hospital, and other institutions, collectively known as the West Philadelphia Corporation. Unified by a goal to create “elbow room and a more healthful campus environment,” the West Philadelphia Corporation’s project ultimately displaced roughly 5,000 residents from the neighborhood (Source:Temple Libraries). Though Philadelphia is a city that wears its history on its sleeve, with a thriving tourism industry around the landmarks of early American democracy, many significant histories of the more recent past – like the leveling of Black Bottom – remain untold. Today, however, two different projects in the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design engage with University City’s history of gentrification.
CELEBRATING BLACK BOTTOM AS A LIVING HISTORY ONSTAGE “We decided to make this piece about the experience of learning the history of your school and the system that’s part of this displacement,” says Brett Ashley Robinson, director of Drexel Theatre’s recent production, Resilient: The Black Bottom Project. Produced in collaboration with local theatre artists, Resilient was a work of devised performance that ran for two weekends in Drexel’s Black Box Theater. When setting about creating a play inspired by the history of Black Bottom and gentrification in University City, Robinson realized quickly that the students involved in the production didn’t know much about that history. In collaboration with creator Carlo Campbell and dramaturg Adrena Williams, Robinson worked that learning process into the heart of the production. The play incorporated the students’ reactions and experience when confronted with the history of their home institution, while also encouraging them – and audiences – to move beyond guilt and complicity into actionable steps.
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Resilient Production photo by Josiah Randleman It was critical for the company to build empathy within the stories of Black Bottom, even though most have vastly different lived experience. Having come through the pandemic during their formative years, many connected with the sense of grief for a stolen future, drastically altered lives, and loss of control. The student creators and performers of the piece came from diverse majors across Drexel University, from Screenwriting & Playwriting to business, hospitality management, and computer science. That spirit of transdisciplinary collaboration brought strengths; students had different ways of processing and translating information. “They’re so bright and intelligent and fearless about artmaking,” Robinson says about working with Drexel students. “It’s astonishing how empowered these students became to take accountability, and to envision a way to transform the world that starts with them.” Resilient aimed to inspire celebration of Black Bottom and personal investment in one’s own community. Each showing was paired with a second-act discussion with a resident of Black Bottom, including Penn professor, civil rights activist, and community organizer Dr. Walter Palmer, during which audiences were encouraged to engage with the living history of the neighborhood. Former Black Bottom resident Andre Black passed photos around the audience, telling stories that reflect a community of close neighbors who looked out for one another.With the city of Philadelphia evolving so rapidly around its citizens, Resilient created a space to pause, place value on the real people of a community, and bring a microphone to an untold history.
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COMMEMORATING AN HISTORIC COMMUNITY IN DIGITAL SPACE In his research, Digital Media associate professor Glen Muschio is driven by questions of historiography: who decides which stories are told? How can new and emerging technologies bring invisible histories to life? As part of Drexel University’s STAR Scholars Program (Students Tackling Advanced Research), two undergraduate students under Muschio’s mentorship applied such questions to the history of Black Bottom. Annie Dao (Animation & Visual Effects ’26) and Jillian Wright (Digital Media & Virtual Production ’26) participated in STAR Scholars during the summer of 2022 and contributed research to the Black Bottom project. The focus of this ongoing research project is to commemorate the Black Bottom community and promote social justice through the production of a self-guided augmented reality (AR) walking tour of the neighborhood. Dao and Wright conducted interviews of Black Bottom residents, including Walter Palmer and Black Bottom Tribe member Sid Bolling. They conducted research in the City of Philadelphia Archives and met with representatives from the University City Science Center. Intrigued by the archival research and Palmer’s extensive knowledge of the Black Bottom music and jazz community, Dao chose to focus her efforts on producing a 3D model of Fans Theater, a significant cultural landmark in Black Bottom.
These efforts within Westphal to bring awareness to Black Bottom’s story come at a uniquely relevant time. At the time of writing, a resident-led coalition was organizing to save the University City Townhomes, a 70-unit low-income housing project at 40th and Market Streets, within the borders of the historic Black Bottom. Residents now face eviction and displacement following the announcement that the Townhomes’ HUD contract would not be renewed.
3D model of Fans Theatre, created by Annie Dao
Fans Theatre (1944-1963), originally known as Fay’s Theatre (1931-1944), was among the earliest Black-owned jazz venues and movie theaters in West Philly. Located along 40th and Market Streets, Fans was a 2,500-seat venue for Vaudeville acts and featured local Black artists, bands, and iconic jazz musicians like Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong. Along with live entertainment, Fans was a cinema that showed second run movies, cartoons, and news reels. In addition, Fans helped ease poverty and crime as it opened its doors for church service, offered free meals for the disadvantaged, and served as a youth center during Christmas. In 1964, the roof of Fans Theatre collapsed, and the building was demolished.
The Black Bottom AR Project is only in its infancy, and Muschio envisions it as a three to five-year process. Meanwhile, Muschio received a Summer Research Award from Drexel’s Office of Faculty Advancement to support another digital heritage project, the production of two digital 3D models for the development of a virtual storytelling space encouraging critical examination of ideas about art and science in the context of class, race and religious beliefs and practices that informed C.W. Peale’s celebrated Philadelphia Museum of Art and Science. The Peale Museum Project aims to shed light on the efforts of Moses Williams, who worked in the Museum while enslaved and, following manumission, became the silhouette portrait concessioner in the Long Room Gallery. Williams’s contributions have been largely unrecognized in historical records, but the project can bring new attention to the untold story via new technologies.
Dao produced a 3D model version of Fans Theatre in Autodesk Maya, adding texture through Adobe Substance Painter. There were only few archival photos to work from, making it necessary to conduct further research into building permits and microfilm. In future iterations, Dao expects more versions of Fans to be modeled, along with production of 3D models for other relevant landmarks to augment the tour. The project has the support of the Science Center in its continuation. Wright, meanwhile, was drawn to a Black Bottom landmark familiar to most in the Drexel community. The 33rd Street Armory is still standing, and today it is primarily used as an event venue. Through consultations with Dr. Palmer, Wright learned that the Armory played an important role in the community, serving as a hub for food distribution to those in need. Though it has a place on the National Register of Historic Places, Wright met challenges in finding historic photos that conveyed how it appeared in the early 20th century. There was only one archival photo available, but Wright made a significant breakthrough by obtaining blueprints through Drexel’s Real Estate & Facilities Office. The blueprints created a solid foundation for Wright’s 3D model of the Armory; with the bones of the building complete, next steps include digital completion of the intricate façade and application of textures to the model for inclusion in the AR tour.
“While the Black Bottom Project has only just started, it is truly an honor to help bring awareness and keep the legacy of the Black Bottom alive,” says Dao. “This project is important because it will raise awareness about what urban renewal does to a community,” Wright says in her project conclusions. “While this type of community destruction should never happen again, it's happening right now.”
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FASHION, STYLE & POPULAR CULTURE: CELEBRATING A DECADE OF FASHION SCHOLARSHIP AND CULTURE INSIGHTS
BY HANNAH ADELE BRONG (DESIGN & MERCHANDISING ‘25) Joseph Hancock held an incredible event February 23, where he talked about his fashion journals, Fashion, Style, & Popular Culture, and the complex art of fashion branding. We were able to get some inside information about these Journals that have been under Dr. Hancock’s leadership for 10 years! Since written by a professional, the journals are specifically dedicated to the area of fashion scholarship and its interfacings with popular culture. “An academic journal is a reflection of industry trends and the post effects of the industry from a critical standpoint,” Hancock says. They are a guide to examining new innovations and what is currently happening in the arts, culture, and technology. Fashion, Style, & Popular Culture covers all of that - design, textiles, production, body image, cultural identities, shopping, aesthetics, marketing, branding, promotion, psychological and sociological aspects of dress, and that is just the beginning of what is unfolded.
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These journals are the first to offer such a broad range of written and visual scholarship; done through various methods of research. The purpose of these journals is to stimulate new discussions within the industry leading to new innovations and findings from young professionals just entering the industry. The success came from Hancock’s ability to be an open-minded leader with a clear conscious, stating that “I do not think in a ’my way or the highway’ mentality… ‘Treat others as you would want to be treated,’ is the motto I follow.” He also suggests that aspiring academic leaders should leave their egos at the door and begin understanding that everyone is unique. He urges being able to recognize that not everything you create, you will love - but if you open your heart, the possibilities are endless. Success doesn’t come easy, and one of the biggest challenges during the production of journals for Dr. Hancock was sending scripts he wasn’t confident with back to authors -
STUDENT-WRITTEN
in a way where the author was not discouraged. He still wanted his writers to leave feeling good about themselves, even if the work wasn’t ready for publication yet. Even with underlying challenges through the process, Hancock faced bigger obstacles that grew before the journals had the chance to make impact. “I had to deal with people telling me this journal would never last… this even happened with my colleagues at Drexel in the Department of Design,” alongside others who had doubts and told Dr. Hancock his journals were not as good as others. Hancock claimed that when you’re around “makers” it is hard to be considered a maker when you are a writer. But writing is making, and it’s one of the hardest forms. “But 10 years later here we are… my advice is you must not listen to anyone and believe in yourself.”
He ignored those people and assembled the “rag-tag group who had never been given the chance to be on the board of an academic journal.” Good karma came back around to him with all the success that he has been rewarded thus far in his professional career. As for the future of Fashion, Style, & Popular Culture journals, Hancock sees them moving forward with nothing but success. He intends to continue his role as Principal Editor for as long as Intellect will have him. The journal indexing will only continue to grow - and hopefully, so will the prestige of the publication. He continues to write and exercise his passions while working on the next edition of his book Fashion Brand Stories, and he even has thoughts about a new book that focuses more on fashion marketing.
In the design and branding of Fashion, Style & Popular Culture, Hancock was the first Intellect Fashion Collections journal to propose a different cover for each issue. Traditionally, academic journals keep the same cover through multiple issues for uniformity and scholarly impact. Hancock, whose discipline is naturally visual, was thrilled when he was given the permission to submit issue-specific covers, and since then, other academic journals have followed the trend. When asked if he had a favorite journal cover, Hancock simply stated “No!” The most recent issue and cover, “Queer Style and Porn Chic,” was slowly thought up in a virtual conference at Drexel in the spring of 2021. It was during this time in general that he felt the LGBTQIA+ community was being completely ignored. As an openly gay man, he felt forgotten, as if his voice was silenced for him. The world had forgotten about the staggering amount of violence toward transgender individuals, and the disproportionate number of violent crimes against trans women. Hancock needed a space for the Queer community to be heard; the conference was scheduled – a success! “My journal has probably one of the most diverse editorial, advisory and associate editor boards out there,” Hancock says, “and always has!” Dr. Hancock worked with Design & Merchandising student Kendal Bolton, and they curated a special issue of the journal specifically on Queer style. Intellect agreed that it would be perfect for their 10th anniversary issue. Hancock leaves us with some of his most valuable advice: Surround yourself with experts in their field; people who are “better” than you, that have potential others seem to ignore. “The Fashion, Style & Popular Culture team is composed of people who had no voice in the past.” Previously, Hancock felt forced into thinking he needed only high-level scholars and recognizable names for the journals to succeed.
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SNAPSHOT! 2023 IN PICTURES
Westphal hosted this year’s cohort of Mandela Washington Fellows for summer workshops on leadership - plus a jam session in our Music Industry Studios.
Students in our Drexel in Los Angeles summer program tour DreamWorks Studios.
Graphic Design students at the London Centre for Book Arts, creating a Zine from scratch using letterpress, risograph printing, and a unique binding method.
Winners of the Age-Friendly Design Award in the Product Design course “Aging, Design & Entrepreneurship”: Ananya Kondragunta, Gabe Murray, and Ryan Yahata (pictured with prof. June He).
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SNAPSHOT! 2023 IN PICTURES
Westphal installation at DesignPhiladelphia, featuring work by more than 40 students, faculty, and staff.
Dr. Elizabeth “Dori” Tunstall receives the inaugural William S. Pittman Prize for Visionary Leadership in DEI. Part of her Westphal residency in “Decolonizing Design.”
Drexel Fashion presents “The Art of Drag” featuring Brittany Lynn and Morgan Wells.
Opening night of The Lightning Thief at the Mandell Theater, kicking off its 50th Anniversary season.
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SNAPSHOT! 2023 IN PICTURES
Benny Jimenez (Product Design ‘26) displays new work at Plaza Art Store.
Rankin Scholar Phil Chan and Director of the Robert & Penny Fox Historic Costume Collection in preparation for “Chasing the Dragon: China in the Western Imagination.”
A new class of Architecture students meet at Westphal Welcome Week.
Carla Pierini (Fashion Design ‘23) showcases her winning collection at the Supima Design Competition for New York Fashion Week.
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WELCOMING FRANCIS TANGLAO AGUAS, WESTPHAL’S INAUGURAL ASSOCIATE DEAN OF INCLUSION, DIVERSITY, EQUITY & ANTI-RACISM
Photo by Stephen Salpukas The Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design is excited to introduce our inaugural Associate Dean of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Francis Tanglao Aguas. Joining us from William & Mary College in Williamsburg, VA, Francis has already brought energy and ideas into our community as we strengthen a culture of belonging. Associate Director of Communications Laurel Hostak Jones sat down with Francis in his first few weeks to learn more about his background, aspirations, and curiosities about Westphal.
In your first weeks at Westphal, what are you most curious about in the College?
I am very excited to watch, read, see, touch, use and wear as much as I can of what the Westphal students have created. It is amazing to be in these spaces of creativity, artistry, innovation and ideation. In the coming days, I have the opportunity to meet all of the faculty and staff, so I am very excited. I also hope to hold town halls or group meetings with students because they are really why I came here for, as did my colleagues.
In your opinion, what’s the role of the creative disciplines in DEI work?
Media arts and design places all of us at Westphal in a unique and prime position to be leaders towards a more diverse, inclusive and equitable institution.
We are the humans who design and build spaces that can make everyone feel welcome - from the outside to the interiors - where we may all feel embraced, surrounded by art, film, and theatre that tells new stories that make us feel like we belong, wearing fashion that expresses and explores cultures we are connected to, using products and playing games that take our unique and diverse traditions into consideration. In short, it is artists and designers who will build the world that truly embraces justice, anti-racism, equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging.
What drew you to leadership in DEI?
Having moved around the world as a child, I know full well the experience of marginalization and alienation. But even before my family's migrations, as a theatre person since kindergarten, community building has been at the core of my purpose, because theatre is about building new families through storytelling.
Read the full Q&A: 17
RESEARCH & CREATIVITY
FACULTY HIGHLIGHTS The Westphal Dean’s Office of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (IDEA), in partnership with the Westphal Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Council (DEIC), announced the recipients of its inaugural IDEADevelopment, Education, and Cultivation (DEC) Mini-grants. The 10 Awardees include Glen Muschio (Digital Media), Mia Rosensaft (Architecture, Design & Urbanism), Jeffrey Stanley (Cinema & Television), Mark Stockton (Art & Art History), Heather Moqtaderi (Art & Art History), Monika Julien (Arts & Entertainment Enterprise), Alphonso McClendon (Design), Frank Lee (Digital Media), Rozway Regmi (student, Cinema & Television), and Ali Howell Abolo (Fashion Design). Chris Baeza, assistant teaching professor of Design & Derchandising, and Raja Schaar, associate professor of Product Design, were awarded $15,000 by Colonial Academic Alliance to support their initiative to empower students in leading climate resilient change. Associate professor of Urban Strategy Andrew Zitcer presented two talks at Social Theory Politics & the Arts international conference in Lexington KY in September: One with Julie Goodman on the PA Humanities Discovery Project and one is with Johanna Taylor (ASU) called "Creative Placemaking in Transition."
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Glen Muschio, associate professor of Digital Media, and Brent White, assistant teaching professor of Music, were jointly awarded a $6,500 grant by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. The grant supports work toward a project to commemorate and celebrate Philadelphia’s historic Black Bottom neighborhood. Muschio has led STAR Scholars in advanced research, cultural anthropology and development of digital reconstructions of Black Bottom landmarks. Pennsylvania Council on the Arts has awarded Brea M. Heidelberg, PhD, associate professor of Entertainment & Arts Management, a multi-year grant to provide organizational evaluation and development expertise to BIPOC-led and serving cultural organizations. Yvonne Leach and Nicholas Natalicchio, both of the Department of Cinema & Television, published the book Television Show Trends, 2016-2020: Authenticity, Diversity, Sexual Candor, and Retrospection (McFarland).
Apply for a Westphal Mini-grant
For Research, Scholarship, and Creative Work. Open to all full-time Westphal faculty.
RESEARCH & CREATIVITY
STUDENT & ALUMNI HIGHLIGHTS Carla Pierini (Fashion Design ‘23) was selected as the winner of the 2023 Supima Design Competition. Pierini’s capsule collection, inspired by her home country of Venezuela, debuted at New York Fashion Week alongside eight other finalists from US fashion schools. She took home a $10,000 cash prize, along with exposure to fashion industry professionals and media.
Shayna Davis (Film & Television ‘21), a Philadelphia-based filmmaker, is kicking off the Philadelphia Independent Film Festival with two of her own comedic films. The festival is returning with more than 80 feature films, shorts, documentaries, music videos, animations and virtual reality experiences performing at small venues throughout the city.
Sarah Rable (Interior Design ‘18) is among this year's 30 Under 30 in Seattle via Interior Design Magazine. Sara is currently an Interior Designer at Weber Thompson.
Jamie Clifford (Art History, History, '22) was admitted to the Winterthur Program in American Material Culture. The Winterthur Program provides interdisciplinary study of diverse ideas, contexts, and theories—supported by truly unparalleled hands-on study of objects, landscapes, buildings, decorative arts, and design, both within and outside the vast collections of the Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library—so that all of our students may master the skills necessary to expand and confound predominant scholarship in material culture.
Catherine M. Cahill (MS Arts Administration ‘83), president and CEO of the Mann Center for the Performing Arts, was listed in the Philadelphia Business Journal's 2023 Most Admired CEO Awards. Product Design student Henry McGettigan was recognized as a Student Notable (Health & Wellness Category) in the Core77 Design Awards 2023. Core77 is an online design magazine dedicated to the practice and produce of the field of industrial design. Celia Armstrong (MS Interior Architecture & Design ’23), Joanne Huynh (MS Interior Architecture & Design ’23), and Andrew Scheetz (MS Interior Architecture & Design ’23) from the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design were selected as the graduate winners of the 2022-23 International Design Educators Council (IDEC) Student Design Competition for their submission, “Project Oasis.”
Nine Westphal undergraduate students participated in the 2023 STAR (Students Tackling Advanced Research) Scholars Program, working alongside faculty mentors to pursue summer research projects. The 2023 cohort included: Amelia Niedermier (Architecture), Katie Horton (Graphic Design), Mackenzie Hughes (Architecture), Malyka Alvi (Fashion Design), Poppy Martinez (Fashion Design), Lillian Byrd (Graphic Design), Margaret May Cove (Entertainment & Arts Management), Max LeBrun (Music Industry), Emma Dettweiler (Product Design), Derrick Banks, Jr. (Game Design & Production), and Daryn Lamb (Uder Experience & Interaction Design).
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DESIGNING HER OWN PATH: LINDSAY BEDFORD (MS ’21) ON DESIGN THINKING AND PUBLIC ART
BY LAUREL HOSTAK JONES Today, she’s a celebrated local artist and spatial designer, but during the first year of her master’s in Interior Architecture & Design, Lindsay Bedford (’21) wasn’t sure she fit in. She was a non-traditional student in the process of changing careers; as someone who always saw herself as a storyteller, she wanted to learn how to create spatial storytelling experiences. Drexel’s program, at first, presented challenges with its highly technical focus on design thinking and making. “I struggled to find my voice,” Bedford recalls. But something changed in her second year – specifically in a course called Conceptual Design Studio, which emphasizes iterative design processes and concept development. “I realized I had a lot to offer. I had exciting design thinking, but I thought differently than my peers.” After a positive critique on her final project for the course, Bedford hit her stride; true to her passion, she moved forward with a focus on storytelling and art, finding a way to tell stories through design. This approach served Bedford well in the development of her third-year thesis, which imagined “the art museum of the 21st century.”
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With encouragement from her thesis advisor, adjunct professor Susan Feenan, Bedford played to her strengths: she used the art museum design, conceived for a space in Germantown, as a platform to tell a story. She created characters and shared their experiences through renderings, emphasizing the emotional journey a thoughtfully designed space can facilitate. Though Bedford’s thesis presentation looked very different from her peers’, it was received well by a jury of professionals. Appropriately enough, it was this conceptual thesis work that set Bedford on a path to partnership with some of Philadelphia’s most beloved cultural institutions. While she was conceiving the art museum of the 21st century, Bedford learned about MuralArts’ new Philadelphia Fellowship for Black Artists. Designed in 2020 to fund, foster, and elevate the important work of emerging Black artists in Philadelphia, the Fellowship provides grant funding, career development, and exhibition opportunities to fellows. Bedford submitted her inprogress thesis work and was selected for the second cohort of MuralArts fellows.
“I found my tribe in Fellowship,” she reflects. She was surrounded by other Black creatives who believed in MuralArts’ mission and vision to inspire change in communities through public art. Still, she felt a little out of place. Now that she had three years of intensive training in design thinking and spatial design, her work was harder to categorize – and harder to represent in a gallery show alongside artists working in traditional media. During a culminating group exhibition, Bedford created and installed large renderings on acrylic panels, “but it still didn’t represent me.” To really bring those dreams to life, Bedford needed to create a unique, immersive installation. The resulting work, Petal Procession, came about through a connection to another Drexel alum based in Philly. Danielle Brief (BS Design & Merchandising ’14) and her fiancé Jonah Adams made local news in 2021 when they planned identical proposals with public art in South Philly’s Percy Street alleyway. Brief and Adams are both involved in the Percy Street Project, which aims to build community through immersive art experiences. Their proposal story inspired a romantic vision of Percy Street as a place to fall in love; when Brief messaged Bedford to commission a mural for the space, she knew she wanted to make something that pays homage to romance. “My favorite part of Conceptual Studio was the idea of a ‘procession,’” Bedford says, “which is a special or celebrated path. Every project I did in the program had a procession.” Inspired by petal paths seen at weddings or ceremonies of love, the Percy Street Petal Procession created a fantastical, otherworldly path lined with rose petals. Bedford designed rose petals in multiple scales and colorways to exaggerate the procession and subconsciously guide people to other Percy Street installations. The most rewarding part of the Percy Street Petal Procession, which was installed with the help of Drexel students, was the community block party held by MuralArts to unveil the installation. “People were celebrating with their children, local businesses came, Pat’s even donated cheesesteaks,” Bedford says, “I kept thinking, ‘I can’t believe I helped make this happen. I can really make change with design.’” Petal Procession remained in the hidden gem of Percy Street for as long as the elements allowed, and Bedford recently had the chance to reconceive it on one of Philly’s grandest stages. After creating installations with Philadelphia Ballet and West Philly’s Afromation Avenue, Bedford was approached by the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) to install her Petal Procession on the famous “Rocky Steps” for their Juneteenth Community Celebration in 2023.
Bedford brought in her MuralArts contacts for support and found herself in the unique position of being both lead artist and project manager for the installation. She owned the process from start to finish, from conceptual design and installation to hiring and fee negotiation. Her installation assistants? A group of students from the Interior Architecture & Design program at Drexel: Tri-Jeye Villaroel, Tasha Singh, Ananya Vijayendra, Nihitha Sreenath, Tanaya Deshpande, and Almudena Munoz Ferran. “Drexel students work hard!” Bedford says. “When you work with Drexel students, you know work ethic is covered.” Meanwhile, she wanted to work with people who were trained in design thinking. “This was a design project first, so I had to bring in designers over visual artists.” Considering her nontraditional career path, Bedford is invested in mentoring the next generation; bringing Drexel students into the installation at the PMA was an opportunity to show how fun design can be outside of the classroom. Philadelphia, recently recognized by USA Today as America’s “Best City for Street Art” and “Mural Capital of the World” by the Association for Public Art, has, in Bedford’s words, “a vibe.” It’s an exciting place for emerging artists and designers to launch careers and connections. And as Bedford’s path shows, the boundaries between disciplines are not as rigid as they might seem.
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WESTPHAL BRIDGE SCHOLARS PROGRAM
YOU ARE A VITAL PART OF WESTPHAL BRIDGE SCHOLARS PROGRAM Dear Friends, Welcome to another year of breakthroughs and possibilities at the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design! I am so proud to be able to share good news about our BRIDGE Scholars Program and its achievements. Our very first cohort of BRIDGE Scholars will graduate in June 2024! I cannot begin to express how proud I am of this tenacious group of leaders. Our scholars have navigated what have been some of the most daunting times in recent history with grace and determination. They truly inspire me every day, and I am looking forward to all the ways they will change the world after graduating from Drexel. Check out the 6ABC News feature about our Westphal BRIDGE Scholars Program and our impact. The Westphal BRIDGE Scholars Program allows student voices to drive our events, programs, activities, and services we provide. Recently, we hosted our Fall-Back Swap Meet which provided free clothes, shoes, coats, art supplies, materials, home goods, and food for our students, preparing them for upcoming classes and co-op opportunities. And with an average GPA of 3.42 among all BRIDGE Scholars, job interviews are definitely in their future. In fact, last academic year 50% of BRIDGE Scholars made the Dean’s List at least once and 64% improved their GPA from one term to the next. We are proud to celebrate how the retention of underrepresented minority students in Westphal College who are PELL grant recipients rose 10.3% in the last two years. Retention of underrepresented minority students who are not PELL grant recipients grew by 5.8% in two years. Our results prove Westphal BRIDGE Scholars Program is providing access to the ancillary needs of our students to eliminate academic and financial barriers so Scholars can focus on their art and elevating their craft. Our Westphal BRIDGE Scholars Program celebrated the academic excellence of Scholars in June 2023 at our End of the Year Gala with achievement and leadership awards, and unveiled our Alumni Influencer, Outstanding Ally, and Team Impact awards to recognize key contributors across our growing community. When I began the Westphal BRIDGE Scholars Program in 2020, I had a vision of incorporating alumni mentorship into our program’s infrastructure. In 2024, it is my goal to get our alumni program off the ground as we prepare to welcome our first class of Westphal BRIDGE alumni. Giving our students a real-world support system will allow our Dragons to thrive post-graduation. Whether you prefer to connect with students over text, email, or in person, and regardless of whether you can offer corporate connections or tours, YOU are a vital part of Westphal BRIDGE. If you’re as passionate about helping our students as I know you are, please consider becoming an alumni mentor by emailing westphalbridge@drexel.edu. Thank you for who you are and for motivating our diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism work at Westphal!
Denise Marie Snow DENISE MARIE SNOW PROGRAM DIRECTOR, WESTPHAL DIVERSITY PROGRAMS & PARTNERSHIPS
COVER DESIGN BY MATTHEW BRUNER, GRAPHIC DESIGN ‘23
VOL. 1 | FALL 2023