SMFA at Tufts Impact Report 2024

2024 REPORT IMPACT

DEAR SCHOOL OF THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS AT TUFTS UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY,

As Professor of the Practice Lauren O’Connor-Korb recently said, “A degree in the visual arts is the perfect degree for an uncertain world.” Her words deeply resonate with me.

The SMFA experience fosters comfort with ambiguity, critical thinking and problem solving, and the ability to know one’s own point of view to better understand and empathize with others. Those are skills that are increasingly vital and in-demand.

In this Impact Report, you will see how donors, administrators, faculty, students, and alumni benefit from our shared commitment to investing in the future of SMFA

In the last five years, SMFA has tripled its enrollment and become one of the most diverse campus communities at Tufts University. This year, we have 660 students enrolled in our full-time programs.

One of our core values is a commitment to make art education and the wider art world more accessible. That starts with strengthening our ability to provide financial aid. As a direct result of incredible support from donors, around 49% of SMFA students received some form of financial aid this past year.

I thank you for being part of this community and I am immensely grateful to all those who give their time, their resources, and their connections to foster opportunities for our school.

Over the summer, I invite you to reach out to me directly to introduce yourself (scheri.fultineer@tufts.edu).

Scheri Fultineer Dean, School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University

SMFA AT TUFTS SINCE 2016

MORE CHOICES. MORE CONVERSATIONS. MORE PATHS TO EXPLORE.

SINCE SMFA JOINED FORCES with Tufts University in 2016, our school has gone through an exciting growth spurt. Yet at our core, we remain wildly experimental, deeply collaborative, and meticulous in our pursuit of knowledge in the arts.

Your continued commitment to SMFA matters a great deal—especially now. Even though we now have access to the resources of a top research institution, SMFA still needs your support to make it possible for every student, regardless of background, to be offered affordable entry points to arts education and the many career opportunities that come with it.

Our students come from 37 countries and 39 states. In 2023 we:

• increased the number of firstgeneration college students by 12%,

• had a record admissions year,

• had the biggest BFA application pool, exceeding 1,200 applications.

As part of Tufts University, SMFA students have more choices, more conversations, and more paths to explore. Nearly half of our BFA students are

enrolled in the combined degree program where they get both a BFA and a BA or BS .

While the collective energy of the SMFA at Tufts community stems from the mix of people on campus, we also recognize how important it is for students to be able to connect with peers who share similar experiences and identities to build a sense of belonging. SMFA students now have access to a wider support system including better access to mental health services, wellness programs, affinity-based clubs and groups, and a community pantry.

To respond to shifts in the art and job markets, we are in the process of introducing significant new career planning resources. This year, we held 250 advising meetings and expanded funding opportunities for

arts-related startups with the Derby Entrepreneurship Center.

A big part of establishing a practice and choosing a path involves accessing mentorship. The Career Center launched critical skills-based workshops to help students learn about pricing work, securing artist residencies, and connecting with potential employers.

We continue to grow in what we offer SMFA students and alumni, how we stay connected, and what we do together as a community to make the world a kinder, more just place through the visual arts. Keep in touch! There’s so much more to come in 2024.

THE KILN ROOM IN SMFA’S Ceramics Studio is packed with racks containing hundreds of student works waiting to be glazed. But there is currently a gaping space where Rolly, its legendary gas-powered, large-format kiln was once fired up. Unfortunately, more than five years ago, Rolly became too old and unsafe to use.

As a result, students like Guadalupe (Louisa) Najar, BFA ’24 , have had to either limit the scale of their imagination or develop clever workarounds for large-scale projects. Louisa’s senior thesis project involved firing a galloping four-foot-tall stallion in three distinct parts and then attempting to fuse the sections along the animal’s neck and muscular flank.

Thanks to a remarkable anonymous six-figure gift, a new kiln will provide boundless potential for what can be sculpted, thrown, glazed, or fired at SMFA starting this fall.

COMING BACK SMFA

HAMERMESH

TO SMFA AS A STUDENT SHE’S NEVER STOPPED LEARNING OR GIVING BACK TO COMMUNITY.

LORIE HAMERMESH , Studio Diploma ’84, is in her studio, in Boston’s Fort Point Channel, leaning her body weight into turning the wheel of the French Tool press that dominates the room’s floor space. Already a painter with a BA , Hamermesh first came to SMFA in the 1980 s for the Studio Diploma program. She took classes part-time across mediums for five years while she parented two young children. In 1985 , she received a Traveling Scholarship to India.

From her first figure drawing class with Bill Flynn and painting class with Gerry Bergstein, Lorie found such a supportive community that she never entirely left–returning again and again for continuing education courses and to support the school as a member of the Board of Governors with her time and generosity.

With her own practice established, she set up the Lorie Hamermesh Scholarship Fund in 1999 . Lorie came up with the idea of giving back to SMFA after seeing the pride her husband, a business school alumni and professor, took in attending reunions and pledging major gifts every five years to his alma mater.

“I thought to myself, I should do the same thing for SMFA ,” she explains. “Art school is expensive, and that limits some really talented people from attending. I felt that what the school needed most was scholarship funds.”

Every year, Lorie takes joy in getting to know the Hamermesh Awardees— and she stays in touch even after they graduate. More than 25 SMFA students from the United States, South Africa, Turkey, and other countries have completed their degrees thanks to the scholarship—and gone on to launch remarkable practices and careers in the arts.

FACTS FIG URES +

SMFA AT TUFTS PAST 7 YEARS

STATS TO HELP US EXAMINE AND APPRECIATE THE LAST SEVEN YEARS AT SMFA . THERE’S A LOT TO BE PROUD OF HERE—AND STILL SO MUCH THAT WE CAN ACCOMPLISH TOGETHER AS A COMMUNITY:

SMFA TODAY

ENROLLED STUDENTS

ACROSS ALL PROGRAMS: BFA, BFA + BA/BS, POST-BACCALAUREATE, AND MFA

AS A RESULT OF OUR MERGER WITH TUFTS UNIVERSITY IN 2016, SMFA OFFERS FINANCIAL AID AND AN ACCESSIBLE EDUCATION TO MORE STUDENTS THAN EVER BEFORE.

LAST YEAR OF SMFA STUDENTS RECEIVE SOME FORM OF FINANCIAL AID

LEARN MORE ABOUT SUPPORTING OUR STUDENTS’ FUTURES AT SMFA.TUFTS. EDU/YOUR-IMPACT

+12% 49% 660

WE CONTINUE TO GROW OUR PERCENTAGE OF FIRST-GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENTS . +19%

PAST 2 YEARS

1,000

1,200 OVER OVER UNDERGRAD APPLICATIONS UNDERGRAD APPLICATIONS IN EACH OF THE PAST 2 YEARS IN 2022

THIS YEAR IS OUR LARGEST BFA APPLICATION POOL EVER. PAST 2 YEARS LAST YEAR +5% +14%

10/11

SMFA CAMPUS & STUDIOS

From PAINTING SPACES across the school to creating a new SCULPTURE WALL in A316, 230 Fenway is a FRESH AND INVITING SPACE for students to work, learn, and gather.

PRINTMAKING underwent a MAJOR RENOVATION .

A new SOUND BOOTH with MIXING BOARD AND RECORDING EQUIPMENT has been installed.

Following the purchase of 160 Alphonsus St. (aka MISSION HILL BUILDING ), SMFA has begun to evaluate a series of IMPORTANT UPDATES FOR THE SPACE

DIGITAL FABRICATION installed THREE ULTIMAKER 3D PRINTERS .

DIGITAL FAB AND VR added SIX new high-powered PC laptops for 3D MODELING AND VR/AR .

We conducted a SURVEY OF SMFA FACULTY’S USE OF AI AND MACHINE LEARNING , and FORMED AN AI WORKING GROUP to discuss the impact of AI on art and art pedagogy. 12/13

The RISO STUDIO added a NEW VINYL PRINTER/CUTTER and a LARGE FORMAT INKJET PRINTER .

SMFA GRADUATE PROGRAM

Partnered with Tufts University Art Galleries to bring in CATHERINE OPIE who conducted STUDIO VISITS WITH MFA STUDENTS .

Collaborated with Professor of the Practice YANYUN CHEN to host THE SOUTHEAST ASIAN ARTIST SERIES , which brings practicing, contemporary SOUTHEAST ASIAN ARTISTS to share their works, thoughts, and ideas with the SMFA community.

AMANI WILLETT

CATHERINE OPIE

OPIE was the featured speaker for THE BECKWITH LECTURE , a collaboration between the MFA , Boston and SMFA that has been a CHERISHED INSTITUTION SINCE 1978 . HOSTED 10 VISITING ARTISTS through this academic year.

BOONE-MCCREESH

CANDICE

SMFA DEVELOPMENT & ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT

SMFA ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT LAUNCHED A NEW INITIATIVE THIS YEAR TO CONNECT WITH ALUMNI BOTH LOCALLY AND AROUND THE WORLD. FEATURING 10 EVENTS IN FOUR CITIES: BOSTON, LA, NYC, AND PARIS .

SMFA ART SALE

$688,000 +1,000 RAISED VIEWERS + VISITORS DURING THE 11-DAY EVENT $ TO ARTISTS $ TO SMFA FINANCIAL AID 50% 50%

THROUGH EVENTS, PUBLIC DAYS, AND A NEW ONLINE PORTAL, THE SMFA ART SALE WAS SEEN BY +15% OVER OUR GOAL!

14/15

KEY GIFTS RAISED THIS YEAR

NEW CERAMIC KILN FOR LARGE-SCALE WORK

VISITING ARTIST LECTURE SERIES COORDINATED BY THE GRADUATE PROGRAM

INTERNSHIPS , RESIDENCIES , AND WORKSHOPS FOR STUDENT PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

INCLUDING:

RESIDENCY AT ARROWMONT SCHOOL OF ARTS AND CRAFTS

INTERNSHIP AT THE ISABELLA STEWART GARDNER MUSEUM SMFA MATERIALS FUND CURRENT USE FINANCIAL AID FINANCIAL AID ENDOWMENT

ALUM NI NEWS STOR IES +

DAISY PATTON, MFA ’11

DAISY PREPARED FOR THREE SHOWS IN FALL 2023 . One of them was her first solo exhibition at Houston’s Foto Relevance, With Hands Clasped Tightly.

Daisy’s work around families and their social meanings–a cornerstone of her practice–began at SMFA . Those two years deeply shaped the artistic practice she is widely known for today.

“When I got to SMFA I was in flux because my work was in flux,” Daisy reasons. In her second year, Daisy received The Montague Travel Grant from SMFA which sent her to Dresden, Germany to research East German literature and explore creating a graphic novel. SMFA faculty also pushed her to dig into new mediums like sound installation and performance. That spirit of experimentation jolted Patton back into the headspace necessary to rediscover a deep love for painting–this time, as a multidisciplinary artist.

DENIZ HOTAMISLIGIL, BFA ’08

“AT SMFA, YOU HAVE THE FREEDOM TO EXPLORE , but it comes with responsibilities. It pushes you to be independent and creative in a powerful way.”

An international student and the recipient of the Medici & Lorie Hamermesh Scholarship, Deniz applied his degree to work as an art director (and ultimately a creative director) at a motion picture advertising company in Los Angeles. Some of the posters he worked on during that time are now part of the American pop culture canon— including Fargo , Girls , American Horror Story: Coven , and Avatar

An independent at heart, Deniz eventually struck out on his own and founded a branding agency, Hotalabs.

HEATHER COX, MFA ’98

HEATHER IS AN INTERDISCIPLINARY ARTIST AND EXECUTIVE COORDINATOR of the Conservation department of the Whitney Museum of Art. She works at the Whitney three days a week and in her studio the other two.

She urges other MFA graduates to realize how valuable their skillset can be in a museum setting. “Institutions are looking for people with creative thinking and problem-solving skills. I believe that these kinds of humanities-based backgrounds that SMFA provides are only going to become more and more needed and necessary,” she predicts.

ISA WANG, BFA ’11

“FROM THE TIME I GOT MY FIRST COMPUTER, I WAS SELLING THINGS ONLINE,” said Isa Wang. He and his partner, Vincent Frano (who holds a certificate in Illustration from SMFA ), co-own Small Victories, a studio selling plantable greeting cards, original prints, pronoun badges, and accessories that promote sustainability, equity, and inclusion.

“The Sidewalk Sale my senior year at SMFA was the first time I ever set up a table and sold things,” Isa says. “That’s all I’ve done since then too just on a larger scale. It started on that sidewalk and then moved on to craft fairs, expos, and trade shows.”

READ ISA’S STORY AT SMFA.TUFTS.EDU/YOUR-IMPACT

MONICA MANOSKI, MFA ’13 + GABRIEL SOSA, MFA ’16

TWO SMFA ALUMNI, PRACTICING ARTISTS Monica Manoski and Gabriel Sosa, give Lawrence, Massachusetts residents a chance to see themselves reflected in art and the power to create their own work at the Essex Art Center.

As the center focuses on broad accessibility and representation, perceptions are changing. The center’s executive director since 2021 , Monica thinks back to an exhibition of work by fellow SMFA at Tufts alumna, Marla McLeod, MFA ’20 , that dealt with race and identity. “I remember during that show hearing two students talk about the portraits that were on view, and saying, ‘That one looks like my tía!’ and ‘That one looks like me!’”

Such moments have guided Monica and Gabriel (who serves as deputy director) in their decisions on the future of the center. “It’s so important that the community sees themselves reflected in the work we do,” Monica says.

VANESSA PLATACIS, MFA ’05

VANESSA CHOSE SMFA BECAUSE she wanted to ground her practice in research and a wider network of artists. The conversations that came out of that time, the liberal arts classes she took at Tufts, and the rich cultural environment of Boston itself was, she says, “quite honestly, life changing.”

Vanessa’s latest project is a large-scale installation spread across Hotel Bardo, a sumptuous new urban resort and members-only social club in Savannah, Georgia.

Your impact—as a supporter, an SMFA parent, alum, art sale collector, or friend of SMFA —propels our school forward and honors the history of creativity that continues to influence contemporary art and the larger world. For nearly 150 years, the Friends of SMFA have been key to the growth, success, and continuity of our school.

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WAYS YOU CAN GET INVOLVED AND MAKE AN IMPACT AT SMFA, PLEASE CONTACT:

KELLY FANTEGROSSI

Director of Development & Alumni Engagement kelly.fantegrossi@tufts.edu

KARA HOWGATE-MELLO Alumni Engagement & Art Sale Manager kara.howgate_mello@tufts.edu