Corcoran School of the Arts and Design at the George Washington University

Corcoran alumni Eric Lee (M.A. New Media Photojournalism ‘20) () witnessed and captured history on July 13, 2024, as he photographed the unexpected assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. Lee was at the event as a photo fellow for the New York Times, and was collecting material before shots rang out from among the crowd. As he watched panic take over the area, Lee realized that he was beholding history, and that it was up to him as a photographer to document the event and share it with the world. Taking as many photos as he could from his position, he managed to capture a photo of Trump being escorted off the stage after being shot in the ear, as well as the crowd’s reaction to the shooting, and the aftermath of the attempt, as shown here. The last photo is of Eric, who flew on Air Force One to Nevada with the White House Press Corps. (Photo by Kent Nishimura)

Read the story here: https://gwtoday.gwu.edu/through-lens-history-gw-alumnus-eric-lee-photographing-trumps-assassination-attempt

Corcoran alumni Eric Lee (M.A. New Media Photojournalism ‘20) () witnessed and captured history on July 13, 2024, as he photographed the unexpected assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. Lee was at the event as a photo fellow for the New York Times, and was collecting material before shots rang out from among the crowd. As he watched panic take over the area, Lee realized that he was beholding history, and that it was up to him as a photographer to document the event and share it with the world. Taking as many photos as he could from his position, he managed to capture a photo of Trump being escorted off the stage after being shot in the ear, as well as the crowd’s reaction to the shooting, and the aftermath of the attempt, as shown here. The last photo is of Eric, who flew on Air Force One to Nevada with the White House Press Corps. (Photo by Kent Nishimura)

Read more about this story in GW Today (link in bio).

Today we celebrate Corcoran’s Class of 2024! We welcome all students, their families and friends to the Flagg Building this evening (4-6 pm) for Corcoran’s graduation celebration. Majors and minors are both invited with their guests. Come for refreshments, photos and special items for graduating students, along with times for programs to meet with their cohorts and brief remarks from Director Lauren Onkey. Congratulations to this year’s graduating class as you start your journey as artists, practitioners, researchers and changemakers in the months and years ahead. We are so proud of you!

Photos from NEXT 2024 Extravaganza; photos by Maria Luz Bravo (New Media Photojournalism ‘17)

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Our last memory for today from our 2024 graduating class. Cole Harriston, B.A. Theater and Minor in Anthropology, remembers: “My fondest memories at GW began with performing in a play for the first time at the university during the pandemic. With each subsequent play I took part in, I learned more about myself as an actor and how integral the whole cast and crew is for a production. In my four years, I was cast as characters as varied as a game-show host and talk-show host, God and a Polish film producer. In one virtual play during my first year, ‘There’s Always the Hudson,’ I even got to pour Coca-Cola on myself. On camera. Over and over. This past year, with some help from the Theatre Department’s Carl Gudenius and Ann Norton, I interned as an assistant director at the Washington Stage Guild, an experience that expanded my appreciation for D.C.’s vibrant theater scene. Being part of Phi Sigma Pi, a national honor fraternity, was another connection I appreciated. Being with other frat brothers exposed me to different events and activities like picnics, retreats and campus games. I’ve learned a lot over four years and have grown so much.”

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Congratulations to our 2024 Corcoran school graduates! Another memory from Cammie Hussey, B.A. Political Science, Minor in Theater ‘24: “I found a home in GW’s student theater. Over the past few years, I have wracked up countless amazing moments with this group, but the experience I cherish most was when I was able to put on my own show. Sure, I remember the Saturday night when every seat was filled, some people even sitting on the floor, but the most special performance was our Friday late-night show. Four people came. I’m not exaggerating, four. But this talented, fantastic group took it as an opportunity to play. I couldn’t feel my cheeks by the end because I was smiling so hard. I hope those four people were as entertained as I was. I had more fun at the performance than any other, and I will remember it years from now. GW’s student theater taught me many lessons, but more importantly, it introduced me to lifelong friends.”

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Congratulations to our 2024 Corcoran school graduates! Maureen Rafter, B.A. American Studies, Music ‘24, shares her memories: “When reflecting on my four years at GW, it’s hard to pick just one moment that I would consider to be my favorite. This school has provided me with lifelong friendships, connections and opportunities. Getting to routinely attend shows at the Kennedy Center, meeting Kerry Washington and interning on Capitol Hill are some of the most memorable moments from my time as a Revolutionary.

Click the link in bio to read more about our 2024 Corcoran School Graduates.

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Tomorrow is the last day to see the NEXT exhibition! This year, NEXT has more than 47 physical exhibits, which you can see on display from 1 - 5 pm at 500 17th Street NW. 

Students at the Corcoran have exhibited their thesis work for more than 30 years. In 2011, the exhibition came to be known as NEXT in a nod to the public seeing “what’s next” in contemporary art and scholarship. Attendees are able to view and engage with the vast displays of the end-of-year projects that the students have to offer.

Come check it out before the exhibition closes to the public today! *Note: The exhibition will also remain open during graduation weekend, May 17-18, for GW students and their families to enjoy.*

See photos by William Atkins (GW) and Maria Luz Bravo (New Media Photojournalism ‘17) from the NEXT Extravaganza.

✨NEXT Spotlight: Theatre✨

Our Bachelor of Arts in Theatre encourages a broad-based liberal arts education. The program is structured to allow partnering with an almost limitless range of other majors and minors. It also provides an education that explores all aspects of the field. From acting, to design, and management, coursework helps students understand and perform each part of a successful production. Building on this base, students are encouraged to focus on their primary interest in theatre. Theatre students also partner with other programs across the university, providing an expansive creative foundation paired with in-depth studio training. This year’s NEXT projects in theatre reflect the program’s commitment to embodied learning, where practical learning is supported by deep intellectual exploration.

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Image 1: In November of 2023 at Betts Theatre, Corcoran Theater program students performed ‘Silent Sky,’ a production that shone a light on 19th-century astronomer, Henrietta Leavitt. Photo by Joseph Decilos (Photojournalism ‘24).

Images 2 - 3: In March of 2024, theatre students performed ‘Peerless,’ a dark comedy twist on Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ set in the cutthroat world of elite college admissions. The performance was directed by Professor Jodi Kanter. Photo by Joseph Decilos (Photojournalism ‘24).

Image 4-5: Theatre students working backstage on striking the ‘Peerless’ set on March 3, 2024. Photos by Sarah Hochstein (Photojournalism ‘26).

✨NEXT Spotlight: Social Practice✨

The artists and creative thinkers in the Social Practice MFA program connect art, policy, and collective action through socially engaged practice. These graduate students confront today’s complex social landscape and center meaningful community impact in their work using an expansive set of creative tools, from musical intervention to creating spaces for community building and exchange.

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Image Captions:

Images 1-3: MFA in Social Practice artist Shawn Shafner talks to a group of incoming students after the opening of “Collected Memories, Collective Futures,” their interactive show centered around community, history, and experience. Photo by Lydia Embry (Photojournalism ‘24).

Images 4-5: As a part of his Fall semester “Acornacopia” show in Gallery 102, MFA in Social Practice student Shawn Shafner invited community members to the SEVA Teaching Kitchen to make acorn pancakes and other culinary adaptations of the common nut. Photo by Lydia Embry (Photojournalism ‘24)

✨ NEXT Spotlight: Photojournalism & New Media Photojournalism ✨

The B.F.A. in Photojournalism and B.A. in Fine Art with a Concentration in Photojournalism degrees foster a unique, multidisciplinary training ground for the next generation of visual reporters and documentarians. Based in the Studio Arts program, photojournalism majors are immersed in both the traditions of photojournalism and studio arts practices, resulting in critically engaged visual storytelling with an emphasis on producing well-crafted objects that contribute to contemporary social and cultural discourse. This year’s senior thesis cohort explores topics including addiction and recovery, DIY culture, the preservation of small-scale agriculture, and q***r Hispanic safe spaces.

The M.A. in New Media Photojournalism is a two-year program that culminates in a visual reporting capstone project. Capstone comprises photography, video, a long-form reporting essay, a project-centered website, and community engagement events. As with the classes before them, the 2024 cohort has leaned into complex issues at the heart of society, including the expanding epidemic of isolation and loneliness, bonds between humans and animals, the growing impact of Gen-Z in defining U.S. culture, experiences of asylees seeking refuge in Washington, D.C., and challenges young generations face in balancing their identities and visions of the future with the sacrifices of their immigrant grandparents.

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PJ/ NMPJ Image Captions:
Photojournalism Thesis Group Book Sequencing. Professor Matt Eich along with alumna Katie Dance help graduating photojournalism B.F.A. students sequence their group photo book. Photographer: Florence Shen (Photojournalism ‘26)

PJ/ NMPJ Image Captions:
New Media Photojournalism and photojournalism students Emmy Numann, Danielle Towers, Kacey Chapman, Amid Farahi, Aashish Kiphayet, James Schaap, Todd Ford, Gabriela Passos and Olajide Oluwafemi address the question “How has photojournalism changed over the last century?” and respond to the Dorothea Lange: Seeing People exhibition. Photos Courtesy of National Gallery of Art.

✨ NEXT Spotlight: Museum Studies✨

Established in 1976, Museum Studies at the George Washington University responds to the evolving museum profession by combining hands-on training with future-focused theoretical engagement. Students gain practical skills, foundational knowledge about the state of museum work today, and the ability to critically engage with developments in the field.

Photo caption:
A look back at this semester: On Tuesday, December 5, 2023, Mary Coughlin’s “Preventative Conservation Concepts” course took a trip to the National Gallery of Art where students learned about the intricacies of caring for art under various conditions. Photos courtesy of the National Gallery of Art.

🎶✨NEXT Spotlight: Music ✨🎶

The Bachelor of Arts in Music degree fosters musicianship, creativity, collaboration and critical thinking. A major in music prepares students for a wide variety of career choices, both in music-centered professions and beyond. Students customize their academic path by selecting from courses in performance, theory, ensembles, composition, history, ethnomusicology, and electronic and computer music. Many of our music majors find the flexibility to double major in another academic area, due to the ability to tailor the music curriculum to their individual interests. Graduates from our program possess the knowledge, practical skills, and wisdom needed to investigate, advocate for, and create music and to analyze how music intersects with critical issues in both historical and contemporary contexts.

Don’t miss the music capstone performances tomorrow, May 4, with Nadia Lischke and Maureen Rafter. Click the link in bio to get free tickets!

Image Captions:

Images 1-2: GW’s Hip Hop Ensemble hosts an open jam session in the Salon Doré at the Corcoran School in November 2023.
Photographer: Eric Lee (New Media Photojournalism ‘20)

Images 3-4: Music Band Concert in Lisner Hall (December 2023).
Photographer: Sarah Hochstein (Photojournalism ‘26)

Images: 5-6: Natalie Chami, Alma Laprida, and Heather Stebbins perform “Instruments in the 21st Century: Expanding Sound” at the Salon Doré at the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design. 
Photographer: Eric Lee (New Media Photojournalism ‘20)

Image 7: Experimental music workshop at the Corcoran School in the Salon Doré (October 2023). Natalie Chami, Alma Laprida, and Heather Stebbins present their instruments, techniques, and musical technologies in a performance setting.
Photographer: William Atkins/GW

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In case you missed it, here are photos from the NEXT Festival Extravaganza! Read more about the night celebrating the work and creativity of Corcoran’s graduating class in our link in bio. And you can still visit the NEXT exhibition through May 16 at 500 17th Street NW, every Wednesday - Sunday, 1 - 5 pm.

Photos by William Atkins (GW) and Maria Luz Bravo (New Media Photojournalism ‘17) from the NEXT Extravaganza.

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✨NEXT Spotlight: Interior Architecture ✨

The Interior Architecture program fosters a community that encourages creativity and pushes the boundaries of design with an emphasis on conceptual thinking and the design process. Through our studio-based curriculum, the core of our program, students learn to design three-dimensional environments through the use of dynamic concepts, cutting-edge materials, and innovative methods and techniques. Our mission is to educate future designers on all aspects of the discipline so that they contribute to and advance the field of interior design through professional projects and creative research.

Images 1-3: Interior architecture classes, some taught by Professor Melina Misri. Photo by Sarah Hochstein (Photojournalism ‘26) in Feb. 2024.

Image 4: Michael Lapthorn, the National Gallery of Art’s Chief of Design, leads a tour for the undergraduate Interior Architecture class at the National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden in December 2023. Photos courtesy National Gallery of Art.

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✨NEXT Festival Highlight: Museum Studies Events and Exhibition✨

You are invited to year-end exhibits and events hosted by Corcoran’s Museum Studies program!

“Still in the Fight: The DC Statehood Movement” is on view at 500 17th Street NW Wed - Sunday 1-5 p.m. through May 16, with a reception on May 1, 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Corcoran museum studies, exhibition design and graphic design students collaborated this year to produce an exhibit focused on the history of the movement for D.C. statehood.

You are also invited to Museum Studies’ Malaro Symposium & Research
Presentations.

Each year, the program chooses the best research papers by three graduate students, who present at an annual symposium followed by a brief speech by an influential museum professional.

This year, our keynote speaker is Nancy Bercaw, curator of Political History at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, where she also serves as senior advisor for the Center for Restorative History.

✨NEXT Spotlight: Interaction Design ✨

Our degree programs in Interaction Design engage students in critical thinking and problem-solving to re-imagine how individuals and communities use and engage with technology, access information, and experience designed services. We believe that the future of interaction design relies on also considering its social and environmental impact, and our curriculum reflects this forward-thinking conviction. ,

Images 1-4: An Interaction Design course taught by Professor Kevin Patton; photographed by Florence Shen.

Danielle Towers, a photojournalism major, was one of only ten GW students to receive the Distinguished Scholar Award at GW. Towers is co-president of the GW Chapter of National Press Photographers where she organizes professional and creative events and edits an annual group publication. Towers’ photographs have been exhibited at Photoville in Brooklyn, Touchstone in Washington, D.C., and VisArts Center in Maryland, and her photos have been published in Bloomberg Businessweek and other publications. She has conducted field work in Greenbelt, Maryland, where she documents the present community and its history, which you can see on display at the NEXT exhibition this month.

Read more about the award in our link in bio.

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✨NEXT Festival Event: Symposium & Research Presentations✨

On Friday, April 26, 10:30am - 4pm, you are invited to the Visiting Artists and Scholars Committee (VASC) Symposium & Research Presentations at Smith Hall of Art, Room 114. This will be a series of curated discussions and presentations with moderator Caroline Woolard, Visiting Professor of Community Engagement. 

* Thesis presentations by Serena Martin (BA), Abigail Osborne (BA), and Jason Rosenberg (MA), moderated Q&A by Caroline Woolard.
* Panel discussion with Beans Lee, BA Art History and Shawn Shafner, MFA Social Practice.
* “Art after Duchamp” - Gallery Talk with Donna Cameron, Doug Fuller, Judith Goodman, Dan Hildt, Steve Wanna

This program is organized by VASC, who are BA, MA, and MFA students within the Corcoran School who bring artists and scholars to speak on campus each year. Before the event, visit the link in bio to RSVP via eventbrite. Also, check out the NEXT Festival guide to read the biography of our student speakers! 

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If you missed “Our Songs: A Musical Revue,” please enjoy this recap post to early April. On April 4th, the Corcoran programs of Music and Theatre and Dance opened the show, “Our Songs: a Musical Revue.” Curated by GW students, “Our Songs” featured a plethora of musical performances from numbers like ‘Carrie,’ ‘Follies,’ and ‘Cabaret,’ each of them curated for the students in mind. It was truly a performance by the students and for the students! Enjoy the photos above by Sarah Hochstein (Photojournalism ‘26). Be sure to keep an eye out for other music and theatre & dance performances these upcoming weeks during NEXT via the NEXT festival guide in the link in bio.

✨NEXT Festival Event: Extravaganza✨

Please join us for the annual NEXT Festival Extravaganza this Thursday, April 25!

Throughout the evening, view and critique the vast displays of end-of-year projects, appreciate contemporary art, and enjoy dance, theatre, and music performances.

Events will be taking place from 6:30 - 9 pm at the Flagg Atrium (500 17th Street NW).

GW students can come with just their GWID, but please ask your guests to register in advance via the link in our bio.

Photos by Denny Henry (Corcoran BFA ‘07)

✨ NEXT Festival Event: Extravaganza ✨

Please join us for the annual NEXT Festival Extravaganza this Thursday, April 25!

Throughout the evening, view and critique the vast displays of end-of-year projects, appreciate contemporary art, and enjoy dance, theatre, and music performances.

Events will be taking place from 6:30 - 9 pm at the Flagg Atrium (500 17th Street NW).

GW students can come with just their GWID, but please ask your guests to register in advance via the link in our bio.

Photos by Denny Henry (Corcoran BFA ‘07)

Students in the Graphic Design BFA program apply critical thinking, design processes, and user-centered approaches to solve problems through visual form and communication. Equipped with essential skills for designing across print, screen, and space, this year’s seniors engage topics ranging from issues surrounding culture and technology, to personal investigations that explore the power of emotions and identity. Through wide-ranging creative inquiry, Graphic Design students at the Corcoran respond to the ever-shifting landscape of contemporary graphic design practice and its application.

Images 1-2: In preparation for NEXT, Marc Choi’s Thesis II class engages and experiments with their work. Photo by Sarah Hochstein (Photojournalism ‘26)

Image 3: Corcoran faculty look over the work of this year’s Graphic Design thesis class as students prepare for NEXT. Photo by Sarah Hochstein (Photojournalism ‘26)

Corcoran’s NEXT Festival opens today!! Events begin today and the exhibition is now on view through May 17, every Wednesday - Sunday, 1-5 pm at 500 17th Street NW. Here is a throwback to 2023’s NEXT for inspiration of what’s to come this month.

NEXT Festival Guide: https://dpb-web.instantencore.com/program/44581/page/109473?cid=5207825
NEXT Festival Extravaganza: https://connect.gwu.edu/site/Calendar?id=126451&view=Detail

✨ NEXT Festival Event: Spring Dance Concert ✨

The NEXT Festival opens with the talented students of dance taking center stage in the Betts Theatre for a mesmerizing display of grace, skill, and artistic expression!

The concert features CONTINUOUS REPLAY, choreographed originally by Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane and performed by the dance students, along with work by faculty choreographer Anna Jayne Kimmel in collaboration with Leo Hylton and the work of seven student choreographers under Concert Master Hayley Cutler.

Watch the show April 18-20 • 7:30 pm • Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre (800 21st Street NW). Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2024-spring-dance-concert-tickets-700499562047?aff=oddtdtcreator

*All GW students, faculty, and staff see the opening night show for FREE when a GWID is presented at the box office; no advance ticket purchase is necessary. *

✨ NEXT Spotlight: Fine Arts ✨

The Fine Arts program challenges our senior thesis students to imagine, articulate, and manifest their artistic voices on a level only possible by having an extended amount of time to pursue their work within a supportive community of peers, faculty, and visiting artists. Every art practice being developed while pursuing the BA and BFA in Fine Arts has the potential to span a variety of media and material, as is evident in the variety of work in NEXT. During their senior year, each student discovers and amplifies their own creative vocabulary to produce unique, compelling, and realized visions. This year’s cohort explores a range of material, personal, and urgent social issues of today through sustained material transformation and research. These students present projects that confront the rise in anti-semitism, offer a feminist perspective on identity, translate the overwhelming anxiety of crisis culture, and explore how objects hold meaning over time through material and repetition.

To learn more about our Fine Arts students, click the link https://dpb-web.instantencore.com/program/44581/page/109473?cid=5207825

Image Captions:

Images 1-2: A scene from a Studio Arts undergraduate course taught by Professor Michele Carlson. 📸 Credit: William Atkins

Images 3-6: Visitors at “Everything is Fine: An MFA Show featuring Kyla Allen, Daysia Barr, and Dylan Reynolds,” in December 2023.

First-Year MFA students portray varying concepts of identity using narrative, gesture, and installation. Their exploration of trauma, gender, and self reveals that everything is indeed not fine. 📸 Credit: Sarah Hochstein (Photojournalism ‘26)

A celebration throwback to February! On February 2nd, Jamille Wallick, professional lecturer in Corcoran’s Fine Arts Studio Program, opened her solo exhibition at VisArts titled, “until the truth is disclosed.” Her work featured an immersive camera obscura that was covered by patches, made up of individual patchwork spirals that had been stitched together. Using quilt making techniques and steel studs for materials as well as utilizing the visual language of natural repeating patterns including spiral fractals and waves, Wallick referenced and subverted the existing structures and systems placed around us. Though these structures exist, often without our control, they are still within our power to change.

After engaging in this work, one is offered a time to turn inward and upon Wallick’s request “reconsider all the ways we come together or stand alone in our quest for care and connection.”

Photography Credit: Dillon Meyer and Emmy Eggerman

To visit the installation virtually, click the link: https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPbVTzfwa-3hEfsyylu0z34Au0crjgKi5xg0gc090H6WYyeWqVCWufZO-7jm93Uqw/photo/AF1QipMHmRweagb7kitvImN9NOjkqGnn0DSztoUKO9-f?key=bHBabzhMbi13RTNZMnphSHVUU2lmUllrTnpnd1Nn

Jamille Wallick: “Until The Truth Is Disclosed” (Show was on view February 2-March 10, 2024 at Gibbs Street Gallery)

✨NEXT Spotlight: Exhibition Design✨

The Exhibition Design (MA) capstone installation is a territory of experimentation and innovation for both exhibition at-large and the student voice. Students are called to question and assert the relevance of exhibition in an ever-changing world and to ground their production in the forms and language of future-forward design. The work of the 2024 cohort is responsive to the unifying thematic of “the art of sustainability”. Herein, art has many meanings. And, sustainability can be of anything from energy, to ideology, to material, to community. Each of the exhibition design student projects is the realization of a unique positionally, a personal approach to translation, and an individual process for moving from meaning to form.

To learn more about our MA Exhibition Design seniors, click the link: https://dpb-web.instantencore.com/program/44581/page/109473?cid=5207825&fbclid=IwAR1j43RN_5E0p4ezGlbO6mCDU7yGk6n-jm0X-PX7sO5Sq-G90S_VUQekGKg_aem_ASWlk1adDLLEnsTOXgvEqHqjZrOh5fg1VbPtNuh5sEvmcjJR1gLlh3Ovu245SveCn6RLTUchVEfQewU21Uc64d4D

Image Captions:

Images 1-3: In February 2024, graduate students in both Interior Architecture and Exhibition Design got to present in a pop up at Heurich House. Students were tasked to reimagine details in House and reinterpret them through a modern lens. The Heurich House is the historic home of brewer and immigrant Christian Heurich. 📸 courtesy of Heurich House.