Exhibition

School of Visual Arts presents “The Book Show,” an exhibition of books created by 19 MFA Illustration as Visual Essay Department students. Curated by MFA Illustration as Visual Essay chair Marshall Arisman and faculty member Carl Nicholas Titolo, the exhibition will be on view from September 21 – October 12 at the SVA Gramercy Gallery (formerly the SVA Gallery), 209 East 23rd Street, New York City.

Each year, first-year students in the MFA Illustration as Visual Essay Department develop a book based on their personal vision. The form of the book can be a graphic novel, visual essay, illustrated song, historical text or an illustrated children’s book. These one-of-a-kind books are bound and exhibited along with the original work from the book, presenting an unfiltered look at each student’s process.

Te Chao’s book was inspired by personal life experiences. It's about self-liberation and discovering the courage to explore the fantastical unknown.

Claudia Griesbach-Martucci’s book is a poem about the seasons that follows the cycle of life, love and death. However, nature does have its imperfections. A love triangle blossoms between a fox, a mole and a cherry tree. The fox is left with a broken heart, but in the end learns that life imitates nature; a heart once broken, like a tree that dies in winter, will eventually bloom again.

Katie Hwang’s book is a magical story about a boy being bullied and the Rainbow Hat shopkeeper who changes his life.

Jai Kamat’s Subway Voyeur captures private moments between the artist and unwitting participants on the New York City subway. Through the process of image-making, the subject's identity is slowly revealed until his persona is complete.

James Kerigan’s book No Dessert is the age-old story of a child who doesn’t finish his vegetables and gets sent to be early with NO DESSERT! Accompanied by a few trusty companions and an overly active imagination, our child hero, Philip, embarks on a quest to get his dessert.

Aram Kim’s Have You Eaten? takes its title from a very common greeting in South Korea. Eating food has always been important in Korean culture ever since the Korean War era, when food was scarce. Though food is abundant now, eating is still very important. People often quote old sayings like: “eating well is good medicine” and “ghosts who ate well while alive look good even after death.” Eating together and sharing food is also a big part of Korean culture. People do not eat alone. It is commonly believed that sharing meals brings people closer and makes memories. Told through the food Kim used to eat in Korea, this book mixes memories and culture. Food is local, but memory related to the food is universal.

 Jordan Lysenko’s book is a visual retelling of an event in the author’s life. It is a story about love: love gained and love lost.  It is a simple story drawn with simple lines to explore some complex problems.

Harshad Marathe’s Bardo is a loose retelling of the old Tibetan tale of Milarepa in a modern setting. It draws from real places people the author has encountered. While shedding some light on the Tibetan people's struggle for freedom, it questions the balance and interplay of spirituality and cold hard practicality in this world. The story and setting seem specific, but the artwork, as well as the question it addresses, is mythic and universal. 

Luisa Possas’ book Amazing Creatures (and their Weird Pets) is a collection of real stories of the special relationships between prominent people throughout history and their peculiar pets.

Ada Price says of her book, "Nobody is perfect, unless you make them that way."

Doug Salati’s book plays upon the physical characteristics and behavioral qualities of bird and beast, creating visual metaphors for human interactions and relationships. The images focus on tension, unease and desire, poking fun at the emotional follies of that most peculiar and helpless of creature: the human being.

Moonsub Shin says Brothers tells about the influence and synergy of “brother power.”

Ashley Seil Smith’s book is called The Practical Book of Very Important Modern Words to Learn: a Collection of Words added to the Merriam Webster and Oxford Dictionaries in the Past Five Years, Illustrated. The work is equal parts social satire and science illustration. Within its pages, the author explores the juxtaposition of old and new, inviting readers to reflect more deeply on the words and themes that our culture’s gatekeepers of language deem important enough to add to its dictionaries.

Cun Shi’s Snapshot is a series of portraits featuring past and present musicians.    

Laura Tibaquira has traveled around the world, and while each trip was different and full of adventures, there was always something that didn’t go the way she expected. Her book, with illustrations based on her memories, tells about what went wrong in every city she visited.

Benjamin Wheatley’s book is based on his experiences growing up in and around the wilderness areas of Southwestern Colorado.

Kevin Whipple’s Blue Boy is the story of an odd boy in a small town.  When the Blue Boy and a blue star both appear in the town, strange things begin to happen and the town is never the same.  

Annie Won’s Bistro Three Bears is about bear-made cuisine, influenced by feasts from western and eastern folktales.

Daniel Zender’s Out There recalls the author’s various experiences in nature—trips, hikes, adventures into the woods. His illustrations convey what photographs or the written word cannot evoke; a sense of romanticism, mystery and adventure that can only be found by exploring the unknown, no matter how close to home it may be. 

The SVA Gramercy Gallery(formerly the SVA Gallery), located at 209 East 23rd Street between Second and Third avenues, is open 9:00am to 7:00pm, Monday through Friday, and 10:00am to 6:00pm on Saturday. Admission is free. The gallery is accessible by wheelchair. For more information, call 212.592.2145.

School of Visual Arts presents “The Book Show,” an exhibition of books created by 19 MFA Illustration as Visual Essay Department students. Curated by MFA Illustration as Visual Essay chair Marshall Arisman and faculty member Carl Nicholas Titolo, the exhibition will be on view from September 21 – October 12 at the SVA Gramercy Gallery (formerly the SVA Gallery), 209 East 23rd Street, New York City.

Each year, first-year students in the MFA Illustration as Visual Essay Department develop a book based on their personal vision. The form of the book can be a graphic novel, visual essay, illustrated song, historical text or an illustrated children’s book. These one-of-a-kind books are bound and exhibited along with the original work from the book, presenting an unfiltered look at each student’s process.

Te Chao’s book was inspired by personal life experiences. It's about self-liberation and discovering the courage to explore the fantastical unknown.

Claudia Griesbach-Martucci’s book is a poem about the seasons that follows the cycle of life, love and death. However, nature does have its imperfections. A love triangle blossoms between a fox, a mole and a cherry tree. The fox is left with a broken heart, but in the end learns that life imitates nature; a heart once broken, like a tree that dies in winter, will eventually bloom again.

Katie Hwang’s book is a magical story about a boy being bullied and the Rainbow Hat shopkeeper who changes his life.

Jai Kamat’s Subway Voyeur captures private moments between the artist and unwitting participants on the New York City subway. Through the process of image-making, the subject's identity is slowly revealed until his persona is complete.

James Kerigan’s book No Dessert is the age-old story of a child who doesn’t finish his vegetables and gets sent to be early with NO DESSERT! Accompanied by a few trusty companions and an overly active imagination, our child hero, Philip, embarks on a quest to get his dessert.

Aram Kim’s Have You Eaten? takes its title from a very common greeting in South Korea. Eating food has always been important in Korean culture ever since the Korean War era, when food was scarce. Though food is abundant now, eating is still very important. People often quote old sayings like: “eating well is good medicine” and “ghosts who ate well while alive look good even after death.” Eating together and sharing food is also a big part of Korean culture. People do not eat alone. It is commonly believed that sharing meals brings people closer and makes memories. Told through the food Kim used to eat in Korea, this book mixes memories and culture. Food is local, but memory related to the food is universal.

 Jordan Lysenko’s book is a visual retelling of an event in the author’s life. It is a story about love: love gained and love lost.  It is a simple story drawn with simple lines to explore some complex problems.

Harshad Marathe’s Bardo is a loose retelling of the old Tibetan tale of Milarepa in a modern setting. It draws from real places people the author has encountered. While shedding some light on the Tibetan people's struggle for freedom, it questions the balance and interplay of spirituality and cold hard practicality in this world. The story and setting seem specific, but the artwork, as well as the question it addresses, is mythic and universal. 

Luisa Possas’ book Amazing Creatures (and their Weird Pets) is a collection of real stories of the special relationships between prominent people throughout history and their peculiar pets.

Ada Price says of her book, "Nobody is perfect, unless you make them that way."

Doug Salati’s book plays upon the physical characteristics and behavioral qualities of bird and beast, creating visual metaphors for human interactions and relationships. The images focus on tension, unease and desire, poking fun at the emotional follies of that most peculiar and helpless of creature: the human being.

Moonsub Shin says Brothers tells about the influence and synergy of “brother power.”

Ashley Seil Smith’s book is called The Practical Book of Very Important Modern Words to Learn: a Collection of Words added to the Merriam Webster and Oxford Dictionaries in the Past Five Years, Illustrated. The work is equal parts social satire and science illustration. Within its pages, the author explores the juxtaposition of old and new, inviting readers to reflect more deeply on the words and themes that our culture’s gatekeepers of language deem important enough to add to its dictionaries.

Cun Shi’s Snapshot is a series of portraits featuring past and present musicians.    

Laura Tibaquira has traveled around the world, and while each trip was different and full of adventures, there was always something that didn’t go the way she expected. Her book, with illustrations based on her memories, tells about what went wrong in every city she visited.

Benjamin Wheatley’s book is based on his experiences growing up in and around the wilderness areas of Southwestern Colorado.

Kevin Whipple’s Blue Boy is the story of an odd boy in a small town.  When the Blue Boy and a blue star both appear in the town, strange things begin to happen and the town is never the same.  

Annie Won’s Bistro Three Bears is about bear-made cuisine, influenced by feasts from western and eastern folktales.

Daniel Zender’s Out There recalls the author’s various experiences in nature—trips, hikes, adventures into the woods. His illustrations convey what photographs or the written word cannot evoke; a sense of romanticism, mystery and adventure that can only be found by exploring the unknown, no matter how close to home it may be.