What is something you learned at SVA that you’ll always take with you?

Seize every opportunity in front of you. Sometimes, they may not have results, but it’s good to always be prepared.

Was there an instructor or course that was essential for you?

Mu Wen Pan’s (MFA 2007 Illustration as Visual Essay; BFA 2001 Illustration) epic drawing class is really important to me. The course offers relatively long-term assignments, providing sufficient time to refine the work. One of my best pieces was completed during this class. Additionally, Mu brings inspiring books to class every week.

What was your favorite piece of advice that a teacher or student shared with you?

Feel free to try new things. Don’t think of the thesis as something too important to mess up. Instead, consider it an opportunity to do something you may not have the chance to do after graduation.

What advice do you have for next year’s students going through your program?

The thesis is a long-term project, and it’s easy to lose confidence during the process. However, completing it and having some fun along the way is much more important than striving for perfection.

For this year’s SVA Alumni Scholarship Awards, 86 students were chosen from a pool of hundreds of applicants and granted scholarships worth $62,000 for dozens of art and multimedia projects. To see a list of the 2024 recipients, click here. For more information about applying for an Alumni Scholarship Award, click here.

To contribute to the Support the Talent campaign, you can make a donation online at sva.edu/give.

Features

The fourth-year BFA Illustration student’s award-winning thesis project is a picture book called ‘One Last Adventure.’