Celebrating Seniors!

SADAH is extremely proud of our graduating seniors and their outstanding work, and we thank them for their dedication and focused efforts throughout the year. Many of our seniors were also recognized for their accomplishments during the school’s award ceremony on April 24. Here are a few highlights from recent stories and news.

Architectural Design

In Architectural Design, Canyon Koenig is completing an interactive architectural project called “Jabberwocky.” With support from OCP, Canyon has explored themes of “themed entertainment” at the intersection of perception and community in his undergraduate thesis project. Jabberwocky will be part of the ArtsMobile and live on as a part of CVPA outreach activities. Canyon will be moving to Los Angeles to continue his journey as an Art Studio Intern at Walt Disney Imagineering.

Other ARCD graduates will be attending graduate programs at IIT, RISD, Cornell, UPenn, UVA and Virginia Tech.

Eight ARCD students completed the Honors Program: Mahnoor Asim, Holly Bayer, Lupita Gonzalez Hernandez, Alana Hopkins, Daniel Judy, Jalen Mickle, Kaelyn Roach and Chau Tran.

Art Education

Art Education is celebrating the hard work of its graduating seniors this year. Kate Funk, winner of the 2025 Frances Grove award, has held leadership positions in Kappi Pi and the Madison Chapter of NAEA, finding ways to highlight students’ voice through their art. Katheryn Zacatenco, winner of the Phil James Art Ed Community Outreach Award, has held leadership positions in the Madison Chapter of NAEA, Student Leadership and Involvement (SLI), focusing her efforts on building community between students and mentorship. And, Natalie Vega, the Senior Art Education Award winner, has been a Resident Assistant during her time at JMU, demonstrating her commitment to socioemotional wellbeing in this demanding supportive role.

Art History

Joshua Vasely in Art History, conducted research on and curated one of the opening exhibitions for the Madison Art Collection, titled Artist Revolutions. The exhibition, opening in February and concluding towards the end of March, shed light on media literacy and civic engagement and coincided with the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. His academic poster of the exhibition was a finalist in the Virginia Association of Museums' student poster competition in Williamsburg.

Also in Art History, Alice Milea-Ciobanu has been involved in researching ancient Roman and Greek coins through her internship at the Madison Art Collection (MAC). She has been preparing a proposal for an upcoming coin display, as well as producing enlarged 3D models of coins within the MAC's collection.

Graphic Design

Design student Isabel Hernandex-Wilson has been accepted to graduate school at VCU’s BrandCenter. “She will follow the footsteps of several other graphic design students in the past few years, and no doubt has a bright future ahead of her,” says Professor David Leicester Hardy.

Lea Dorcus received the Frances Grove Scholar Award from SADAH and will represent the School and College as a Valedictorian. 

Studio Art

With large constructs of red yarn and of personal items such as jeans, health information, and hand-made paper, Achilles Vasquez was this year’s David Diller Awardee. Vasquez’s installations were exhibited at Duke Hall and in artWorks gallery in Spring 2026 to great acclaim. Vasquez’s work suggests the intricate relationships of everyday actions and their impact.

Kate Funk received the Frances Grove Scholar Award from SADAH and will represent the School and College as Valedictorian.

MFA in Art

In their MFA Thesis Exhibitions, Duke Hall Gallery of Fine Art, March 31-April 30, Behnaz Ghasempour, Ver Ikeseh, and Olivia Luke shared their visions with our larger community, offering artists’ talks about process and inspiration and giving us bold installations. Behnaz in her exhibition “Invisible Threads” focused on long paper scrolls and canvas embedded with copper. Faces of beloved family members remind us of how closely people can be woven together. A piece on Iranian citizens who died in protest is also included.

With his thesis show “Belonging,” Ver Ikeseh involved the entire JMU community, including the Provost, in the making of a mural on site. The mural, in vibrant colors, depict people in joyful action. Paint and brushes were on hand. Known as Mr. Artist, Ikeseh raises community awareness of the ability for art to connect people. 

Olivia Luke, known as Liv, gave us “Weaving Eigengrau,” which showed us a mesmerizing film of tidal flow, water weaving, and drawings of time, space, and intersections. With her exhibition, we were invited into the mind of the artist and how she brings her philosophic interests into visual form.

The thesis exhibition is the culminating experience of the Master in Fine Arts program in JMU’s School of Art, Design, and Art History.

Congratulations!!!