Michigan State University student Roberto “Marcos” Garcia received the nationally competitive Beinecke Scholarship, becoming the sixth MSU student to receive this prestigious award. He was one of only 16 recipients selected from 93 nominees nationwide. The scholarship provides graduate school funding for students intending to pursue research-focused graduate study in the arts, humanities, or social sciences and is valued at $35,000.
Two new microgalleries from Michigan State University’s Department of Art, Art History, and Design (AAHD) will be featured at the 2026 East Lansing Art Festival on May 16 and 17, completing a three-part public art project designed and created by MSU students during the 2025-2026 academic year. The two new microgalleries are freestanding, mobile galleries designed to move between multiple sites and events. They will join the Honeycomb…
Yeroham Ashagre is the 2026 Master of Fine Arts (MFA) Prize recipient, capping three years of intensive study as an MFA student in the Department of Art, Art History, and Design at Michigan State University. Ashagre received the MFA Prize for his thesis exhibition, “Womb of Tomb,” that is part of the 2026 MFA Exhibition on view at the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum through May 17, 2026.
For Vadu Rodrigues, there is no separating art from activism. Growing up in Cape Verde, an island nation off the coast of West Africa, he uses his art — and the Positive Africa creative movement he founded — to challenge negative stereotypes about the continent and its people by highlighting its history, culture, and communities.
Eight students whose primary majors are in the College of Art & Letters received first-place awards for their research and creative scholarship presented at Michigan State University’s 28th annual University Undergraduate Research and Arts Forum (UURAF). Several other MSU students who received first-place awards were mentored by faculty within the College of Arts & Letters.
Niloufar Fallahfar’s paintings are not confined to the canvas. As her artistic practice has evolved, her work quite literally has expanded into space through the inclusion of three-dimensional objects that become part of the narrative itself. “I started by putting canvas on top of each other to offer a different perspective and make the audience curious about the different angles of the painting,” she explained.
Walnut shells clatter against one another as robotic arms spring to life, casting shifting shadows across the gallery floor. People walk through the piece and record the unexpected spectacle. The artist behind the work is Hailey Becker, who has a Bachelor of Science degree in Metallurgical Engineering from the University of Alabama and a Master of Science in Materials Science…
As an emerging artist, Alex Vlasov isn’t afraid of artificial intelligence. While some futurists predict AI could replace human-created art and writing, Vlasov disagrees. “Photography didn’t replace paintings. Ever since the first photographs in 1826, paintings are still created,” Vlasov said. He further explained that human-created art will continue to provide opportunities for people to see connections, find themes, and experience the emotions conveyed through an artist’s work.
This spring, faculty, students, and alumni celebrated 10 years of the Graphic Design Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) program at Michigan State University. The Graphic Design B.F.A. major and the minor launched in 2016 to meet MSU student interest and align with industry expectations. Before 2016, Graphic Design was a concentration within the Studio Art B.F.A. major. The Day of…
When the College of Arts & Letters’ Citizen Scholars Program at Michigan State University introduced the Undergraduate Certificate in Reflective Leadership in the Arts and Humanities in 2023, the goal was to give students a structured way to translate their study of the arts and humanities into the kind of leadership the world is asking for: thoughtful, ethical, and grounded…
