The School of Art’s 1st- and 2nd-year MFA students present new work exploring memory, orientation, and play at SPACE Gallery through April 27.
There was much to celebrate on February 21, as the School of Art community gathered for the opening of The End That Never Was at The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s SPACE Gallery, including a special birthday celebration for artist Ashley Ross. The exhibition features new work from the School of Art’s first- and second-year MFA students, whose diverse practices explore themes of memory, identity, materiality, and the passage of time. Spanning film, sound, sculpture, textiles, and virtual space, the show offers a thought-provoking glimpse into how emerging artists are engaging with concepts of play, disembodiment, and cultural references.
Don’t miss the chance to experience the exhibition, on view through April 27, 2025, at SPACE Gallery.
Naomi Chambers (MFA ’26)
With Guidance, Naomi Chambers presents an oil painting and assemblage sculpture that engage viewers in a playful yet poignant meditation.
Anne Chen (MFA ’27)
Anne Chen’s Untitled transforms myriad materials, such as steel, beeswax, beaded ribbons, and accumulated fabrics, into a bed layered with memory.
Aleena Akbar Khan (MFA ’27)
Through her two-channel video installation Proximity Effect, Aleena Akbar Khan dissects the act of laughter — stretching it to its emotional and physical limits.
Logan Larsen (MFA ’27)
Logan Larsen’s Mae West Swan Bed and Mae West Prop Signs reanimate Hollywood iconography through hand-carved Plexiglass and painted mylar.
Bulumko Mbete (MFA ’26)
Bulumko Mbete’s Translanguaging blends woodworking and natural dyeing to reflect on linguistic hybridity and cultural inheritance.
Afrooz Partovi (MFA ’26)
In Deleted Account, Afrooz Partovi constructs a digital memory palace that lingers between presence and absence.
Ashley Ross (MFA ’27)
Ashley Ross’ photographic series 10/27/03 is a deeply personal reflection on religious upbringing and self-discovery.
Morgan Thomas Shankweiler (MFA ’27)
In Reader’s Digest; White Noise; or Charting a Course Through Chorus and Cacophony, Morgan Thomas Shankweiler’s anti-cartographic quilt explores the intersection of educational structures, societal conditioning, and the persistence of diverse voices.
