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The Society of Illustrators Recognizes RISD Students and Recent Alums
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The Society of Illustrators in NYC is once again highlighting the work of talented emerging artists from across the US, including 21 RISD Illustration students and recent alums. On view through July 8 at the Museum of American Illustration, the pieces included in this year’s Student Scholarship Competition represented a wide range of illustration styles and were selected from thousands of entries.
“Winners of this competition do tend to find success in various disciplines within the widening field of illustration after they graduate,” says RISD Illustration Department Head Eric Telfort 05 IL. “Every year, the content of the winning illustrations varies, but judges often look for creative and thoughtful interpretations of topical subjects, which RISD students are generally sensitive to, or emerging forms of illustrative expression.”
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Each year, students whose work is deemed by judges to be “the best of the best” are awarded generous prizes. Recent alum Kai Gietzen 22 IL and rising senior Carina Zhang 24 IL earned the Nancy Lee Rhodes Roberts Scholarship Award, Xinyan Wang 23 IL took home the Alan Peckolick Scholarship Award for Excellence in Illustration, recent alum Xuandong Zhou 22 IL won the Warby Parker Visionary Scholarship, and new grad Jules Sharpe 23 IL won the Nick Meglin Drawing from Within Scholarship Award.
“I’m drawn to making work that follows a narrative,” says Sharpe, “and I am often inspired by my personal experiences. Right now, my favorite medium to work in is pen and ink, and I love using the Risograph to make prints.” Two of their garden-focused illustrations were selected for the show: June and October.
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Two of the other images selected were inspired by Confessions of a Shinagawa Monkey, a 2020 short story by Haruki Murakami: one by Geitzen and one by Sichen Grace Chen 22 IL. “Part of our curriculum at RISD includes a concepts class in the sophomore year, where we really push students to think outside of the box in terms of expression, creativity and use of materials," Telfort explains. “Sometimes students are asked to respond to a prompt—maybe a passage or a chapter in a book—and show their response via an illustration or by creating a new cover for the book.”
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In the animation category, short pieces by three RISD artists were also selected: Hemophobia by Kyree Saintilus 23 IL, which placed third in the competition; Egg Chamber by senior Sijia Wang 24 FAV/IL, which placed seventh; and Shower Thoughts by Nour Khamis, which took 10th place.
Work pictured from top to bottom: The Serpent (detail, ink, graphite, colored pencil) by Xinyan Wang 23 IL, October (Risograph) by Jules Sharpe 23 IL, Dewanto (wood, fabric, paper, Plexiglass) by Jonathan James Dewanto 24 IL, Lao Men Dong (digital) by Xinyu Cao 24 IL, Confessions of a Shinagawa Monkey (pencil and digital coloring) by Kai Gietzen 22 IL and Confessions of a Shinagawa Monkey (watercolor, digital) by Sichen Grace Chen 22 IL
Simone Solondz / top image: The Serpent (detail) by Xinyan Wang 23 IL
July 13, 2023
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