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kat martinez '21

Kat Martinez '21: Cuban-American Artist Paints Her Family’s Story

The idea of things not always being what they initially appear to be resonates with Kat Martinez (BFA '20). As a first-generation Cuban-American, she has a complicated relationship with the island and expresses it through her art. After meeting MFA Chair Didier William, Martinez knew she wanted a…
Perspectives
PAFA News

Making a Political Statement in His Paintings

After two years spent at the University of Pennsylvania through the PAFA-Penn program, Nicolas Tomlinson '19 is back in his studio at PAFA and turning those concepts into art. Tomlinson looks to historical figures in the black community and music as a source of inspiration and personal expression.
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PAFA News

Child's Play Leads to Inspiration for MFA Student

Like many artists, she’s using the drawings of another artist to spark her creativity and create something new. But MFA student Sam Dominik pulls her inspiration from her young nephew’s scribbles. She came to PAFA after meeting MFA Chair Didier William, who set her on a different path.
PAFA News

Memorial Award Helps Graduates as They Begin Their Professional Careers

The Anne Bryan Memorial Award was established in 2015 to support PAFA students on their artistic journey. The annual award is given to a select student each year to develop their professional careers. Previous award recipients Fang Fang Ren (BFA '17) and Aubrey Brown (Cert. '18) discuss how they…
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PAFA Receives $200,000 Grant to Create New Papermaking Studio

PAFA has received a $200,000 gift from the Richard C. von Hess Foundation to help build a new papermaking studio in the Samuel M.V. Hamilton Building as part of its expansion of the Brodsky Center and printmaking initiatives in the School of Fine Arts.
Press Release
PAFA News

From Art Studio to Archaeological Dig

Second-year student Leslie Pickel stepped outside the studio to work on an archaeological dig site in Tuscany, Italy this summer. Over the course of three weeks, Pickel and her fellow diggers worked at a site on the top of a mountain, eventually discovering an Etruscan wall. Now back home in the…
PAFA News

Learning to Design an Exhibition

It’s not enough to make artwork for an exhibition in Stephanie Reyer’s "Digital Print and Web Design" class. For three weeks, students in Reyer's class designed a branding suite and layout for an exhibition that will feature their work and their classmates. Each student presented their design…
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PAFA Presents the Untold Story of Philadelphia’s Leadership Role in the Story of American Landscape Painting

PAFA is pleased to present "From the Schuylkill to the Hudson: Landscapes of the Early American Republic," on view June 28 through December 29, 2019. Philadelphia's key role in the growth of American landscape painting has never been the subject of a major museum exhibition before. Delving into the…
Press Release
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Helen Frankenthaler Foundation Awards Gifts and Funding to PAFA

The Helen Frankenthaler Foundation has selected the PAFA to receive ten Frankenthaler prints, up to ten proofs by the artist and a $25,000 grant to exhibit and study the works over three years. The gifts—spanning etching, lithography, monotype or monoprint, and more—will reflect the variety of media…
Press Release
PAFA News

PAFA Awards Four MFA Scholarships As Part of Crosscurrents Exhibition

Bringing together 30 young artists from 13 undergraduate programs across the country for the exhibition Crosscurrents, PAFA leaders hope to foster a sense of community among students. Crosscurrents is not only an opportunity for undergraduates to showcase their work in America’s oldest art museum…
PAFA News

A Fine Art School for a Digital Career

For a traditional fine arts school, third-year Illustration student Kaisha Dukes wasn’t expecting much when it came to digital offerings and classes at PAFA. But she was pleasantly surprised by PAFA's extensive digital offerings, and the way professors provide mentorship and support in acquiring…
Perspectives
PAFA News

Painting as a Way to Capture Memories

Painting student Kelly Micca likes to capture what she calls the underestimated, ordinary world. Micca’s studio space in the ninth floor gang studio at PAFA is decorated with her landscapes. Working outside with a changing environment presents challenges but it’s an experience Micca loves. She often…

About PAFA

Founded in 1805, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is the United States’ first school and museum of fine arts. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, PAFA offers a world-class collection of American art, innovative exhibitions of historic and contemporary American art, and educational opportunities in the fine arts. The PAFA Museum aims to tell America's diverse story through art, expanding who has been included in the canon of art history through its collections, exhibitions, and public programs, while classes educate artists and appreciators with a deep understanding of traditions and the ability to challenge conventions. PAFA’s esteemed alumni include Mary Cassatt, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, William Glackens, Barkley L. Hendricks, Violet Oakley, Louis Kahn, David Lynch, and Henry Ossawa Tanner.