Steven Dufala (Cert. ‘00) and Billy Blaise Dufala (Cert. ‘03) are prolific multidisciplinary artists whose work defies categorization extending from sculpture and drawing to theater, music and performance art. They co-teach a course in the BFA program. In conversation with artist Sharon Louden, the…
The Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art (SAMA) is celebrating the work of more than 40 artists in the PAFA community. Scott Dimond, SAMA’s Curator for Visual Arts, said the exhibition brings a contemporary twist on traditional and realist painting.
“By far the greatest part of my experience at PAFA was the one-on-one interaction with my core group of chosen critics/ teachers and my fellow MFA students. I continue many of these relationships today."
Orit Hofshi began working at Mishkan Omanim (The Artist’s Studio) in Herzliya, Israel, following a decade of studying, working and exhibiting in the U.S.
Itsuki Ogihara strives to apply her fine arts education in the design world. "The best thing I learned was to have a great eye: to be able to see and identify things, like colors. What I learned as a fine artist is universal.”
Jordan Griska originally applied to pre-medicine programs, but soon returned to his love of building and constructing, which later became a love of fine art.
“When I was 14, I apprenticed myself to a sculptor. A year later, I could make larger figures. My earliest influences were not modern. I was studying Donatello and the Renaissance sculptors.”
Since 1995, Andrea Packard has directed the List Gallery at Swarthmore College, organizing and curating over 60 exhibitions, and she co-founded Protean Gallery in Philadelphia with other PAFA alumni.
Astrid Bowlby was attracted to PAFA because of its strong foundation in drawing from observation. “For me, everything begins with drawing,” says Bowlby. “I also like that PAFA emphasizes the private studio experience.”
As a Visiting Artist Program coordinator, Claudia Valenti (MFA '20) meets with all of the Visiting Artists, but she also goes out of her way to make sure her fellow students are taking advantage of the program too. She tells students that being busy isn’t an excuse for missing artist talks and not…
Elizabeth Osborne attended PAFA in the late 1950's and then went on to teach at the Academy for more than 40 years. This fall she is being honored at PAFA’s 21st Annual Bacchanal Wine Gala & Auction. “I’ve had such a long relationship with the Academy in my life with teaching and painting and coming…
About PAFA
Founded in 1805, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is the United State's first school and museum of fine arts. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, PAFA offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the fine arts, innovative exhibitions of historic and contemporary American art, and a world-class collection of American art. 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.
