Andrea Price and her artwork, “Not My Art History,” 2019.

The UToledo Department of Art is proud to feature our alumni who are supporting inclusion and diversity in their careers and artistic activities.

Artist Andrea Price, BFA ’19, resists an accepted Eurocentric perspective of art and beauty that represents people of color in positions of oppression. In her opinion, historical images of slaves that are considered beautiful are nothing more than the representations of black people created by those who colonized and enslaved them. Seeing these images in an art history class awakened a passion in Price to contribute to a new vision. “My heart literally broke, and I got angry because,” she asked, “why is the esteem that we hold in art attached to European views of what art should look like? That really began my journey to decolonize, to think … how can we create art that involves everyone; where I see myself in a piece of art; where other people of color can see themselves and know that they’re beautiful; and it’s not through the perspective of our white comforts?” Price told SHELOVES Magazine.

“Get You Some Sensitivity, Thanks” 2019, Andrea Price

Price creates art that denies those representations and introduces a different perspective that celebrates artistic diversity. Using drawing, painting, printmaking, photography and fiber art, Price weaves a new image of the African American experience through these media, focusing her work on social justice in relationship to people of color.

SHELOVES Magazine’s interview with Price features her art piece, “Not My Art History,” a powerful fiber-based work that reimagines history’s views of black art and black beauty.

“I hope that you can search your heart and see this piece and think: Huh, is art history really completely Eurocentric? Is what I’ve been taught from a very young age very Eurocentric, and why is that? Why are we not talking about all of the indigenous cultures that create beautiful things that we like to label as savage, as lesser-than, but not understanding the level of intelligence it takes to create something because they’re doing it with meaning?” Price says.

“Rug of Equality,” hand crocheted 4’m 2020, Andrea Price

Price advocates for the recognition of black artists, such as one of her favorite artists, Carrie Mae Weems. “Even throughout my whole educational experience, I think one thing that gets brought up so often is Kehinde Wiley. And I love Kehinde Wiley, but he is not the only person of color that is creating art about people of color,” Price told SHELOVES Magazine. She says that it’s necessary to backtrack through decades of the works of other artists and cultures that are “equally beautiful.” She says the writers of our history books are not telling the full story.

SHELOVES Magazine video interview.

Instagram: @andreaandherart

The UToledo Department of Art is proud to feature our alumni who are supporting inclusion and diversity in their careers and artistic activities.

Alicia Disantis, BA ’08, combines a set of artistic and entrepreneurial skills that have led her to establish a successful design and marketing firm, 38th & Kip, in Denver, Colorado. She also serves as brand manager at Aux in Lakewood, Colorado, where she develops and executes brand strategies that drive company recognition and profitability.

Her writing, graphic design and marketing expertise come together in marketing campaigns that include website design, print collateral, videos and trade show materials. Disantis’ own company provides creative pieces in various industries that include professional services, manufacturing, non-profit, technology and more. In the non-profit sector, Disantis has volunteered pro bono design services, including developing a targeted infographic for the Feline Foundation of Greater Washington, an animal welfare organization.

She founded 38th & Kip in 2010 with a mission to provide “exceptional, fairly priced marketing and design services to improve people’s lives.” Disantis’ business philosophy aligns with living in a just world, where fairness and equality are the norm, and the injustices of racism and bigotry are not tolerated. She says on the 38th & Kip website that her company is “committed to a better tomorrow.”

Disantis, who earned her bachelor’s degree in Studio Art, New Media, at UToledo, said about her professor, Deb Davis, “You know, I think of your classes often. You were challenging but your principles and passion for art stuck with me.” Alicia also earned a master’s degree in Arts, Entertainment and Media Management at Columbia College in Chicago. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from both colleges. She notes that she is inspired by retro design, Scandinavian minimalism, street art and bold colors. As an avid backpacker, she has traveled through many countries, stopping to visit as many museums as possible.

Product Promo Illustration Client: CU Service Network

Illustrations and type are hand-drawn, then scanned and colored.

Create concept and illustrations for product ads and a series of educational events that focus on specific services.

Aux Rebrand Client: CU Service Network

All rights 38th and Kip.

The UToledo Department of Art is proud to feature our alumni who are supporting inclusion and diversity in their careers and artistic activities.

Jym Shipman is currently the Member Experience Coordinator for the Sylvania YMAC/JCC at YMCA of Greater Toledo.  Jym Shipman, BFA ’04, reaches thousands of readers every week all over the world with his LGBTQ comic strip, “Diamond in the Rough.” Shipman launched the comic strip on his birthday, May 25, 2013, intending to expand the audience for stories about LGBTQ people. “My goal was to produce an LGBTQ comic strip that was family friendly,” says Shipman. When he decided to share his storylines, most LGBTQ comic strips focused on adults and many were sexualized.

“I want my readers to leave my strip with the ‘warm fuzzies,’ he says. “Even though many of my storylines are serious, I try to spin them in a way that uplifts the readers. It’s what I look for and read in the strips I follow.”

Two fellow cartoonists, Bart deGraaf and Tom Batiuk, offered Shipman support and nudged him to put his art out there for the world to see. He took their advice. While “Diamond in the Rough” began on Facebook, it now is published on Webtoon, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Tumblr, Flickr, Reddit, Boredpanda, Tapas, Ello, and Tagpacker.

In the past, Shipman’s strip appeared in print, but most of the traditional print publications are either obsolete or transitioned to online only. “Universal Click and Comics Kingdom are the two all-in-one big players of the day,” says Shipman about current sites featuring LGBTQ comic strips. “It brings me joy knowing that the voices in my head that brought me comfort as a gay child and now as an adult are being viewed in physical form via “Diamond in the Rough” — not just locally or in the United States, but all over the world.”

Creating “Diamond in the Rough” helps heal the tough experiences of living an LGBTQ life, says Shipman, as does the feedback from his audiences. “Being LGBTQ is not a curse. It’s a blessing.”

Boston Voyager found my work on Instagram a few weeks ago and we ended up doing an interview. It was a good opportunity to reflect on years of decisions that led me to where I am today. Read all about the hustle. 

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ani Avanian.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
My drawing professor and mentor in college, Diana Attie, once told me, “Keep doing what you love and keep your eyes open for opportunities. Good things will definitely happen.” I don’t even know if she remembers telling me this, but it was Diana’s response to my “What do I do now that I have an art degree?” In 2006 I was graduating from the University of Toledo with my Bachelors of Fine Arts, proud, but terribly stressed out about getting my first job out of college. How would I become financially self-sufficient and yet do what I love every day? It sounded very abstract at the time, but it all came together in a very unexpected way. Read more…

Eric Thayer, who graduated from The University of Toledo in 2008 (Art History & BFA), has been selected to show in ImageOHIO 2016, an exhibition featuring photography, video, and digital media from artists living in or with roots in Ohio. Click the link to visit the show’s web site http://www.roygbivgallery.com/exhibitions/imageohio-16/

Eric Thayer’s blog www.thegreatchainsawjugglingact.blogspot.com

Eric Thayer is on Vimeo!

Hey Barry,

Alyssa Brown, 2013 BFA graduate University of Toledo Department of Art

It has been a year since I’ve last touched based…I’m wrapping up my fellowship with Challenge Detroit. It has been a fun year full of exposure and leadership development and most importantly great work with 6 non-profits in Detroit related to transportation, urban farming, education, health disparities and neighborhood development. I will be staying full time with my host company, Edw. C. Levy Co., as their eLearning Designer and I’m looking forward to it! At Levy I support the LMS, design graphics, and create how to job aids for our 1500 employees using InDesign (lots and lots of job aids). I’ve most enjoyed getting out to our steel mill and aggregate sites throughout Michigan to photograph. I’m hoping they will send me to Thailand or Brazil soon to do some work there! 😉

A vector drawing by artist Alyssa Brown that was submitted and appeared on local electronic billboards, 2012

Two big wins:
I can honestly say, I wouldn’t have this job here if it wasn’t for your support in college. The work I did for the USRCAP (Undergraduate Summer Research and Creative Activity Program) and the Irish of Toledo book was exactly the experience I needed for this eLearning job. I’m very grateful for that.
I also often think about your push for me to subscribe to Lynda.com (I can remember being resistant at the time because it was costly and I was busy) but I now have a subscription as a benefit through my company and I use it ALL THE TIME.
Lastly, have you been to Grand Rapids, MI yet? They have a new Japanese Garden there that I’ve heard great things about and thought you might be interested to know.

Best Wishes!
Alyssa Brown

Follow Alyssa’s Challenge Detroit blog: http://challengedetroit.org/blog/alyssabrown/

Clifton Harvey, 2006 BFA graduate from the University of Toledo Department of Art

A 2006 BFA graduate from the University of Toledo Department of Art, Clifton Harvey, is exhibiting some of his most creative work in the UT Clement Gallery, located in the UT Center for Visual Arts next to the Toledo Museum of Art. The exhibit, on display now through April 12, is free and open to the public.

A Digital artist and Toledo native, Harvey combines his skewed photographic work with his unique hand-drawn creations. Drawing inspiration from childhood nostalgia and daydreams, his illustrated narratives depict surreal worlds inhabited by broken creatures searching for what the artist describes as their “missing parts.” Exploring themes connected to hope, despair, and the search for wholeness, Clifton’s work is an allegory for his personal experiences.

“The Last Tenant” by Clifton Harvey

“An unspoken dialogue exists between artwork and viewer. During this exchange, unexpected conclusions are drawn based on our unique experiences. These unpredictable associations may not be consciously made, but rather felt deeply, like a sensation of nostalgia for something never personally experienced. Exploring the precarious notion that a camera’s ability to freeze a moment is somehow linked to reality, I digitally combine my photography and illustration to discover my own kind of photographic truth. The ebb and flow of inspiration I experience between these media wouldn’t necessarily occur if I worked with each independently.”

Harvey is accomplished young artist with several important awards and accolades to his credit. He was selected for the Arts Commission’s Artist Designed Bike Racks Project (2013) and the “You Are Here, Toledo” public art project (2012). Harvey has also won first place in the 19th Annual UT Alumni Association Outdoor Juried Art Fair (2011), the People’s Choice Award at Artomatic 419! (2011), the Juror’s Choice Award at the Sixth Annual Ohio Online Visual Artist Registry Juried Show (2011) and has had his work featured on the Behance Network.

Learn more about Clifton Harvey:  http://www.cliftonharveyart.com/bio.html
See his work on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/67209226@N07/