As we start a new semester, we are pleased to introduce our spring 2021 MFA faculty. Thesis Preparation II Professional Practices Gonzalo Reyes RodriguezMFA, University of Pennsylvania BFA, The School of the Art Institute of Chicago Gonzalo Reyes Rodriguez (b. 1987) is a visual artist, whose work frequently draws on archival media material and manifests itself primarily as photography, film, theatre or multi-screen installations. His work has been featured in Hyperallergic, Contemporary Art Daily, Public Parking and the Daily Lazy. Graduate Critique Seminar 2 Genevieve DeLeon BA, Columbia University MFA, Cranbrook Academy of Art Genevieve DeLeon is an artist, poet, and recent MFA graduate from Cranbrook Academy of Art. She creates installations and works on community-based projects in the Twin cities and DC area. Graduate Critique Seminar 2 Eric J. Garcia MFA, School of the Art Institute of Chicago BFA, Minor in Chicano Studies, University of New Mexico Eric J. Garcia blends history, contemporary themes and a graphic style to create politically charged art that reaches beyond aesthetics. Using sculpture, mixed media installations, murals, printmaking and his controversial political cartoons, he aims to challenge his viewers to question sources of power and the whitewashing of history. Criticism & Theory II Aida Shahghasemi MA, Arts Politics, New York University BA, Anthropology and Psychology, University of Minnesota Aida Shahghasemi is a Minneapolis-based musician with roots in Iran. Her research has centered on restrictions on creative expression, auditory perception and sonic pollution, utilization of art towards social consciousness and social change, along with the application of Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed method in k-12 and university settings. She developed and taught a course called Iran’s Arts Activism at New York University for three years and currently serves as the Marketing and Communications Manager at The Cedar Cultural Center. Criticism & Theory II Jen CarusoMA, University of Western Ontario PhD, State University of New York Jen Caruso’s recent research and teaching interests include socially-engaged art practice, aesthetics in the context of late capitalism, and cultural responses to climate change. Teaching Seminar Preston Drum BFA, Memphis College of Art MFA, Minneapolis College of Art and Design Preston Drum, was born and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina. He earned a BFA from Memphis College of Art in 2006 and an MFA from Minneapolis College of Art and Design in 2016. His paintings, sculptures, videos and interactive installations explore notions of memory and performance through non-linear storytelling. Drum’s work is often site-specific and collaborative in nature, framing the audience as a participant in the art. His work has been exhibited throughout the Midwest and Southern United States at venues such as The Minneapolis Institute of Art and The Walker Art Center. Categories Faculty