ICON12: MCAD Faculty and Alumni Spotlighted at Minneapolis Illustration Conference

ICON12, held in Minneapolis in early July, was a major four-day illustration community event featuring alumni, staff, and faculty from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design.

Highlights included the Roadshow marketplace with artists like Niky Motekallem ‘16, MFA, Kim Bogeman ‘13, Mad Sparrow ‘18, Kyle Harabedian ‘13, and adjunct faculty member Kelsey King ‘13.

The Prisms Education Symposium featured MCAD associate professor Alison Nowak ‘06 discussing trauma-informed teaching while workshops were led by King and MCAD instructor Alanna Stapleton ‘18.

Keynote speakers included MCAD professor Piotr Szyhalski, who explored art as a social act, Sunshine Gao ‘20, who discussed the ethics of art, and Ashley Mary ‘18, MA, who discussed artist collaborations, focusing on the personal, creative, and financial aspects of working together.

The conference also showcased Motion Commotion, a curated screening of animations and motion shorts, with MCAD instructor Jaime Anderson serving as a juror and showcasing work by Julie Benda '16, instructor Brian Britigan, Anh Tran '21, and Julie Van Grol '14, MFA.

Lastly, a gallery show featuring work by Britigan, Lucy Comer '19, Noah Lawrence Holder '17, and current MCAD MFA student Nelson Liu showcased the talent and expertise of the illustration community.

Learn More

• ICON12’s Website
  (theillustrationconference.org)