Clemson Visual Arts

Visual Arts Students Travel Around the World Thanks to Awarded Scholarships

Each year, the Department of Art hosts a potluck dinner for all of Clemson’s BFA and MFA students. At the potluck, students have the opportunity to enjoy a meal, talk with their classmates and hear exciting and crucial information regarding internship, scholarship, research and travel opportunities. This year’s potluck was full exciting presentations highlighting the Clemson Fine Arts students working and learning around the world.

Casey Bunda, BFA, traveled to London, United Kingdom for an internship she obtained through City Internships, a third-party internship placement organization. Bunda landed the perfect job as a social media and photography intern at a co-working creative space in the heart of London. Bunda researched and interviewed for the position via Skype. After receiving her offer, Bunda worked with the Dept. of Art to receive course credit for her internship.

potluck, deighton 2Deighton Abrams, MFA (Ceramics), was the recipient of the Jeanette S. Dreskin Award, general Department of Art Fellowship and a Professional Enrichment Grant (PEG). These scholarships and awards are obtained through Clemson University. They are awarded based upon the hard work and merit of the applicant. Deighton’s graduate thesis project won him these awards. He chose to use his scholarships to attend the International Society for Ceramic Art Education and Exchange (ISCAEE) Symposium in China. Deighton also traveled to Iceland for further graduate thesis research.

potluck, dalia 1

Dalia Delanuez, MFA (Sculpture), received a Department of Art scholarship to travel to Italy and Honduras for graduate research. She applied for this scholarship through the Department of Art and worked with faculty to best utilize her time and scholarship during these two separate excursions.

potluck, Hannah 1Hannah Gardner, BFA, obtained a scholarship from the Calhoun Honors College. She used this award to supplement a three-week art program excursion to Tanzania, Africa. While in Tanzania, she was exposed to numerous art careers, including shadowing art therapists and teaching art classes to neighboring villages.


Megan Hueble, BFA
, was a summer intern at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts. During her time as an intern, Megan shadowed several teachers to learn about the numerous studios and options within art education. Additionally, she was able to take full advantage of her unlimited access to the entire museum. This internship was made possible by an award she received Department of Art scholarship committee.potluck, Lacey

Lacey Miller, MFA was able to use her Department of Art scholarship to attend the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA ) annual conference in Kansas City, Missouri. While at the conference, she experienced numerous ceramic lectures, demonstrations and artwork.

potluck, CareyCarey Morton, MFA (Sculpture), spent his summer at the Penland School of Crafts in Spruce Pine, North Carolina. While at Penland, he was a part of a team hand carved Fox Canoes. Morton acquired unique building technique skills and expanded his artistic knowledge with this special opportunity.


Teisha Holloway, BFA
, worked as an intern at The Bascom, an art gallery and visual arts center in Highlands, North Carolina. Holloway learned how to run a gallery space. She also helped to design exhibitions and displays, worked in the community with partners and learned about several forms of art professionalism.

potluck, TeishaWe are so proud of all of the impressive things our students were able to experience and accomplish over the past few months. The Department of Art is committed to continue to provide scholarship, internship and travel opportunities to students who have shown dedication to their work in and out of the classroom.

Penland Impacts Student Learning

Laken Bridges in the Book Arts studio at Penland

Laken Bridges in the Book Arts studio at Penland

Last week, Art Department Marketing and Public Relations Director, Meredith Mims McTigue, and I drive north past Asheville, NC from Clemson, then turned onto 19 East and up the winding mountain roads to Penland.  Our mission: to visit with Laken Bridges, Clemson University Art Department MFA Candidate. Laken was at Penland thanks for the vision of Penlands’ donors and their on-going commitment to support the Higher Education Partner’s Scholarship program.  These scholarships are provided in partnership with up to 30 colleges and universities who match Penland’s contribution of the cost of providing full scholarships for a two-week summer session at Penland. The college or university partner selects students, who must be first-time students at Penland to be eligible.

Laken was studying with University of Georgia Visiting Assistant Professor, Eileen Wallace, taking her “Books with Substance” class.  Wallace, the former co-director of Paper and Book Intensive and the curator for Masters: Book Arts for Lark Books, graciously accommodated our intrusion into her workshop.

In looking over Laken’s prolific output, one could readily see books that fulfilled the course’s mandate to create “one-of-a-kind or very-limited-edition artist’s books that display a cohesive integration of structure and content.”

Laken2

In-progress book by Laken Bridges.

All told, it was an very inspiring way to spend an afternoon, dining at The Pines, having conversation with intellectually engaged and creative people who understand the power of the hand, heart and mind to foster creativity.

The Penland School of Crafts is a national center for craft education dedicated to helping people live creative lives. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, Penland offers one-, two-, and eight-week workshops in books & paper, clay, drawing, glass, iron, metals, photography, printmaking and letterpress, textiles, and wood.  For more information, go to: http://penland.org.

Laken Bridges will be entering her second year as a graduate student with an emphasis in printmaking studying with Professor Sydney Cross.  To learn more about graduate studies in Art Clemson University  or to schedule a campus visit, email the Art Department graduate coordinator, David Detrich, at ddavid@clemson.edu or call (864) 656-3890.

This submission is a repost from the blog of Clemson University Art Department Chair, Greg Shelnutt  http://cuartopportunities.blogspot.com/2013/06/wonderful-visit-to-penland-school-of.html