Congratulations to MFA graduate student Ella Pigg and undergraduate student Finn Ellis on the success of their project, Neon Forge.
Albuquerque Journal Highlights MFA Student, Sarah Bennett-Davidson
Albuquerque Journal Highlights MFA Student, Sarah Bennett-Davidson
The Department of Art at UNM is proud to share that Sarah Bennett-Davidson, an MFA student at the University of New Mexico, has been featured in a recent Albuquerque Journal article reviewed by Logan Royce Beitmen.
“Interference” at Bingo Art Studios and Gallery shows how ideas of the Light and Space movement remain salient for emerging artists. Rather than mimicking the polished “finish fetish” aesthetic, Bennett-Davidson embraces an intentionally raw, DIY approach that is conceptually rich. Using just two video projectors, hand-cut scrims, sound-responsive animations, and the environment of the warehouse, she creates an environment that distorts perception and transforms space into an interactive experience.
“What makes it new is its informality… this illusion of nonchalance is what allows Interference to surprise us,” Beitmen writes. “Because it’s only when our perception of reality distorts and the walls move and shift before our very eyes that the artist’s true brilliance is revealed.”
The work is rooted in avant-garde traditions while pushing their boundaries forward. Drawing from her early studies with choreographer Merce Cunningham, who collaborated with video art pioneer Nam June Paik, Bennett-Davidson brings algorithmic thinking and spatial choreography into her visual art practice. Her collaboration with the Berlin-based NODE Institute further explores computer-generated environments and interactive digital media.
The Department of Art invites everyone to experience “Interference” in person. The exhibition will be up until June 8, 2025.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
READ THE FULL REVIEW in The Albuquerque Journal, by visiting: https://abqjournal-nm.newsmemory.com/?publink=029e9e27e_134f9b8
UNM Theatre and Dance Faculty Member Sara Curran Ice accepted to 2026 OISTAT India Research Trip
The Department of Theatre and Dance would like to congratulate costume designer and UNM Faculty member Sara Curran Ice on her acceptance to the 2026 OISTAT India Research Trip. Ice is one of the eight participants chosen, four of whom are from the United States, to experience the textiles and practices of South India as it relates to the rich and dynamic performing arts in the region.
Art MFA Alum Kerry Cottle Builds a Career Blending Material and Meaning
Kerry Cottle, a 2022 graduate of the University of New Mexico’s Art MFA program, is emerging as a compelling voice in contemporary painting, with exhibitions across California and a studio practice grounded in material experimentation, abstraction, and sustainability....