The UNM Department of Art is proud to announce the recipients of the 2026 Covington-Rhode Senior Prize: Kaitlin Bone (Kat B.) and Shaun Pinello.
Made possible through the generosity of UNM alumna Dr. Patricia Covington and Shari Rhode, the Covington-Rhode Senior Prize recognizes outstanding graduating artists whose work demonstrates creativity, dedication, and artistic excellence.
Kat B. is a multidisciplinary artist based in New Mexico whose practice centers on the small and often overlooked. Working with metals, textiles, found objects, and mixed materials, they create intimate sculptural works that explore memory, place, and human connection.
Kat first studied linguistics at the University of New Mexico before returning to pursue a BFA in Art Studio, completed in 2026. Their honors thesis exhibition at Masley Gallery focused on themes of birds and birdwatching, continuing a long-standing personal fascination that informs much of their work.
Shaun Pinello is an artist and scholar completing a double major in Fine Art and Philosophy at UNM. Working primarily in ink and comics, his practice explores the relationship between visual storytelling, material experimentation, and philosophical inquiry. Shaun often creates pigments from foraged materials collected from places of personal significance, embedding his work with ideas of memory, process, and environment. In addition to his studio practice, he has led community-based art initiatives, including printmaking workshops at Healthcare for the Homeless’ Art Street Facility and monthly community drawing events at Scum Pit Comics.
The Department of Art congratulates Kaitlin Bone and Shaun Pinello on this well-deserved recognition!
Sabrina Carletti is an Assistant Professor of Art History whose research focuses on the interdisciplinary study of modern and contemporary Latin American art and culture. Her work explores the intersections of artists’ practices, literature, media, and the production of knowledge, rethinking how the conceptual terms used to describe artistic practice shape our understanding of what art does.
The UNM CFA Dean’s Office and Department of Art are pleased to announce that Armando de la Torre has been awarded the UNM SOMA Summer Travel Grant. This grant is awarded to a UNM graduate student to attend SOMA Summer 2026 @somamexico, a 4-week program in Mexico City....
We’re excited to welcome Rachel Zollinger to our faculty this Fall as our newest professor in Art Education. Rachel Zollinger is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, and scholar whose research explores multispecies and emplaced pedagogies at the intersection of...