Monday, April 14 – Saturday, May 10 2025
Audiences will enjoy this impressive body of student work, which includes photography, painting, drawing, figure drawing, metals, three-dimensional design, two-dimensional design, color theory, graphic design, and ceramics. Parkland Art and Design faculty will select approximately 180 works from 350+ entries for this year's exhibit. Students taking art classes in the current academic year, beginning with summer 2024, submitted artwork.
The awards ceremony will recognize students whose artwork shows remarkable distinction with announcements made for merit awards, purchase awards, monetary award certificates, and scholarship recipients. Merit awardees, certificate winners, and scholarship recipients retain possession of their work, while purchase awards become part of the Parkland College Student Art Collection.
Scholarship recipients included Kevin Mikulich, (Monticello), who received the Underwood-Alger Art Scholarship; Jasmine Diep (Champaign), who received the Don Lake Art Scholarship; and Reagan Young (St Joseph), who received the Arrowmont-Wingate Scholarship. In addition, Lauren Cowie and Adison Summers each received a Feldman Ceramic Art Scholarship.
Monetary awards for the Art and Design program include two Parkland President's Award of Excellence, given to Lauren Cooke (Sidney) and Annaliesa Merrit (Urbana); the Blair Kling Memorial Award, given to Fae Allen (Mahomet); the Arts, Media, and Social Sciences Department Chair Award for Excellence in Painting, given to Ruth Mambo (Champaign); the Arts, Media, and Social Sciences Chair Award for Excellence in Ceramics, given to De Zhane Polin (Urbana); the Art & Design Faculty Award, given to Winter Wolford (Champaign); the Metals Award of Artistic Distinction, given to Robin Fitzgerald (Champaign); the Chris Berti Award for Excellence, given to Breannin Flannell (Mansfield); Melissa’s Gift Comrades in Art Award, one given to Elva Fini (Champaign) and one given to Lisette Gasser (Urbana); and The David M. and Shirley A. Jones Student Award for Art and Design, given to Cameron Patten (Champaign).
Purchase awards for artwork to be included in the Parkland College Collection went to: Ceil Baptiste (Urbana), Morgan Frush (Urbana), Elva Fini (Champaign), and Cody Rummenie (Champaign).
Merit Awards for outstanding work went to the following students: Harrison Biggs (Champaign), Julie Birdwell (Urbana), Olivia Bresnahan (Mahomet), Camille Buchanan (Bellflower), Kristin Darling (Fisher), Tracy Earl (Urbana), Brogan Hennessy (Mahomet), Edgar Hryhorysak (Champaign), Eunjoo Kang (Champaign), Carolyn Kodes (Champaign), Blessing Omoniyi (Champaign), Samai’a Rudd (Rantoul), Lindsay Talbott (Tolono), Ektarina Tsytsarina (Champaign), Chloe White (Urbana), and Jennifer Zigler (Monticello).
Also mentioned at the Awards Ceremony were several Parkland College Art and Design students who were accepted into the 2025 Illinois Community College Juried Exhibition at Governors State University. There were eight Parkland students who participated this year, including: Abigail McNamara, Anisa Abalos, Blessing Omoniyi, Esther Mambo, Rebecca Mambo, Ruth Mambo, Saturn Moore, and Winter Wolford.
The following is a full list of students with art in the juried exhibition, listed by hometown:
Bellflower: Camille Buchanan, Heather Graning
Bement: Will Ellenberg
Champaign: Sarah Anderson, Harrison Biggs, Amy Byrum, Chao-Wen Chen, Ian Clapper, Lauren Cowie, Colton Deweese, Jasmine Diep, Raeann Dossett, Bailey Etchison, Elva Fini, Ian Fisher, Robin Fitzgerald, Sierra Foltz, Carrie Garner, Joan Gary, Zoey Gerard, Veronica Gerios, Edgar Hryhorysak, Charlene Huang, Sandra Hynds, Chris Johns, Eunjoo Kang, Rashmi Kapoor, Betty Kennerly, Carolyn Kodes, Betsy Kruger, Elyse Larsen, Ruth Mambo, Sophie Morgan, John Nine, Blessing Omoniyi, Mimi Ormerod, Cameron Patten, Jessica Phanrana, Cody Rummenie, Sara Taber, Shelby Tate, Willis Thomas, Ekaterina Tsytsarina, Kaitlyn Valentine, Anika Wells, Winter Wolford, Daniel Yi
Delavan: Jordyn Carton
Fisher: Kristin Darling
Gibson City: Emma Swanson
Mahomet: Fae Allen, Olivia Bresnahan, Olivia Brooks, Morgan Dragani, Brogan Hennesy, Emma Lang, Shreya Patel, Elaina Shoaf, Aidan Talbott
Mansfield: Shaersti Anderson, Breanin Flannell
Melvin: Syda Schlickman
Monticello: Kevin Mikulich, Jennifer Zigler
Normal: Jay Rardin
Oakwood: Cj Reitz
Philo: Charlie Ray
Rankin: Rebekah Watts
Rantoul: Jamie Moore. Samai'a Rudd
Sadorus: Erin Rogers
Savoy: Gianna Caponigro, Eva Cottrell, Tyra Greer
Seymour: Beth Chasco, Annabelle Lamb
Sidney: Lauren Cooke
St Joseph: Carter Nauman, Raegan Young
Tolono: Maria Buffo, Lynndsay Talbott
Tuscola: Oliver Braaten
Urbana: Ciel Baptiste, Julie Birdwell, Amy Byrum, Tracy Earl, Viktoria Ford, Morgan Frush, Lisette Gasser, Stephen Kaufman, Edwina Kugel, Melissa Merli, Annaliesa Merit, De Zhane’ Polin, Carol Spindel, Adison Summers, Hailey Warfel, Sharon Wenda, Chloe White, Nasier Wylie
Vienna: Adam Slafsky
Questions?
Contact Giertz Gallery at Parkland College Office by email at giertzgallery@parkland.edu or call 217/351-2485.
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Admission is free. Donations welcome!
Donate here.
Giertz Gallery acknowledges support from the Illinois Arts Council. All events in the accessible gallery are free and open to the public. Parkland College is a Section 504/ADA-compliant institution. For accommodation, call 217/353-2338 or email accessibilityservices@parkland.edu.