News

Justine Ditto

After graduating from PAFA, printmaker Justine Ditto (BFA ’17) wanted to keep learning. While studying at PAFA, Ditto’s work evolved from figurative imagery to more architectural explorations. She will spend the next ten months working in the print shop at Millersville University through the…

Pat Nugent

For 50 years, Professor Pat Nugent (Certificate ‘63) has been opening the minds of Rosemont College students to art. In recognition of Nugent’s commitment to Rosemont College, the school is renaming the school's art gallery in honor of Nugent, where she has been its director since 1994.

Marcus Zotter

Marcus Zotter (BFA '13) mainly works in street art and graffiti but relies on the fine art education he received at PAFA to create. “PAFA really molds the greatest artist in the United States teaching us how to do the fine arts, the most complicated work out there,” he said. “Being in Philly I was…

Zachary Van Horn

It took Zachary Van Horn getting a little uncomfortable and moving to Philadelphia to become a better artist and refine his work. Van Horn says his time in the MFA program has been rigorous but rewarding. Working with PAFA’s faculty allowed him to get out of his own way when it comes to his art.

Katherine Volpe

Katherine Volpe carries the experiences of her childhood with her every day. Her father was a 9/11 first responder who survived, and she uses her painting as a way to reflect on an event that shaped so much of her life.

Tyler Kline

Tyler Kline (MFA ’11) manipulates photos of friends and fellow artists into video. The Philadelphia-based multimedia artist works make use of base materials and alchemical processes to translate the chaos of everyday stimulus into the universal. Kline’s videos, installations, and sculptures propose…

Inga Kimberly Brown

Inga Kimberly Brown (BFA ’14) likes to keep busy. Whether she’s creating work for an exhibition at the Amelia Center Gallery in Florida or working on commissions, she always tries to have a paintbrush in her hand. The PAFA graduate recently completed a work for the 3rd Regiment United States Colored…

Liza Samuel

Liza Samuel (BFA '17) traveled to California, Arizona, Texas, and Arkansas with the help of the J. Henry Schiedt Memorial Travel Scholarship. The scholarship allowed her to spend 30 days collecting materials such as dirt, burnt wood, and rocks, which she used to make her own paint.

Jonathan Chase

“One of my favorite things about the program in my time here was that I was able to sort of make the mistakes that maybe I wouldn’t have been able to do as freely if I were at another program. The faculty and my peers were open to sharing ideas and having a dialogue. I thought that was really…

Madeline Peckenpaugh

In the fall of 2016, Peckenpaugh spent a month in Nepal through the PAFA Fellowship’s Patan Museum Residency. On the last day, she inadvertently drank contaminated water and contracted typhoid. Making the most of a situation to better her work is Peckenpaugh’s style—read more to learn how that…

Emmitt Smith

“I liked the location [of PAFA], and I liked the museum history paired with contemporary context. People encourage you to push the boundaries of your ideas."

Josias Figueirido

"PAFA challenged me about was it meant to be a professional artist. PAFA gave me another level. PAFA gave me a professionalism that I didn’t have. It made me want to be competitive. It taught me that when I go to MOMA, when I go to the Whitney, I have to think about how to put my work here. I have…

About PAFA

Founded in 1805, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts is America's first school and museum of fine arts. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, PAFA offers undergraduate and graduate programs in the fine arts, innovative exhibitions of historic and contemporary American art, and a world-class collection of American art. PAFA’s esteemed alumni include Mary Cassatt, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, William Glackens, Barkley L. Hendricks, Violet Oakley, Louis Kahn, David Lynch, and Henry Ossawa Tanner.