{"id":230088,"date":"2026-04-13T18:18:31","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T18:18:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/230088\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T18:18:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T18:18:31","slug":"graphic-arts-seniors-impress-at-annual-showcase-the-crows-nest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/230088\/","title":{"rendered":"Graphic arts seniors impress at annual showcase\u00a0\u00a0 \u2013 The Crow’s Nest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Senior graphic arts major with a concentration in graphic design Montana Smith presented her piece, \u201cPrint is Alive,\u201d at the senior showcase.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Photo by Mar\u00eda Jos\u00e9 Sol\u00eds |\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0<\/p>\n

By Alisha Durosier, Julia Birdsall, Zariya Bankston & Reagan Haskell\u00a0<\/p>\n

There is only one place on the University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus where students\u2019 stories, cultures and passions are brought to life: Harbor Hall during the annual senior graphic arts showcase.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

On April 10, students and community members filed into Harbor Hall\u2019s gallery space to see the graphic arts seniors\u2019 work. Their installations serve as their thesis, a final project before graduation.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSenior thesis is not for the faint of heart,\u201d graphic arts senior with a concentration in graphic design, Lauren Gaubert, told\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gaubert\u2019s thesis project, titled \u201cSomething Blue,\u201d pays homage to the inextricably linked histories of computers and fabric arts, along with women\u2019s contributions to the development of technology.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first computer was\u00a0made out of\u00a0a Jacquard\u00a0Loom\u00a0and the first computer programmer was a woman. She was the one who helped turn the loom into the analytical engine,\u201d Gaubert said. \u201cAnd I think art and STEM disciplines are so deeply intertwined; there\u2019s not a lot of conversation about it.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Gaubert\u2019s thesis project titled \u201cSomething Blue.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Photo by Alisha Durosier |\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gaubert experimented with fabric arts for her project, creating a quilt out of\u00a0cyanotyped\u00a0pieces of fabric. Gaubert\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0see herself venturing into fabric arts post-graduation but wanted to take advantage of all the resources the graphic arts program has available.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Senior graphic design major Montana Smith combined woodwork and screen printing for her final project\u00a0\u2014 interactive\u00a0wooden mechanisms titled \u201cPrint is Alive.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The project, Smith said, is inspired by the common idea that the art of printing is dead and her desire to challenge that notion.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to figure out how to physically make print alive,\u201d she said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"From silkscreen prints to glass installations, the showcase included pieces on a variety of mediums. Some students, like Smith, wove themes that also contested popular ideas into those mediums.\u00a0Photo by Mar\u00eda Jos\u00e9 Sol\u00eds |\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0<\/p>\n

Her process involved photographing organic and inorganic materials under microscopes, including ink,\u00a0emulsion\u00a0and mesh screens\u2014all materials used to produce silkscreen prints. She then combined these images to create textures, which she printed onto wooden and paper mechanisms that audience members could interact with.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Smith also live-screen-printed posters for the event.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c[The need for audience interaction] ties into the idea that in order to keep print alive, you have to interact with it, and you have to engage with it,\u201d she told\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

2026 graphic arts seniors were not assigned a theme for their thesis, which Gaubert and Smith both appreciated.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Illustration senior Alexa Arostegui used her senior thesis to bring her story to life. The story is heavily inspired by Latin American culture and\u00a0features\u00a0themes of anti-colonialism.\u00a0Photo by Alisha Durosier | The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI enjoy that\u00a0there\u2019s\u00a0no through line.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0no conclusion to be reached,\u201d Gaubert said. \u201cIt really is just an exploration of our own individual passions, talents, [and] directions we want to take in our career or completely the opposite.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Smith also pointed out that every project looked unique.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI liked it because I got to do whatever I wanted with it. It\u00a0kind of led\u00a0to more experiments,\u201d she said. \u201cI got to experiment with a lot more things because I didn\u2019t really have any guidelines.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Graphic design professor David Watts told\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0that he wanted the seniors\u2019 gallery to create conversation and spark curiosity.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI want them to ask questions and [leave] unsure to the point where they start thinking about the work an hour later, a day later, a year later,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0want to come in and say, \u2018That was pretty.\u2019 I want them to come in and say, \u2018What was that?\u2019\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Graphic design senior Punch\u00a0Rueangaram\u00a0told\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0that her piece was about the recent death of her father. \u201cThis the space [where] it\u2019s kind of safe for you to be alone,\u201d she said, \u201cI wanted to make sure that I can get through the grief\u2026because I want art to be the one [to] tell them that this is not something that you can be holding, you can be transparent about your feeling.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Photo by Mar\u00eda Jos\u00e9 Sol\u00eds |\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0<\/p>\n

Graphic design senior Alexis Okla said that audience\u00a0perception\u00a0was always something she and her peers considered.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAre they\u00a0gonna\u00a0interpret it the same way that you intended? And will the display come across, like you intended?\u201d she wondered. \u201cAnd\u00a0so\u00a0for myself, I do feel that that is present in my work, and I\u2019m excited for everybody to see it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Like Smith, Okla incorporated woodwork into her installation titled \u201cDon\u2019t Fence Me In.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Okla told\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0that her installation explores themes of \u201clabor and integrity,\u201d which she feels modern depictions of Western cowboy culture do not address.\u00a0Photo by Mar\u00eda Jos\u00e9 Sol\u00eds |\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0<\/p>\n

This idea \u2014 which is inspired by her grandfather\u2019s work ethic \u2014 sparked for her when she was first accepted into the graphic arts program at the end of her sophomore year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI started to consider, I have all these skills now, and really, what do I want to do with them? \u2029Because getting into the program\u00a0in itself was\u00a0hard work, and when folks ask about my thesis,\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0usually what I say.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0hard work,\u201d Okla said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

This sentiment lends to the central theme of her installation, where she also built a corral fence to display screen-printed posters.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is an accumulation of everything you\u2019ve done because\u2026 you work so hard to get into the graphic design program, and it truly is rewarding being able to hit that point of the senior showcase,\u201d Okla said about the annual showcase.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Graphic design senior Irene\u00a0Eymur, whose piece portrays some of the difficulties of speaking multiple languages, encouraged classmates to \u201cbe more expressive and\u2026include their cultural background into their projects to show who they actually are.\u201d\u00a0Photo by Mar\u00eda Jos\u00e9 Sol\u00eds |\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, this achievement does not come without its hardships.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Aside from the resources provided by the program, students self-funded their thesis projects.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

And as artist they still struggle under the pressure of perfectionism and the daunting task of completing such a large project.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u00a0kind of come\u00a0into the program with designers\u2019 eyes because\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0what they look for in portfolio submissions. We hone that further\u2026until it makes us borderline neurotic about the work that\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0putting out,\u201d Gaubert said. \u201cAnd I am very dedicated to my craft.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, many have found that struggling alongside their peers makes the experience easier to bear.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Illustration senior Elizabeth Kurtz, whose piece titled \u201cCounter Climb\u201d is a prototype of a game she is developing about a rat, told The Crow\u2019s Nest that she appreciates the close-knit nature of her cohort.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\u201cI wanted to take this opportunity to sort of merge my illustration background and\u2026character design with trying to get into that game development space,\u201d illustration senior Elizabeth Kurtz told\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest.\u00a0Photo by Alisha Durosier |\u00a0The Crow\u2019s Nest\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone is kind of going through the same thing, and so it really creates a sense of camaraderie,\u201d she said. \u201cBetween that and knowing\u00a0that\u00a0all\u00a0the people around me are amazing designers, I can lean on them when I\u2019m having\u00a0trouble and\u00a0then be there for people when they\u2019re having trouble too.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Gaubert echoed this sentiment.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, in my thesis alone, I borrowed some film, some imagery that my friend had created, and we stayed up in a Harbor [hall] probably way too late, working alongside each other,\u201d Gaubert said. \u201cAnd I think, were we to be more isolated and\u00a0not quite as\u00a0good friends, the program\u00a0wouldn\u2019t\u00a0be as much of a positive experience. And I think we would yield poorer results.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n\t\t\t\t Post Views: 12 \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\"More<\/a>
Written by: Alisha Durosier<\/a> on April 13, 2026.
Last revised by: Julia Ferrara<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Senior graphic arts major with a concentration in graphic design Montana Smith presented her piece, \u201cPrint is Alive,\u201d…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":230089,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[202,204,203,199,201,200],"class_list":["post-230088","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-st-petersburg","tag-st-pete","tag-st-pete-headlines","tag-st-pete-news","tag-st-petersburg","tag-st-petersburg-headlines","tag-st-petersburg-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230088","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=230088"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230088\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/230089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=230088"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=230088"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=230088"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}