Illustration Faculty & Department Administrators
July 16, 2025
MassArt alumna Lara Garay, BFA ’25 (Illustration), has been selected as a finalist for the prestigious AXA Art Prize. One of the leading student art competitions in the United States, this competition is open to any style of figurative paintings, drawings, and original printmaking created by undergraduate and graduate art students.
From over 600 submissions reviewed by our panel of Regional Jurors from educational institutions across the US, 40 students artists were chosen as exhibition finalists from curators Alex Gartenfeld of ICA Miami, independent curator, Claudia Gould, Jonathan Rider from the FLAG Art Foundation, and independent curator, John Yau. The exhibition will go on view in November at the New York Academy of Art.
MassArt alumna Abby Ouellette ’19 explores girlhood, nostalgia, and editorial illustration as a bold, boundary-pushing freelance illustrator.
MassArt alumna & Illustrator, Abby Ouellette.
Photo by Tannan Flanery
Written by Rachael Dubinsky
Art has always been a big part of Abby Ouellette’s (BFA ‘19) life. Her mother was a working artist and it felt like she was always surrounded by creative inspiration throughout her childhood. So, when it came time to decide where to go to school, she was immediately enamored with the innovative, tight-knit community at Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt).
As an Illustration major, Abby spent a lot of time exploring her artistic style, both inside and outside of the classroom. “I immersed myself fully in the experience of creating, even if it wasn’t for an assignment,” said Abby. “MassArt gives you the space to play creatively and build a strong foundation for a lifelong artistic practice.”
During her time as a student, Abby found herself coming back to themes of nostalgia and girlhood in her work. For her senior thesis she even used weeds as a metaphor for the different stages of growing up.
Illustration by @abby.ouelette
Today, Abby continues to take the lessons she learned at MassArt into her freelance illustration business. She’s found that maintaining a daily sketchbook practice and reflecting on past critiques of her work helps drive her current editorial illustrations for clients like the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, NPR, Politico, and others. Her long term goal is to be the main contributing illustrator for a weekly column.
Abby Ouellette ’19 BFA Clouded, Illustration, 2025
A page of Abby Ouellette’s sketchbook, courtesy of the artist
MassArt gives you the space to play creatively and build a strong foundation for a lifelong artistic practice.Abby Ouellette, BFA ‘19
The biggest lesson she’s learned so far: “Pushing visual boundaries is what helps illustrators succeed.” And while the media landscape continues to evolve, she’s found that news outlets are trying to prioritize illustration where they can, particularly when it comes to small-scale animation.
Since graduating, Abby has moved out west, but continues to stay involved with the MassArt community as a member of the Alumni Leadership Council. As for her advice for students: “Keep the momentum going in your artistic practice and maintain relationships with your peers and professors. And most of all, don’t be afraid to promote yourself.”
Research and develop ideas, characters, and settings to enrich your illustrations and tell impactful stories.
Learn MoreThe MassArt community came together this Fall at the public opening of The Clown in Me Loves You at the Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton, featuring the work of Alumna Nancy Callan BFA ‘96 Glass.
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Agata Stadnik, BFA' 04, MFA '09, recently wrote and illustrated her first children’s book, Walking to School Adventure.
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12 Illustration students had artwork selected for the Spring 2025 Handel and Haydn concert at Boston’s Symphony Hall.
Photo courtesy of the artist, Olivia Yohannon, BFA '26.
Written by Dr. John Tamilio III
Editor’s Note: This is a guest article written by Dr. John Tamilio III, Professor at Salem State University, Pastor, Musician, and Music Critic. A member of the Board of Advisors for H+H, Tamilio’s work has appeared in BBC Music, the Boston Music Intelligencer, and Arts Fuse, among other publications.
Did you know Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt) founder Charles Callahan Perkins (1823-1886) also served as President of the Handel and Haydn Society (H+H)? It is only fitting that the two, renowned Boston institutions have partnered to focus on promoting the connection between art and music.
For 11 years, MassArt and H+H have engaged local students in creating art for the nation’s oldest, historically informed performance orchestra and chorus (HIP). This year’s inspiration: Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4, which will be performed by the H+H Orchestra and world renowned keyboardist Kristian Bezuidenhout as the finale of H+H’s Beethoven, Mozart + The Bear performances at Symphony Hall on May 2 and 4, 2025.
Third-year illustration majors from MassArt were given the opportunity to create independent, original artwork representing the musical piece to be displayed at the upcoming performance. This collaboration is a unique event turning Symphony Hall into a unique visual and aural collaborative gallery to augment the work of one of classical music’s most celebrated composers.
Photo courtesy of the artist, Aleck Rodriguez Bogaert, BFA ’26.
Photo courtesy of the artist, Cassius Hawke, BFA ’26.
Photo courtesy of the artist Caitlyn Doucette, BFA ’26
In preparation for this project, students met with Dr. Teresa Neff, H+H’s Christopher Hogwood HIP Fellow, to learn about the historical context in which Beethoven composed his 4th piano concerto. Students were also introduced to the period instruments with which Beethoven composed and first performed the work in 1808 — just like those H+H musicians play today as a historically informed orchestra. Esteemed H+H violinist Jesse Irons played a variety of classical excerpts, providing students with a sense of the sound of historical instruments, explaining, for example, how gut strings emit a different tonal quality and texture than modern, steel-wound strings.
Classical music critic Stephen Johnson commented that works from Beethoven’s “middle period” including his Piano Concerto No. 4, “are characterised by intense striving, heaven-storming ambition, revolutionary daring in matters of form and expression.”[1] Students took these creative contexts: sights, sounds, and history to fill their canvases with personal interpretations of the music: an orchestra of mice playing a symphony inside a piano; a modern woman transported back to the past, her heart resonating to the same music that graced ears so many years ago; a scene of two lovers on the run; the duality of home: bright skyscrapers against the tranquility of nature; and much more.
Jurors for the art competition included MassArt President Mary Grant, H+H Artistic Director Jonathan Cohen, and GBH Arts Editor Jared Brown. The 12 selected student artworks will be on display during both concerts and the artists will be there to answer questions about their work. All the art is for sale and each student takes home 100% of the sale price.
“The first movement of the piano’s solo performance recalls the soft yet juvenile sound of pitter-patter-like footsteps rattling inside the piano.”
See the rest of the collectionThe Handel and Haydn Society presents Beethoven, Mozart + The Bear at Symphony Hall (301 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston) on Friday, May 2 at 7:30pm and Sunday, May 4 at 3pm.
In addition to Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4, the performances will include selected movements from Mozart’s only theatre score, Thamos, King of Egypt, followed by Haydn’s Symphony No. 82, nicknamed The Bear for its playful, romping final movement.
To reserve a $15 student ticket, click the “Buy Tickets” link on the Beethoven, Mozart + The Bear concert page, select a seat, and then select “Student” pricing; or call the H+H Box Office at 617-262-1815 Monday through Friday between 9am and 5pm. Students are encouraged to bring their ID to the concert hall.
In addition to $15 student tickets, H+H has extended a special offer to the MassArt community of 50% off tickets to the Friday, May 2 concert. To take advantage of this offer, use promo code MASSART50 at checkout when purchasing tickets online at handelandhaydn.org.
[1] BBC Music, July 25, 2023. NB: “characterised” is the British spelling of “characterized.”
Emily Blair, Sculpture and History of Art ‘26, found her creative home at MassArt, where the facilities are unlike anywhere else.
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MassArt illustration student Natalie Morris (BFA ’26) shares how scholarships are helping her pursue her dream of becoming a professional artist.
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We Are Family by Nell Valle, centers on the themes of community and togetherness, depicted by a conglomeration of guinea pigs.
“We Are Family is an illustration of having everyone together and being their authentic self,” Valle says. “Notice all the funny faces and silly expressions. All belong.”
Valle is a Chinese-American illustrator based in Boston. She specializes in public art and comics. Her artwork is known to have cute characters, bright colors, and bold lines. She holds a masters in art education from Lesley University and a BFA in illustration and a minor in creative writing from MassArt.
See more of Valle’s work on Instagram @nellbell_art.
Read more on GBH’s Community Canvas.
