INSTITUTE FOR DOCTORAL STUDIES
IN THE VISUAL ARTS
As the Institute for Doctoral Studies in the Visual Arts approaches its August break, we reflect on the year we just wrapped up and take a moment to share some of the many wonderful highlights that made the last twelve months remarkable: from two summers of residencies to lecture series to symposiums, to exciting community updates, we have lots to celebrate!
We welcome you to dive into this annual recap to better understand the uniqueness of IDSVA – the pioneering low-residency PhD to cultivate artist-philosophers of the future: the kind of boundary-crossing, multidimensional thinkers willing to embrace intellectual risk, and approach knowledge-making with generosity and curiosity. You will find many examples of how this actually happens in the links below. And for regular updates, make sure you follow us on social media and sign up for our newsletter.
As we approach our 20th anniversary in 2026-27, the vision for our fundraising program is to make access to our graduate education a reality for many more promising PhD candidates in need. Your contributions to that scholarship fund is enormously meaningful to us, and will help us expand our ability to connect with a broader range of individuals and communities. Thank you for joining us by supporting our mission.
As I write my first annual report as the President of IDSVA in between summer residencies, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for these first 14 months on the job. It has been an extraordinary year, and while there are too many generous contributors to thank each and every one by name, but all are equally deserving of my appreciation. The strength of our “coming community” rests first of all on our students: the raison d’être of our educational model founded by Professor George Smith in Portland, Maine, and since projected worldwide for 19 years now to fulfill its mission to nurture artist-philosophers of the future.
“At IDSVA, we deeply believe that the artist-philosopher is the one who sees clearly…not only what is already there, but what does not yet exist. The artist-philosopher can lead the way in imagining an alternative to the current obstacles that impede real human flourishing.” Simonetta Moro, IDSVA President, excerpt from her Commencement final remarks.
This year’s Commencement weekend was a truly extraordinary one! On April 27th we celebrated IDSVA’s fourteen PhD graduates: Omenihu Amachi, Athena Axiomakaros, Victor (Ghalib) El-Khalidi, Hazel Tahkouhē Antaramian Hofman, Jocelyn Holmes, Samuel Kochanksy, Paige Lunde, Natalya Mills, Maggie M. McKee, Jacqueline Moulton, Sheila Rae Neal, Neely E. K. Patton, Terri Pyle, Nandita Baxi Sheth. Links to their dissertations are available on our website. We continue to be grateful to the Maine State Library for archiving the dissertations of our graduates in digital format.
At the annual Commencement we also awarded honorary degrees to two exceptional artist-philosophers: visual artist Magali Lara, introduced by poet and writer Carmen Boullosa, and musician-polymath Kahil El’Zabar, introduced by IDSVA Driskell Fellow 2021, Terrence Phearse. El’Zabar performed live with the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble at the Morgan Library Gilder Lehrman Hall Auditorium.
“As a teacher, I learned that art is an extraordinary way to read our time, from the personal to the political, from the outside to the inside…I like to read and for this reason I continually find myself thinking about some writers or some concepts that interest me and in a way this shapes my visual decisions….Images can be deceitful and difficult to understand, and there is more sensual texture than in writing, or at least, we perceive it differently. And I like that images have secrets: they say a lot about the author, but they are never, ever totally autobiographical. They give a glimpse of otherness, of something that belongs to the piece but not the artist: aura, we used to call it.” Magali Lara, excerpt from her Commencement speech
.png)
“We have aspirations beyond dogma and dictation; we have the opportunity in every moment, in spite of the odds, to free ourselves. … We are energy and manifestation … better times are ahead in this moment where we are, in spite of how dim it seems. … We are in need now of inspired seers who invoke others to realize their collective hearts and souls in purposeful living. Clarified openings acquired through earnest intent and unwavering action will fortify your purpose far beyond doubt nor apathy; let us not be afraid of acknowledging our need in one another.” Sir Kahil El‘Zabar, excerpt from his Commencement speech
See more photos of the graduation weekend courtesy of Christopher Andrew, including a welcome reception at the Eventi Hotel in Manhattan, and the Alumni Association exhibition at David DuPuy Studios in Manhattan titled The Artist-Philosopher in Practice: REPAIR, organized by Dr. Samantha Jones and Dr. Rikiesha Metzger, a jubilant celebration of the creative talents of many of our alumni and students!
.png)
.png)
.png)
The Ted Coons Dissertation Prize was established in 2015 to acknowledge outstanding IDSVA dissertations, and was made possible thanks to a generous donation by Dr. Edgar (Ted) Coons, Professor Emeritus of Psychology, Cognition & Perception at the Center for Neural Science at New York University, and IDSVA Board member Emeritus.
“Deleuze and Guattari say one is always multiple, and with that in mind I thank all of you out there, this swarm that is temporarily gathered here at this shimmering moment in time … This murmuration will soon disperse across the planet, and at the cusp of this dispersal I’d like to just leave you with a thought: about the power of our work, visible and invisible, across bodies, atmospheres, landscapes, and materials. The late David Graeber wrote: ‘The ultimate hidden reality of the world is that it is something we make and could just as easily make differently.’ … The important words for me here are ‘we’ and ‘make’.‘We’ as a reminder of our collectivity and collaboration with each other, and also our non-human companions on the planet, and ‘make’ as the power of art, design, imagination, and speculation, with materials as well as words, and that making differently is an ongoing practice for the artist-philosopher.” Excerpt from Nandita Baxi Sheth’s Commencement speech
The late Dr. David C. Driskell (1931-2020) was a founding member of IDSVA and one of the first Visiting Faculty. In his honor, IDSVA awards one David Driskell Fellowship with each incoming cohort. Driskell Fellows are students who show promise in carrying forward Dr. Driskell's mission to encourage worldwide community and equality through art.
This year, IDSVA awarded the Driskell Fellowship to Zindzi Harley – curator, writer, and creative director based in Philadelphia.
.png)
“I am incredibly humbled to receive a fellowship bearing the name of David C. Driskell, an artist, a scholar, and a visionary who expanded the space for Black artists and thinkers in the academic and museum world. It’s deeply meaningful to me, especially as it pertains to my work as a curator and a museum professional. Driskell’s life’s work has been a beacon, reminding us that Black creativity is not marginal but central to the story of art, philosophy, and culture. This fellowship is more than an award: it’s a charge to continue that work, to advocate for new voices, to challenge old structures, and to honor the beauty, complexity, and resilience of the African diaspora. It reminds me that art and scholarship are not separate from who we are, but an extension of our humanity.” Zindzi Harley, Driskell Fellow 2024, excerpt from her Commencement speech
The IDSVA Alumni Association has recently elected a new President, Dr. Kate Farrington (Alumna 2022), who was inaugurated at the 2025 Commencement in New York City. In her inauguration speech, Dr. Farrington acknowledged her two predecessors:
.png)
"Thanks in no small part to Sandra [Stephens]’s and Louise [Carrie Wales]’s leadership, the alumni association is grounded in an ethos of care. Sandra’s first major undertaking was a spring 2023 zoom series, “From dissertation to book,” featuring six alums who generously shared their experiences of getting their books published. The series culminated in a retreat hosted by Sandra and Jeca Rodriguez-Colón to draft book proposals with a CV workshop. It was hugely beneficial to me, as I soon landed a book contract, and my manuscript is being prepared for publication."
In congratulating Dr. Farrington on her new role as President for the Alumni Association we’d like to take the chance to also congratulate her for her upcoming book publication, based on her IDSVA dissertation: that’s surely inspiring to current students and alumni! Finally, we wish Kate much success with her stated goal “to mount a multi-year artistic research project to seek out and interview in-depth all 100 graduates and others to find out the state of the artist philosopher in the world.” As Kate concluded, quoting George Smith, “There is a lot of work to do, and we can use your help.”
Every year, IDSVA organizes a series of online symposia, webinars, and special lectures. In spring 2025 we had the pleasure to host a symposium called Transatlantic Conversations: This Other Text Between Word and Image, in collaboration with the University of Pretoria and the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa.
Speakers included Sean O’Toole – writer, editor, curator and occasional literary pamphleteer based in Cape Town, and Raél Jero Salley – faculty in the History of Art, Design, and Visual Culture at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). South African independent researcher, curator and writer Anthea Buys moderated the discussion.
In late spring, IDSVA core faculty Dejan Lukić organized the third installment of a three-year-long series of conferences on the topic of climate change: The Cook, The Scientist, The Artist & The Philosopher, or, the Climatological Delirium. The webinars took place over two days in April, with the following contributors: Gail Bradbrook, a British environmental activist with a PhD in molecular biophysics, and co-founder of the environmental social movement Extinction Rebellion. Bruce Glavovic, professor in the School of People, Environment, and Planning at Massey University, and recipient of an IDSVA honorary doctorate in 2024. Chris Rodriguez, mutual aid chef and community organizer, and chef Nephi Craig, a member of the White Mountain Apache Tribe and half Navajo, who received an IDSVA honorary doctorate in 2023. Artist, author and video essayist Ursula Biemann, and IDSVA core faculty Howard Caygill, philosopher and cultural historian.
.png)
In addition to our summer residencies in Rome, Spannocchia, Athens, and Venice – where the Venice Art Biennial was the centerpiece of the field work in 2024 – students also travelled to Mexico City in January 2025, to experience first-hand the richness of its history and culture, and to Berlin this past June. We are now planning for upcoming residencies in Madrid, Toledo, and Marrakech for January ’26, and couldn’t be more excited about it!
This past year, alongside our extraordinary team of core faculty, we had the pleasure to invite the following Visiting Faculty for seminars and residencies: Prof. David Webb, British philosopher, University of Stadffordshire (co-teaching Toward an Ethico-Aesthetics, spring 2025), Shara Wasserman, American art historian and curator of contemporary art, and the director of the Temple Rome Gallery of Art at Temple University in Rome (Rome residency), Dr. Luis Armando Hernández Cuevas, Professor and Chair of Philosophy, Ibero University (Mexico City residency), Margarita de Orellana and Alberto Ruy Sanchez, historians, writers, and publishers (Mexico City residency), Magali Lara, artist (Mexico City residency), Dr. Jordana Moore Saggese, art historian and Director of the David C. Driskell Center at the University of Maryland, Chef Nephi Craig (Spannocchia residency), Franca Marini, artist (Siena residency), Dr. Nina Papazoglou, artist, cultural historian (Athens residency), Dr. Jason Hoelscher, artist, Gallery Director and Professor of Interdisciplinary Art at Georgia Southern University (Spannocchia residency). Our librarian, Erin Perfect, has been enriching our collection of digital resources, to make the digital library a more powerful tool for research for our students and faculty.
.jpg)
We are pleased to share the news of recent publications by graduates and faculty affiliated with IDSVA. Stay tuned for upcoming online book launches in the fall!
Our students and alumni’s presence on the academic conference circuit remains strong. Here is just a sample of the accomplishments of the past year. More updates can be found on the student and alumni Achievements page.
.png)
“My studies at IDSVA have profoundly reoriented my worldview, deepening my appreciation for partial perspectives and highlighting the ethical imperative to actively participate in the continual reconfiguration of the world’s becoming. […] From presenting papers and chairing panels at conferences such as FATE, SECAC, and CAA to my forthcoming chapter publication in the book “Reading Southern Art,” this program has given me the tools to mobilize my research and writing toward feminist/new material/posthuman/decolonial endeavors.”
—Dr. Jocelyn Holmes, IDSVA PhD 2024
IDSVA is looking forward to building on what we've learned, embracing new challenges, and continuing to grow together in the year ahead.