Visual Thesis Exhibition 2025

 

 

 

Originally from Maine, Cassandra Li is a NYC based illustrator and designer. In her work, she draws a world between real-life and imagination to tell stories about everyday-life and our role in it. She builds her concepts through both an intuitive and intentional process, allowing her stories to emerge naturally from it. As an artist, she hopes her stories can inspire others to continue learning about themselves and the world we live in.

Lobster Kingdom is a letter to 8 year-old me waiting for my dad to come home, and to my hard-working father who was there even when he was away. When I recently revisited my father’s lobster warehouse, I was stunned to see that the scary and grand kingdom I once explored as a kid, was now an ordinary warehouse. This realization is what inspired the picture book – a story that captures the way a child imagines the everyday and perceives the feeling of missing someone they love. It follows a girl named Yu, who sets off to find her father when he’s gone longer than usual, convinced he's been taken by the Lobster King. As she journeys through the underwater kingdom filled with sea creatures and their shifting stories, Yu comes to make sense of her fathers absence in her own way.

Web: www.cassandrali.com
Instagram: @cassandrali_
E-mail: [email protected]

Chengxin Liang (Pronounced Cheng-shin), an illustrator exploring diverse storytelling methods through vibrant imagery, playful motifs, and expressive scenes, invites people to relate to and enjoy my stories.
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For Chengxin, illustration is about expressing emotions and crafting visuals that evoke a sense of connection and warmth. She finds satisfaction in translating her feelings into images that resonate with others, blending the whimsical elements of everyday life with a deep connection to cultural narratives.

Have you ever been puzzled by the names of vegetables? Those emerald leaves with nearly identical silhouettes—water spinach (Ong choy) similar to “spinach,” or the blush of pointing at Yu choy while calling it “Chinese broccoli”—haunted my childhood. But this confusion was more than linguistic; it was a barrier between me and the people I loved. It made me feel left out when my grandparents asked me to do a favor in the garden that I couldn’t help with; it felt like a missed chance to connect with my grandparents. My illustrated children’s book, Is This Bok Choy?, is born from that frustration—and from the joy of finally learning to see.
 
This story was inspired by my grandfather’s small vegetable garden - a ten-square-meter plot of land behind our house that became our special little world. I often squatted between the rows, running my fingers along the crinkled edges of spinach leaves, fascinated by how their veins branched out like little twigs. Carrots hid beneath the soil, their feathery green tops the only clue to their presence, while bok choy stood tall and proud, its leaves wrapped tightly around each other like they were guarding something precious. Grandpa used to say, “You see, this is just like life - we protect what’s most important deep inside.”
 
To recreate that world, I chose materials that echoed its textures: the gritty softness of pastels, the waxy drag of colored pencils, with a little magic help in Photoshop. I smudged pigments with my fingers, leaving streaks like mud on every page. The vegetables in my illustrations loom large—deliberately—because that’s how they felt to me as a child: towering, mysterious, and full of life. Bok choy’s broad, spoon-shaped leaves curve protectively around its stem; spinach crumples like tissue paper; broccoli bristles with little green bumps. These aren’t just botanical details—they’re memories.
 
Now, the garden is gone. But flipping through the book’s pages, I see it again: Grandpa’s hands, calloused from years of tending the garden, parting the leaves to show me how to tell them apart. The deep green of bok choy, the pale stems of yu choy, the serrated edges of mustard greens—each became a lesson in love, patience, and paying attention. Is This Bok Choy? is my thank-you letter to that garden, and to the man who taught me that roots are more than what holds plants in the ground. Also, his favorite vegetables.
 
P.S. In China, some veggies are extra special! Like bok choy - we call it “bái cài,” which sounds like “getting lots of money!” That's why it’s our lucky veggie that means good fortune. When Chinese New Year comes, every family eats this “money veggie” because it brings good wishes for the new year!

Web: www.Chengxinl.com/
Instagram: @chloe.liang
E-mail: [email protected]

Chloe Pitkoff (FIT MFA Illustration ‘25, BA Studio Art Davidson College ‘21) is a multimedia illustrator born, raised, and based in Brooklyn, New York. Chloe works in a variety of disciplines, including children’s book illustration, publishing, mural production, experimental motion, fine art painting, and sculpture. When she’s not working in the art world, Chloe is a jazz singer, Wrangler for the Children’s Chorus at the Metropolitan Opera, Livestream Producer and Director for multiple organizations, including St. Bartholomew’s Church, and Studio Manager for the Audrey Flack Estate. She loves to travel the world and learn about art and music everywhere she goes.

Flock is an experimental animation accompanied by an original composed soundtrack and voice-over narration. Originally proposed as a children’s book set to motion, the illustration aesthetics and animation techniques display a childlike whimsy that correspond with the dreamlike narrative, which explores overarching themes of grief and resilience. 

A girl and her grandmother spend their days together feeding birds, plane watching, enjoying sharing stories in their home. The girl awakes one night to find a bird in place of her grandmother. They grow and learn together until the bird flies away, unannounced. The girl waits for her friend’s return at first, but soon decides to go searching for the bird through flights of her own, living a full and adventurous life along the way. All the while, the bird has been secretly watching over her, and at long last, after the girl has lived a long and fulfilling life, the bird reveals itself to her. The pair fly away together. 

Based on experience working for and learning from artist Audrey Flack (1931-2024).

Web: www.chloepitkoff.com
Instagram: @chloe_pitkoff_art_
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

 

Edelweiss Cardenas is a Mexican-American illustrator based in New York City. She is known for her vivid and organic art style, working both with traditional materials and digital techniques. Her artwork captures the intricate details of people, animals, and natural forms, bringing them to life with a blend of precision and artistry. Edelweiss is known for rich colors that are present in every feature of her work. Her stylized forms are present in her books and comics where she uses a very unique and fluid way to place panels and spot illustrations. She excels at using visual representation to skillfully narrate captivating stories.

To get in touch for projects or collaborations, or if you just want to say hi, send an email to: [email protected]

Mama Concha, named after my real great grandmother, was a passionate comedic storyteller and a grandmother who struggled to get her family’s attention when the futbol game was on TV. The story uses humor to talk about the importance of family, dreams, and perseverance.

The story of Mama Concha Takes the Stage is an ode to the matriarchs in my family. While I don’t have memories of my great grandmother Mama Concha, I’ve always felt her presence very strongly in my life. That’s all thanks to my mother and grandmother telling stories about her, mostly humorous, always accompanied by spot on impressions. I can account for their likeness because there are audio recordings of Mama Concha and it is hard to distinguish between them. Whenever these stories were told, my aunts, uncles, and cousins would all gather around to listen at my grandmother’s house in Mexico. Some of us would be sitting on the equipales (leather and wooden seats), some on the tile floor, and the rest would stand around. Without doubt, everyone would twirl, cackle, and clap their hands with joy and boundless laughter. Many a time my mother and grandmother would share the ‘stage’ and bounce from one story to the next, cueing each other up. To me this was so normal.

Family lore, be it personal stories, traditions, or embellished anecdotes, influence my visual storytelling because of the humor that always accompanies any account from our past. Through my own experience of repeatedly moving between Mexico and the United States as a young child, I had a hard time adapting to each place. Languages are more easily attainable when you’re young but the nuances of everyday life and behavior is something that can’t be taught. What did help throughout this time were my mother’s words, her hilarious bedtime stories, and her recounting of joyous and silly memories of our family in Mexico, particularly of my grandmother and great grandmother. Her family tales linked me to loving memories of home and smoothed my nerves as I stepped into new grounds.

Web: www.edelweisscardenas.com
Instagram: @edelweisscardenas
E-mail: [email protected]

Juliana DiChiara is an illustrator and designer based in New York who is currently pursuing her MFA in Illustration at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She specializes in creating illustrations that are highly rendered and semi-realistic in both digital and traditional media. Her deep passion for games, anime and novels, especially with female protagonists, has led her down the exciting path toward fantasy illustration. She enjoys crafting narrative moments that are epic or dramatic through the use of atmosphere and dynamic poses to bring a fantasy story into reality.

Strive is a science fiction fantasy tabletop role-playing game in which players assume the roles of factions that have discovered a new planet. Their goal is to restart civilization by exploring, gathering, and using resources to rebuild society. From the beginning, players are directly competing with each other with the overall goal of establishing a new society by focusing on only one faction being victorious.

Strive focuses on themes such as rebuilding and exploration, while also touching on deeper concepts such as the corrupting influence of greed, power and the cyclical nature of history. These themes are informed by the belief that if society were to prioritize the collective well-being of its people and environment, instead of leaders' personal ambitions, life for everyone would be better. As the game progresses, players reflect on the ethical implications of their actions in the name of victory. Not only will players recognize  that their choices are not ethical or sustainable, but how easy it is to do so in the name of a religion, defense or pursuit of knowledge. Players will have to choose between moving forward with their pursuit of power or discovering a strategy that resists temptation toward a more sustainable future.

It is my hope that the illustrations and the gameplay of Strive encourage players to begin to critically reflect on how these themes exist in real world contexts. Things get better when we start caring about something other than ourselves.

Web: www.jichia.com 
Instagram: @jiichia
E-mail: [email protected]

Justin Jenkins is a NY/NJ artist currently residing and working in Brooklyn NY, With a career that has included everything from graphic design to illustration, much of Justin’s practice focuses on creating visuals that feel authentic to his experience in both style and texture. Within his fine art practice, Justin’s work concentrates on his experience as a Black person from the Tri-State and the unique experiences and challenges that one in that position can face and grapple with. The works created have lead to opportunities to have pieces shown in Art Basel (2021) a solo show in London (2022) and several editorial illustrations for Atlantic Magazine (2023-2024). As his practice continues to evolve and grow, Justin’s work will continue to use a combination of energetic texture and vivid use of color to articulate real emotions and experience with dignity and authenticity. 

“Glory Dayz” is a body of work meant to tell the stories of my own journey through the lens of a few young men that had a great impact on my life growing up. As a young boy my love for art was only rivaled by my love for football. My love for both stemmed from my relationship with my father, a former college football player who also was a self proclaimed “nerd”. We obsessed over our favorite players, and used their journey’s and highlights to inspire us to achieve our own greatness.  

As I grew older my love for art and football began to compete with one another. I found myself sneaking off to read comic books at Barnes & Noble after football practice. My relationship with my father would also grow to be just as complex. As I grew to better understand what I’d experienced and been shown, I found myself wanting to use my art to articulate my feelings and thoughts. This work is my attempt to have a conversation with myself, my father and the heroes we looked up to. Many of the young men in these pieces were barely in their 20’s when they dominated the college football landscape. Student athletes carrying the weight of their family, community and school. In my own way this is something I relate to very much and a burden I inherited from my father. In times of stress and hardship within my own journey, I remember the “Glory Dayz” and remember just how far hard work and a dream can take you.  

Like my father and all the young men that took to the gridiron to find their glory, I use my illustrations to help me find purpose and productivity in my talents. For someone like me, art is a weapon, the great equalizer; with one swing of my hand I can level all the playing fields and clear all the paths. Like all the heroes I admired growing up, I realize I can use my power to tell stories and create scenes that can be filled with depth and hope and energy that can inspire anyone in any world.

Web: www.dwywstudios.com
Instagram: @mistadeadhead

Lily Qian is an award-winning illustrator based in Brooklyn, New York. She has worked with a wide range of clients in editorial, publishing, advertising, surface, and fashion. She has a strong interest in storytelling for editorials and books. Lily’s work has been recognized by American Illustration and the Society of Illustrators.

"Ruby in the Deep End" is a picture book that invites young readers into a magical underwater world where themes of friendship, adaptation, and the beauty of connection unfold. This children's picture book reflects my journey as an artist, rooted in personal experiences of immigrating to the US, adapting to change, and discovering new friendships. The story captures the beauty of children’s ability to forge friendships despite language barriers through hand-painted gouache illustrations.

Web: www.lily-qian.com/
Instagram: @lilyqian_
E-mail: [email protected]

Lind Guo, New York based freelance illustrator, concept designer, and comic artist, backgrounded in BFA illustration in Ringling College of Art and Design, and MFA illustration in Fashion Institute of Technology. Experienced in digital illustration and visual development commissions for a variety of clients, including film productions, video game studios, fashion companies, etc. At the same time, my personal works cover editorial illustrations and comic books. 

Current is a short comic exploring a family's belief that death is not an end, but a continuation of life in a different form—one that returns to nature and flows eternally. Told from the perspective of Enna, a young woman caught between generations, the story follows her as she witnesses both the rituals and the tensions that arise from her family's spiritual tradition of scattering ashes into the sea or wind.

Web: www.lind-arts.com 
Instagram @lindillustration 
E-mail: [email protected]

 

 

 

 

 

 

My name is Roo Guliyev, and I’m an illustrator, creature designer, and character designer with a deep passion for both science and storytelling. Growing up in a family of scientists, I developed a strong appreciation for biology, which became the foundation of my creative process. Much of my childhood was spent on my grandparents' farm, where I was surrounded by nature and steeped in stories of fantastical creatures. My grandparents often shared tales from mythology, warning me of mysterious beings said to lurk in our garden. These early stories sparked a lifelong fascination with folklore and fantasy, igniting my desire to create magical creatures and worlds of my own.

By blending scientific accuracy with imaginative storytelling, I design characters and creatures that feel both fantastical and believable. Whether it’s an alien species or a myth-inspired being, I ensure each creation has a biological and anatomical logic that grounds it in its imagined reality.

My creative interests extend beyond creature design. I’m equally passionate about comic book art, writing graphic novels, and crafting animatics that bring characters and narratives to life. These storytelling formats allow me to explore the intersection of visual art and narrative structure, giving voice and motion to complex characters and the worlds they inhabit.

Born in 1995, just four years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, I experienced a cultural shift in which American media became newly accessible. As a child, I was captivated by animated films and television shows from the U.S. Their vibrant characters, bold storytelling, and inventive animation techniques left a lasting impression on me and profoundly influenced my artistic journey.

Today, I continue to explore how movement, design, and narrative work together. My goal is to create stories that resonate emotionally, entertain meaningfully, and inspire wonder. I believe that the fusion of art and science is one of the most powerful tools in storytelling. With it, I hope to invite audiences to see the world, and all its possibilities, in a brighter and more imaginative light.

The Ark of Oominor: A Traveler’s Handbook to Another Earth is a manifestation of that world, framed as a travel guide written by an outsider - Leopold Frischenschlager, a lost traveler from our world who becomes stranded in Oominor. Loosely based on a close friend who is no longer with me, Leopold observes this strange new world with curiosity, awe, and growing despair. Hidden within the book’s pages are his diary entries and personal letters, tucked into envelopes, revealing his struggles and perhaps longing for home. In many ways, Leopold’s arrival in Oominor mirrors my own journey to New York: a place that, like Oominor, promised freedom but came with its own challenges. 

Growing up in a family of scientists in the post-Soviet environment in Baku, I was surrounded by books on history, prehistoric life, anthropology, and the cosmos, sparking a fascination with science that continues to shape my creative process. My childhood was split between city life and my grandparents’ farm, where I was immersed in nature and enchanted by their stories of fairies, Leshy, and other mythical beings. This blend of scientific curiosity and folkloric wonder laid the foundation for my passion for world-building. Whether designing alien species or fantasy creatures, I strive to ground them in biological and anatomical logic, making the fantastical feel real. But my interests also include comic book art, writing graphic novels, and animation. Born in 1995, just after the Soviet Union’s collapse, I experienced a cultural shift as American media became widely accessible. Western cartoons and animated films left a deep mark on me, fueling my desire to become an illustrator and storyteller, with animation becoming a central influence in how I develop characters and narratives.

The world of Oominor began as a personal escape, something I started building at 18, never intending it to become anything more. Growing up in a post-Soviet country, I was surrounded by a restrictive political climate, where freedom of expression was and still is discouraged, homophobia and sexism are normalized, and government surveillance was an everyday reality. As I grew older, I became increasingly aware of the injustices around me and realized that the ideologies being promoted contradicted everything I believed in. Freedom, the ability to exist without fear, was something my country denied people like me. In response, Oominor became my refuge, a world where I could breathe freely, ideas were not censored, and identity was not a crime.

Web: www.roofeaturescreatures.org/
Instagram:  @roojoeus 
E-mail: [email protected] 

 

 

 

Siqi is an illustrator and designer based in Shenzhen, China, currently pursuing her MFA in Illustration at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Her work blends humor and geometric abstraction, bringing satirical narratives to life through bold colors and playful characters. With a background in finance, she bridges storytelling and strategy, expanding her practice into branding, packaging, merchandising, and visual identity design.

Oddie Dokie is a character-driven project, featuring eight quirky characters, each with an odd hobby that first invites criticism but ultimately proves its value in surprising ways. The body of work presents one illustration per character, capturing the most hilarious moment of their story. 

Web: www.siqi-gao.com
Instagram: @siqi_gao_art
E-mail: [email protected]

Weiyi Yan, first an illustrator, then a brand designer, Shenzhen-based. My work often revolves around exploring the tranquility of nature and investigating the relationship between humans' societal and philosophical roles with both the natural world and social environments. In this process, I prefer using media with strong, tactile brushstrokes, such as pencil, crayon, and acrylic. Even in digital art, I tend to choose tools that emphasize bold strokes.

My creative inspiration comes from both the external world and my inner emotional landscape. Externally, I observe the subtle changes in nature—how clouds shift in form, how sunlight casts shadows on mountain ridges, or the layers that fallen leaves create on the ground. Internally, I attuned to my emotions, carefully contemplating what I truly want to express at the moment: What am I feeling right now? What colors resonate with this emotion? How can I express this feeling through a particular style or format? This process of observation and reflection helps lay the emotional foundation for my work.

Free sketching serves as the most important and enjoyable step when I begin creating. Using seemingly chaotic lines to express my initial emotions; at this stage, the emotions flow directly from my heart to my fingers, without interference from my thoughts or any conscious effort. I aim to amplify and communicate my emotions, using visual language to convey a range of complex and authentic feelings to the audience. I am especially passionate about combining elements of Buddhist philosophy, the rhythm of nature, the fragility and beauty of living beings, and the comprehension of society.

My brushstrokes are filled with emotion, and I hope to record the most precious aspects of life through them. As a recorder of life, I carry a desire to preserve the small yet beautiful moments of the world around me. Even though my illustrations are simple, they have become an essential part of what I adore and enjoy in life.

藏 HiWild
—— A self-generated herbal brand that explores a new, aesthetic way of making a connection between humans and the hidden healing power of nature.

藏 HiWild is a conceptual herbal brand I created based on my personal preferences and curiosity. The Chinese character “藏” (cáng) means “to hide” or “to treasure,” highlighting both the rarity and the preciousness of the ten traditional herbs I’ve selected - which grow deep within China’s remote mountains, hidden from plain sight.

The name “HiWild” is a playful abbreviation of “Hide in Wild.” When combined with its Chinese meaning, it reflects not only the mysterious origins of these herbs but also my intention to challenge the perception that traditional herbal medicine is outdated or stuck in the past.

Through this project, I break away from the stereotypical image many people - especially international viewers - have of Chinese herbs: dry, dusty bundles sitting on dim shelves, sealed in foggy glass jars and wooden boxes, or paired with overly familiar and somber symbols like yin-yang and tai chi. These are visuals I frequently encounter in Chinatown’s herbal stores, and they feel disconnected from the vitality that these herbs actually represent. Therefore, my visual thesis aims to reimagine the way people perceive Chinese herbs, using elegant, fresh, and creative illustrations and design to bring them to modern life. I want them to feel vivid, approachable, and contemporary - not just relics of tradition, but living knowledge with relevance today. I hope to make this ancient system of medicine feel more accessible, engaging, and loved.

HiWild is my personal exploration of brand storytelling. I challenged myself to build an identity open to interpretation - whether it’s about nature, the ongoing evolution of the brand story, or the deep connections we share through healing plants and other spiritual sources. Maybe it’s time to give new ideas that ‘hide in the wild’ a fresh perspective.

Web: www.weiyiyan.cargo.site/
Instagram: @weindyiyan (personal) @lingyuanshanhai (artwork)
E-mail: [email protected]