The Senior Art Exhibition is open until May 4 and features the work of seniors graduating this semester who are art, art education, graphic design, or art history majors. 

Cooper Folkestad '25 received the Best in Show award for his digital photographs titled “The Blinders.” His work explores identity and racial discrimination through self-portraits. 

“With these self-portraits, I invite viewers into uncomfortable spaces, where the weight of being Black in rural Midwest becomes palpable,” Folkestad wrote in the description of his work. “Each image serves as an expression of the internal struggles I navigate daily: the subtle and overt tensions of existing in environments where I am often the only one who looks like me, where my very presence challenges unspoken norms, and where my identity is constantly in flux, shaped by external perceptions and internal reckonings.”

 

The composition of each shot is meant to evoke the emotional and physical unease that Folkestad feels on a daily basis. He specifically calls attention to the tightness of each shot, the harsh lighting, the black and white medium, and how he is positioned with the other subjects. 

“Each detail is designed to provoke discomfort, to put the viewer in a space in which they are forced to feel what it is like to endure the weight of discrimination,” he said. “Through these images, I hope to invite dialogue, where the negative moments of my life become the catalyst for change, understanding, and shared humanity.”

The public reception of the Senior Art Exhibition will be from 5-6:30 p.m. Saturday, May 3. There will be special hours 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday, May 4.

 

Written by Alyssa Czernek '25