This year, the graduating students of Otis College of Art and Design will be celebrated with an exciting Virtual Commencement Ceremony on May 15th, 2021 at 6:00 p.m. PT. There will be speeches by President Charles Hirschhorn, Provost Jiseon Lee Isbara, Board of Trustees Chair Mei Lee Ney, Honorary Doctorate Recipient Lauren Halsey, and Valedictorian Khang Nguyen, among others.
Members of the Otis Community of faculty, staff, alumnx, friends, and family will be able to enjoy the commencement ceremony on YouTube Live. Be sure to tune in for the livestream at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 15, or watch a replay of the ceremony, both via the video above.
About Commencement Speaker Lauren Halsey:
Los Angeles-born and based artist and activist, Lauren Halsey, will be receiving an honorary degree and delivering the 2021 commencement address. While Halsey’s work has been shown and installed at such venues as the Hammer Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art, it has been her more recent community work in South L.A. that has been keeping her busy. As the founder of Summaeverythang Community Center, Halsey spearheaded an effort last March, at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, to provide fresh, organic fruit and produce to underserved communities in the city. Of the project, Halsey said: “I was looking forward to opening Summaeverythang—located next door to my studio—in late summer/fall, but Corona stopped that. So, I started thinking of ways to engage the ideologies and thesis of the community center with the community, outside of the physical space.” Read the full story.
About Valedictorian Khang Nguyen:
Many at Otis know Khang Nguyen (’21 BFA Communication Arts) through his face- and body-painting art, which he shares on his Instagram account (@khangphinn) and has demonstrated during Halloween and other (pre-pandemic) campus events. His work includes fantastical trompe l’oeils and intricate character studies based on manga, fantasy, horror, and other genres. He transferred to Otis from DeAnza College near San Jose after visiting several art and design schools. “I liked Otis the most because it is small yet gave me such a welcoming feeling,” he says. Read the full story.
Be sure to also check out the 2021 Virtual Annual Exhibition Website
Otis College is proud to launch its Annual Exhibition 2021 website featuring the work of our extraordinary 2021 BFA and MFA graduates. We invite you to experience the work of our graduating class through the department landing pages and the accompanying student galleries. We also invite you to participate in the related virtual events. We hope that you will reach out to students with career opportunities, check out their portfolio websites, and follow them on social media. This year there is also an All Students section of the site that allows you to filter students by majors, areas of emphasis, minors, and other useful tags.