Departmental Awards and Honors - Spring 2024
We enthusiastically congratulate you, the Class of 2024 Art, Art History, and Film Majors and Minors! Your college career took an unexpected turn when the pandemic hit, but you have responded with creativity, compassion, courage, inquisitiveness, and resilience. Learning and creating in community with you has strengthened us all. We applaud you for your intellectual, creative, and personal achievements during your entire career at Boston College.
Richard and Marianne W. Martin Memorial Award
In recognition of high academic and creative achievement in Art History in this year of 2020. Established by the Boston College Friends of Art, this award is given annually in memory of Marianne W. Martin, Professor of Art History at Boston College from 1976-1989, and her husband Richard.
Sindey Amar
Art History
“Sindey Amar is unafraid to investigate big questions. What is the difference between art and other forms of material culture? What criteria establish “quality” in a work of art? How do social class and taste affect cultural hierarchies? These are just a few of the many issues that Sindey has probed in classroom discussions, seminar papers, and independent research. She exemplifies what it means to be a student scholar, guided by curiosity and a willingness to challenge conventional wisdom. Sindey’s ability to work between big ideas and detailed analysis of material evidence is truly exceptional, making her eminently deserving of this honor."
- Oliver Wunsch
Jia Yan
Studio Arts
“Jia Yan’s work over the last 4 years has evolved into a poetic hybrid practice which spans ceramics, sculpture, installation, and calligraphic drawing. Ever expanding in its search to find forms to express the fragile, the hidden, the complicated, Jia is a prolific maker who creates delicate multiples of porcelain flowers, tiles, scholars’ rocks. Her installation of objects engages Chinese creation myths and the pain of gender discrimination that Chinese women have experienced, and creates a space where vulnerabilities can be safely explored. Inspired by Nushu , a hidden language developed 400 years ago by women in region of northern Jiangyong County in Hunan Prrovince to allow them to communicate and support each other without men’s knowledge , Jia’s work is rooted in a profound hope in the ability of art-making and poetry play in our collective and personal healing. We thank her for creating work which helps us overcome the linguistic and cultural barriers to connection, and wish her every blessing as she pursues a career in law."
- Professor Sheila Gallagher
Allison R. Macomber, Jr. Award
This award was established and supported by gifts from the Horbach Fund for outstanding work in the Fine Arts in honor of Allison R. Macomber, Jr., Artist-in-Residence at Boston College.
Marielle Caparso
Art History
“Marielle Caparso has devoted the last four years to developing her art historical and critical methodology both in the classroom and in her larger role within the cultural landscape of Boston College. What is so striking about Marielle—beyond her advanced command of feminist-queer and psychoanalytic forms of art historical research—is her sustained, intense commitment to a rigorous form of self-questioning, which extends to her own writing, speaking, and even to her own thinking: this—her allegiance to critical self-reflection—is what makes her, in this art historian’s mind, a true Modernist. Marielle’s disciplined self-questioning was on full display in her thesis project, which developed a longstanding interest in the work of contemporary artist Sharon Hayes. Hayes’s own strategies of historical reflection, research, and memorialization rhyme with Marielle’s way of working and thinking. In other words, Marielle has already entered the fray, where she has placed herself alongside some of the most crucial thinkers, artists, and writers of the contemporary moment."
- Professor Kevin Lotery
Kelly Guzman
Art History
“Kelly has been a stand-out student in our department since her Freshman year. In addition to excelling in all of her art history courses, Kelly has distinguished herself through her extracurricular museum work. An Art History major with a concentration in Museum Studies, she has held several internships at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, including in the highly selective MFA Ambassador Program. She was also chosen among many applicants to present her research on Jan van Ravesteyn’s Double Portrait of Jacqueline and Henrica Brouart of 1628 at the Boston are Visual Culture Consortium Student Symposium at the MFA in April 2024. Her paper, condensed from her senior thesis, provides a fresh analysis of this enigmatic painting of two toddlers in fancy dress, arguing that the children reflect their parents’ high status in society, as well as being representations of fleeting youth. Kelly plans to peruse a career that combines her interests in art history and management in what will surely be a promising career."
- Professor Aurelia Campbell
Won-Woo Lee
Studio Arts
"It has been an honor to know Won-woo (Kyle) Lee, and to witness the development of his art practice. Since his introduction to Photography, Won-woo has proven himself to be an extremely precise technician of the medium. Over time he has merged his technical talent with deeply conceptual projects that interrogate how we move through modern architecture and space. He seamlessly works within a lineage of minimalist art movements while addressing urgent contemporary topics. He is a key figure in the department's Photo darkroom culture, and is always willing to lend a helping hand to his classmates. The photo area has grown tremendously through his presence and enthusiasm. Congratulations!"
- Jonathan Jackson
Jeffery Howe Art History Award
This award, established by the Boston College Arts Council in 2011 to honor Professor Howe’s outstanding service to the Arts at BC, recognizes a Boston College senior who has demonstrated outstanding scholarship in the area of art or architectural history.
Megan Streeter
Art History
“Megan Streeter perfectly exemplifies Professor Jeff Howe's enthusiasm for the history of art. From the start of her undergraduate career, she has shown a strong passion for and commitment to art history in her classwork, her study abroad experience, her work as a Student Ambassador at the McMullen Museum, and her decision to write a thesis and present it at the Art History Senior Symposium. Though it would be limiting to isolate just one of Megan’s projects from her larger contribution to art and culture at Boston College, one must point to her senior thesis on the 1960s work of Carolee Schneemann. A sustained meditation on Schneemann’s longstanding, and somewhat surprising, commitment to the discipline and tradition of painting, Megan’s text moves with ease between the artist’s infinitely complex painting-constructions and her hybrid performances, readings, and films. Megan’s drive to complicate, debate, and above all, collaborate, is evident as much in her generous approach to the art of the past as it is in her relationships with her peers at BC, whether in the classroom or the gallery."
- Kevin Lotery and Stephanie Leone
Cinematography Award
This award is given in recognition of excellence in cinematography in the Film Studies Program.
Jade Rosser
Film Studies
“"Jade Rosser, from the very first class, was always quiet and reserved. She let her film assignments speak for her. And boy, did they have a lot to say..."
- Robert Heim
Mary Armstrong Award
This award was created in honor of Mary A. Armstrong (1948-2020), who taught painting and drawing at Boston College for thirty years, to recognize a student who has developed an artistic practice of outstanding quality, and who presents the highest level of commitment and personal involvement with his/her work.
Caroline Burke
Studio Art
“Caroline’s paintings are deeply informed by her studies in applied psychology, particularly the notion that people can achieve fulfillment when they feel seen, heard, respected, and cared for. Caroline has experienced that for herself through artmaking and hopes that viewers may wonder about their own inner needs as they engage with her paintings. In her body of work, “Emergence”, Caroline uses water as a leitmotif that has long served as a symbol of life, wisdom, transformation, and the unconscious mind. I had the pleasure of working with Caroline in three of my courses, witnessing her growth as a visual artist among her student peers. During critiques in particular, Caroline stood out as her warm nature allowed her to give and receive feedback in constructive and insightful ways. For these and many other reasons, we are proud to present the Mary Amstrong award to Caroline Burke."
- Professor Sammy Chong
Screenwriting Award
This award is given in recognition of excellence in screenwriting in the Film Studies Program.
Kimberly Black
Film Studies
“Kimberly Black has shown an exceptional ability to craft well rounded characters and story in the art of screenwriting. Her keen understanding of character development, storytelling structure and the process of rewriting makes her the perfect recipient of the Boston College Screenwriting award. Kimberly was a thoughtful and kind classmate and a true pleasure to have in class. I wish her all the best in her bright future."
- Professor Mary Conroy
Costa-Gavras Social Justice Award
Costa-Gavras, director of socially conscious films such as Z, The Confession, Missing, and Amen, has provoked his international audiences to reflect more deeply about issues of social justice. This award in his name acknowledges the work of a graduating Senior in Film Studies who follows in his footsteps with an original film on an issue of social justice.
Madeleine Bamberger
Film Studies
“Madeleine Bamberger's documentary film "Faces of Palermo" offers a critical glimpse into the various points of view held on immigration in Italy. Like the thousands of immigrants arriving each year into the port of Sicily, viewers experience Palermo's colorful and lively streets through Bamberger's cinematography. Her unfiltered interviews with Sicilians voicing support of migrants, juxtaposed against xenophobic headlines covering the airwaves of Italy, remind us of the complexities of this important issue."
- Prof. Michael Rossi
Excellence in Editing
Eshiv Garg
Film Studies
“Eshiv Garg a talented editor with an eye for detail and a flow to his storytelling. He captures the audience with his style, timing and sequencing and creates engaging films that we can delight in viewing."
- Prof. Kris Brewer
Directing Award
This award is given in recognition of excellence in directing in the Film Studies Program.
Tyler Day
Film Stuides
“Tyler skillfully wrote, directed, and did the camera work for "The Promotion," a slick neo-noir parody set in the corporate world. His careful attention to black and white cinematography, evocative music, and a twisty plot perfectly captures the noir vibe. Tyler's direction drew out nuanced performances from the cast and staged complex scenes that seamlessly blend humor and drama."
- Professor. Laimir Fano
Mary Armstrong Award
This award was created in honor of Mary A. Armstrong (1948-2020), who taught painting and drawing at Boston College for thirty years, to recognize a student who has developed an artistic practice of outstanding quality, and who presents the highest level of commitment and personal involvement with his/her work.
Iria Gutierrez-Schieferal
“Through her rigorous studio art practice combined with her degree in neuroscience, Iria’s ”sophisticated series of paintings embodies what it means to use art to do a deep dive into one’s societal concerns, aesthetic passions, and personal unconscious. Mary Armstrong was a real “painters’ painter” and would be so pleased to see this award being given to Iria who devoted herself this year to understanding the language of paint and how it can be used to manifest some of the deepest unknowns. Iria has shown a dedication to expanding her visual language by looking closely at the work of other artists, and putting in the time to hone her craft . It has been a huge pleasure to work with Iria for many reasons, but her willingness to give and receive criticism with an open heart and a sharp intellect has made her an invaluable member of the senior class. We wish Iria all the best as she begins her graduate work in neuroscience at Georgetown University this fall.
- Professor Sheila Gallagher