Written by: Rebecca Straits (Rjs006@marietta.edu)
With the start of the 2026 spring semester here at Marietta College comes an end to 2025 and the
graduation of many of the college’s seniors, notably the seniors in the graphic design and studio
art program, as they showcase their capstones in the Hermann Fine Arts Center. The Capstones showcase a variety of art forms from textile to digital illustration and even apps. The showcase will last from January 13th to March 16th, 2026, in the Atrium Gallery on the third floor of the Hermann Fine Arts Center and is open to the public from 9:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.
The reception for the Art & Design Capstone Exhibition Reception is set for Saturday, January 31st from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the Artrium Gallery in the third floor of the Hermannn Fine Arts Center.
Artists and their artworks are as follows:
Rika Nakasuji – “Crocheting Nature”
Rika Nakasuji’s “Crocheting Nature” is a tapestry made of 108 individually crocheted granny squares. The work features a variety of crocheted leaves and flora someone would find here in Marietta; they are purposely placed across the tapestry, guiding viewers’ eyes from the top right to the bottom left of the piece. The use of different colored granny squares is both eye-catching and perfectly imperfect, much like the nature that inspired the art piece.
Aethyr McDonald – “Tropes Reimagined”
“Tropes Reimagined” by Aethyr McDonald is a collection of digital illustrations featuring original character designs centered around video game tropes, most notably the tropes of the hero, the villain, the damsel in distress, the mentor, and the sidekick. The story of the characters
takes place in a science fiction world of humans and cyborgs where corruption and greed run rampant. McDonald’s specific use of color and stance, along with the small descriptions that coincide with each character, helps pull viewers into the sci-fi world they have created for these characters.
Gabe Sloter – “Derailed Distillery”
Gabe Sloter’s capstone, “Derailed Distillery,” is centered around the visual image of his family’s distillery and consists of a variety of logos and bottle labels for the family business. Mr. Sloter’s capstone is captivating in its uniqueness. Onlookers can clearly see Sloter’s entrepreneurship and graphic design abilities in his capstone. The Victorian-inspired designs of the logos and bottle labels provide an elegant overlay to the brand, and the use of color is noteworthy, specifically the forest green, gold, and white of the bottle label that complements the amber color of the whisky.
Phoebe Smith – “The Feather”
“The Feather” is a clothing brand designed and created by Phoebe Smith. For her capstone project, Ms. Smith created a brand shaped around the rowing community. Combining her love for the sport and her graphic design knowledge, she creates a visually appealing geometric maze
like graphic style, incorporating rowing terminology such as “Croxswain” and “Don’t catch a crab,” making a niche but relightable brand for rowers.
Mary Turner – “Hively”
Mary Turner’s app “Hively” is by beekeepers for beekeepers. As she made an app for her beekeeping community. Ms. Turner’s app focuses on documenting and social/community aspects of beekeeping. Around the capstone were a variety of fun bee facts and even a man-made beehive. The app showcased in the capstone is just a prototype, but features tracking, mapping, and basic social media, and information videos, making her unique projects into something useful and convenient for beekeepers.
Jazlyn Ingold – “Fragmented Skies”
“Fragmented Skies” by Jazlyn Ingold is a collection of oil on canvas paintings featuring the Erwin clock tower. The paintings come in a variety of colors, textures, and sizes, and together each canvas adds a piece to the puzzle that is “Fragmented Skies”. Ms. Ingold’s capstone is
meant to showcase the themes of reflection and change that come with college and graduation, and she achieves this with the symbol of the clock tower and the many different skies represented in this collection.
Renee Mulvaney – “Studiio”
Renee Mulvaney’s “Studiio” is a single-platform mobile app for creatives to come together, collaborate, develop ideas, and inspire other artists. The features a homepage, community page, and research page. In the center of the capstone was a painting crafted using the app titled “Art
Nouveau Muse”. The painting’s focal point is a woman surrounded by flowers and swirls inspired by Mucha’s Art Nouveau style.
Marietta College’s Art and Design 2026 Capstone Exhibition will be open to the public till March 2, 2026, in the Atrium Gallery on the third floor of the Hermann Fine Art Center. There will also be a Cloth and Connection exhibition from February 10 to April 23, 2026, and an artist reception on March 20, 2026, from 4-5:30 pm in Gallery 310 in the Atrium Gallery. You can find out more about Gallery exhibitions on their website here: Gallery Hours and Locations | Marietta College.
Edited by: Zachary Worstell (zdw001@marietta.edu)
