!alarts
Print, Identity, Exhibition, Publication
Part of MFA Graphic Design Thesis CalArts
This grassroots project draws on past acts of resistance while engaging in an ongoing conversation about CalArts’ history of financial exploitation. It highlights well-known movements like @calartswithout as well as lesser-known moments, preserving them as part of a broader tradition of institutional critique. The project captures shared frustrations and calls for greater transparency, equity, and accountability.
The entire project is documented in a book that serves as both an archive and a call to action. See more at @alarts_calarts
It takes the form of nine fill-in-the-blank risographed posters, overprinted with anonymous responses collected through a survey conducted in late 2024. More than 400 posters were created.
The project is documented in two editions: a 450-page risograph hardcover and black-and-white paperback. It features writing and research on tuition records, board meetings, past protests, and legal threats, alongside the complete poster collection.
Credits:
Photography: Rafael Hernandez, Kat Ispache, Lucas Van Cott.
Poster Installation: Kat Ispache, Mariama Sesay, Brionne Zamrii-Garland, Christina Monterrosa.
Book Production: Alaast Kamalabadi, Zach Roberts.
Special thanks to the many faculty and staff who shared their experiences, institutional history, and documentation, with particular gratitude to Rafael Hernandez for generously sharing his personal photographic archives.