91Porn

91Porn’s Department of Art + Design invites prospective students, the University community and the general public to its Fall Fest and Open House on Thursday, Sept. 25 from 6 - 9 p.m. in the Fine Arts Building, located on the Main Campus, 5500 North St. Louis Avenue in Chicago. is recommended.

“The Art + Design Fall Fest is a celebration of our creative community that supports and advances the talents of artists, designers, art historians and art educators,” said Chair of the Department of Art + Design Kim Ambriz. “Last year was our first Fall Fest and it had over 200 attendees. We’re hoping to have an even bigger turnout this year.”

Fall Fest will include interactive art activities throughout studio spaces, the opening receptions for both the studio art and graphic design juried exhibitions and an open house for prospective students. Food and refreshments will be provided.

Studio activities will be free and open to all skill levels. Highlights include:

• Photography: Create a cyanotype print with ultraviolet light.
• Drawing: Make a collage and transform it into a custom button.
• Sculpture: Design a wire sculpture on a wooden base.
• Fab Lab: Create your own anti-facial recognition glasses.
• Printmaking: Design and print the cover of your new sketchbook.

The Ceramics and Letterpress studios will also be open.

Work from Illinois community and junior college students will be on display in the juried exhibitions.

“The studio art exhibition aims to highlight a range of artistic disciplines and techniques that engage with contemporary concepts and themes,” Ambriz said. “The graphic design exhibit will showcase a range of approaches to visual communication through contemporary graphic design.”

The studio art exhibition will be juried by Chicago artist . Halpern earned a Master of Fine Arts in Painting and Drawing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, a Bachelor of Arts in Visual and Communication Design from Purdue University and an Associate’s degree in Fashion Studies from Parsons School of Design. Her work has been featured in Studio Visit Magazine (Vol. 53) and exhibited at Rushwoman, Yes Project Space at Zhou B Art Center, the Art Institute of Chicago, Julius Caesar Gallery, Color Club, Hyde Park Art Center, Woman Made Gallery, CNL Projects, Latin School Gallery, Parlour and Ramp, Northeastern’s Fine Arts Center Gallery and Ivory Gate Gallery.

The graphic design exhibit will be juried by , a designer, printmaker and Chicago-area design educator. Her work considers value, forms of labor and currency, language and the activity of self-publishing. Van Zee publishes books and other printed matter via the Risograph and her small press, . She calls the work of creating her publications “a sort of poetic knowledge construction,” and is interested in the altered relationship between designer and work when they are involved in all stages of production. Van Zee holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts and recently earned her Master of Design from the School of Design at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). Her publication work has been featured in the LA Printed Matter Art Book Fair, San Francisco Art Book Fair and the Detroit Art Book Fair, among others. In 2022, she was awarded a fellowship at UIC. In Spring 2025, Van Zee worked as the Artist in Residence at Northeastern. Her teaching practice encompasses a wide range of classes, but is especially focused on the areas of typography and 2D form. As an educator and practitioner she is interested in using writing and research as design tools and investigating design’s value assignments as well as its social implications.

“We are grateful and excited to have two outstanding professional Chicago-based artists serving as jurors for our student exhibitions,” Ambriz said. “It is so important for artists to get feedback from other artists in their field to help them hone their craft and grow in their practice.”

Ambriz said the goal of Fall Fest is not only to serve as a recruitment opportunity for prospective students, but as a way to bring the University community together to engage in visual arts.

“Through Fall Fest, my hope is that anyone — in the University or considering coming to Northeastern — can find a space where they can feel supported and embrace their creativity,” Ambriz said. “Everyone is welcome to attend, experience our state-of-the-art facilities — which include our two and the largest collection of Riso drums at any university in Chicago — and experience first-hand what the Department of Art + Design has to offer.” 

Top photo: Associate Chair of Northeastern's Department of Art + Design Nate Mathews creating a piece of visual art with a Polaroid photo during the 2024 Art + Design Fall Fest.