Career insights: Bridge Work offers students professional guidance

The “Bridge Work: Ten Years of Making” exhibition on view at MIAD has offered not only a showcase of creativity and professional accomplishments by 23 recent BFA graduates, but also a unique opportunity for current students to learn from them and build a plan for their own careers.

The 23 exhibiting artists were among 30 who participated in the Plum Blossom Initiative (PBI) founded ten years ago by MIAD Professor and artist Jason S. Yi and curator Leah Kolb to help recent BFA graduates transition into a professional studio practice. Each year, three promising Milwaukee-based artists receive free studio space and artist-in-residence benefits at Var Gallery and Studios, feedback and multiple opportunities to introduce their work to the public through talks and exhibitions.

The retrospective MIAD exhibition included a panel discussion at the Milwaukee Art Museum with past participants and portfolio reviews of current students’ by the panelists: Julia Bradfish and MIAD alumni Phoenix S. Brown ’19, Dominic Chambers ‘16, Chad Alexander Matha ’24 and Lindsey Yeager ‘21. Exhibition events also included curator tours with Yi and guidance in hanging and installing exhibitions.

“Student interest in the portfolio reviews was very strong, drawing participation from multiple majors,” says MIAD Fine Arts Professor Jon Horvath, who conceived and orchestrated the reviews with First-Year Experience faculty Zuhal Feraidon. “Multiple students shared with me their appreciation for the review process, which allowed them to more concretely envision their futures and the challenges they might face post-graduation. To have that information, while current students still have months and years remaining in school, allows them to gain greater clarity in how to strategize and build a plan for when they ultimately graduate.”

“There is misinformation about being an artist,” Yi says. “I wanted to debunk the notion of ‘starving artist.’ While it takes hard work and perseverance to succeed as an artist, it is no different than many other professions. All of the Bridge Work participating artists are successful in their way, still making art and engaging their communities positively.”

“The panelists often spoke with empathy, talking about the difficulties, the challenges, the moments of pride that they had in their practice,” says Monica Miller, MIAD Director of Galleries and Community Engagement. “They spoke about how they work with collectors, how they work with galleries, how do they consider sales, who do they sell to?”

“[W]e have to remember that, especially for our students, some of these folks just graduated a year ago. And that could be them. They, too, could have a practice that has a complete sort of voice that stands out among ten years of excellence.”

“Bridge Work” was made possible with generous support from the Jacques & Natasha Gelman Foundation, Var Gallery & Studios, Milwaukee Art Museum and Saint Kate – The Arts Hotel. “Bridge Work” is on view until March 8, 2025 in MIAD’s Frederick Layton Gallery.