For 62 years, the RMCAD community has gathered to celebrate the creativity of our students and honor the outstanding achievements of the winners in a variety of media. Dating all the way back to when RMCAD was the Rocky Mountain School of Art or RMSA, and was located in Denver’s Capital Hill neighborhood, this time honored tradition was first created by RMCAD’s founder Philip J. Steele. A lot has changed over more than six decades, but the recognition of impeccable student artwork certainly hasn’t.
On Friday, October 3, 2025, students, faculty, and excited members of the community gathered in the Philip J. Steele Gallery and online to commend the work of this year’s students. Sixty two students showcased over 100 original works of art in the annual exhibition, but 12 walked away with a juried award honoring their creativity, and execution. A few of those winners shared their thoughts on what it means to be recognized in the legacy of this exhibition.
Ziann Clemons
Award in Foundations for ‘Untitled’
For many artists in the 62nd Annual Student Exhibition, the show marks the first time they are sharing their art with the wider community. Such as Ziann Clemons, who shared that they were “both delighted and deeply thankful” to win the award for Foundations for their piece ‘Untitled.’ Clemons wowed judges and showed their fresh perspective by imbuing ‘Untitled’ with a wealth of personal experience.
“I’ve always believed that as an artist and designer, I am, above all, a collaborator. I take the lessons and experiences from my education, fuse them with observations from my travels, and work to be the connection between the diverse characteristics of traditional garments from around the world.” This philosophy is clearly on display in ‘Untitled’, which was inspired by Clemons’ time in Seoul, South Korea. They shared that “watching my beautiful younger cousins wear their hanboks—a moment that solidified the importance of honoring these traditions while giving them new life.”
Gavin LaCasse
Award in Illustrative Design for ‘Paper Art’
Another takeaway from this year’s exhibition was to keep things simple. Gavin Lacasse, shared that “Winning the award for Illustrative Design means a lot to me. I still view myself as a beginner artist and I was hesitant to submit my work in the first place, but I decided to take the opportunity anyway.” His piece ‘Paper Art’ is a minimalist design that utilizes bright colors, an astute eye for lighting, and clean line work to bring his illustrations to life. LaCasse’s design was inspired by the work of paper artist and animator, Eric Power, calling him “an underrated artist worth checking out.”
The young artist went on to say that “I’m trying to do that as much as I can while I’m at RMCAD because I want to grow as an artist and get my work out there. So just having my work accepted into the Philip J. Steele Gallery was an important opportunity. Winning the award is a great accomplishment because it recognizes all the hard work I put into my pieces.”
Kendall Mingo
Award in Music Production for ‘Life Sentence’
When asked about the process that led them to create their song ‘Life Sentence,’ Kendall Mingo responded “My process has simply been life itself.” Mingo opened up about how their music career was largely influenced by losing their father and the difficulties that followed. Music offered a much needed escape, saying “listening to songs helped for a while, but it wasn’t enough, I needed to create. That’s why I pour everything I have into what I do.”
They shared that “everything I’ve been through comes out in my words. I’ve always been a quiet person, but I’ve learned to speak louder through my art.” The process of bringing this music to life has “been an emotional journey, and through all the breakdowns and challenges, I’ve channeled it all into my music and education.” Mingo wished to thank their band, the jury, and “everyone who took the time to listen.”
Leo Akers
Award in Fine Arts for ‘When They Were Kind (Baby’s First Quilt)’
As a senior in RMCAD’s Fine Arts program, Leo Akers says that Winning the Best in Fine Arts award was “certainly unexpected, but it is a moment I have been hoping for over the past three years.” The piece is certainly a profound culmination of their time at RMCAD as it was a final project for Akers’ Printmaking II class, they even called it “both nostalgic and bittersweet.” The artwork invokes the early years of their life “As the only girl on the paternal side of my family, I was immortalized until the age of 6, when I noticed a distinct loss of kindness shown towards me.”
The 16 by 16 pixel grid quilt depicts Akers’ face as a toddler and includes tags that replicate that of stuffed animals, and 54 screen-printed photos of their childhood. Aker shared that “I have chosen to exclude photos of me with anyone from the paternal side of my family, as their disrespect for me has only grown as I have grown up.” Through this curation of childhood memories, Aker’s rewrote their story to “fill it with love rather than indifference. I have since stepped away from that side of my family, and having this quilt be recognized for its technique and narrative feels gratifying and validating.”
Aerial Celestine
Award in Fashion Design for ‘Rediscovering Me: A Journey Through Identity’
“Fashion gives me a voice—like a poet uses words or a painter uses paint, I use fabric to tell my story in a way words simply can’t,” says fashion design student, Ariel Celestine. ‘Rediscovering Me: A Journey Through Identity’is a three-piece collection by Celestine. As the name might lead you to believe, the articles that Celestine designed are reflections on her perception of self. “For years, my identity was centered around being a mother and caregiver, but through this collection, I reconnected with the parts of myself I had set aside,” shared the designer.
Celestine credits the pieces with helping to personally transform and chronicle her “evolution of identity through distortion, confusion, and self-discovery.” She was inspired by famed neo-expressionist painter Jean-Michel Basquiat’s self-portraits. “I used fragmented silhouettes and layered textures to symbolize that journey of reclaiming individuality.
Mackenzie Neuman
Award in Illustration for ‘Messages’
‘Messages’ was originally conceptualized by Mackenzie Neuman for a studio seminar course. In it, she reflects the power of protest through “the bravery and unity of people fighting for their rights through the use of colors.” In the piece, the foundational imagery she learned in her coursework is not only utilized but recontextualized to share a powerful message about using your voice as an artist to enact change in the world.
She shared that “the skills I learned from that studio seminar course, like thumbnail making, really helped my creative process.” Neuman wanted to thank her teacher and her family for the support she received not only during ‘Messages’ but all the projects that led her there.
Olivia McDonough
Award in Photography for ‘Face the Feeling’
Similarly, Olivia McDonough’s ‘Face the Feeling’ series is also a reflection on the artist’s unique “creative processes to expressing thoughts, feelings, and stories.” McDonough, who has always been inspired by everything from makeup and fashion to theatrical techniques, blends media in her photographic work to pay homage to her many inspirations and curate a creative voice full of texture and nuance.
McDonough’s wealth of inspiration is visible in ‘Face of Feeling’ through both photography and fashion techniques. “Creating art not only on the model but also through a camera is something I will definitely continue to pursue throughout my career.” They also wanted to thank the hard work and support of “Jake Koenig and Leandra Hausle for helping me bring this project to life!”
Laura Molloy
Award in Graphic Design for ‘Marie Curie Poster’
Every so often, a piece of art comes along that not only embodies a single person’s achievements but also an entire discipline. In Laura Molloy’s ‘Marie Curie Poster,’ she captures the achievements and legacy of the titular scientist who made many of the early breakthroughs in the research of radioactivity. “I started with researching Marie Curie, her biography, and her Nobel Prize awards. After a few sketches, I decided on this layout,” stated Molloy.
From there it wasn’t just about creating a likeness of Curie, but representing her innovative research with an engaging visual flourish. “I experimented with fonts and colors to represent her awards related to radioactivity and radium. The illustrations I added help to visualize her scientific achievements while also adding to the visual appeal of my poster. I added “radium” splatters with bright green as a part of the background to emphasize the scientific icons in the center.”
Nakiyah Martin
Award in 2D Animation for ‘Lights Out Little Star’
For some artists, their work in the 62nd Annual Student Exhibition represents a second chance at perfecting an existing work, such as Nakiyah Martin’s ‘Lights Out Little Star.’ According to Martin, the piece was “a slight rework of a final project in a sound design class. The sound design and characters were inspired by classic cartoons that utilize music to drive the story.”
Harkening back to some of the first animated shorts such as Looney Tunes’ ‘Merrie Melodies’, Martin imbues an iterative quality into their work, building on the past beautifully. Not only are they showcasing the growth in their own animation but also the evolution of the medium itself over the last century. They share that winning the award in 2D animation has inspired them to keep “working towards my goals of becoming a professional storyboard artist.”
Miles Lopez
RMCAD Award for Creativity for ‘Lavender Lads’
For many RMCAD students, history is a common thread in their work. Miles Lopez, winner of the ‘RMCAD Award for Creativity’ for their piece ‘Lavender Lads,’ shared how the piece was made to “showcase queer joy and the strength that queer people have had throughout history.” The title of the piece is in reference to the bravery of the people who stood up against the ‘Lavender Scare,’ a movement which aimed at blackballing members of the LGBTQ+ community from serving in the government. “I wanted to portray the gift that our queer ancestors have given us through their fight and struggles. Because of their resistance and fights I am able to create queer looks for a runway as a trans hispanic man.”
By recontextualizing vintage silhouettes to make them modern, Lopez pays tribute to the queer icons of the past and how they led us to the present, without indulging in nostalgia of a turbulent period in history. “The goal of my designs is to remind people of their strength and to urge us to continue our communities’ resilience. I conducted research into the history of the lavender lads and clothing of that era.” Lopez is honored to be recognized for their creativity and research, they will use this win as “momentum to tell more stories.”
Caitlyn Dolphin
Gallery Director Award for ‘Suits and Ranks’
For ‘Gallery Director Award’ winner Caitlyn Dolphin, patience is a virtue. According to her, she was thinking about the piece ‘Suits and Ranks’ “for over two years before I finally got the chance to execute it.” Over that time, she meticulously considered every detail of her take on a classic house of cards, working on getting everything just right. “The ornate blue design is something I created by repeatedly mirroring the pattern of a chip magnet over itself. The faces of the royalty cards were all drawn by me. Our printmaking teacher, Alicia McKim, walked me through making a custom registration system to fit each credit card and easily switch between designs.”
Dolphin says she was inspired to create a piece that encouraged audiences to interact with the space around her work, sharing that at the exhibition’s opening she “saw viewers dance around the pedestal, being careful not to move in a way that would disrupt the house of cards.” Dolphin’s work is so successful because of her keen eye for curation and knowledge of how audiences will interact with art on display. As such, she went on to thank gallery director, Rob Evans, saying, “having my work recognized by someone who consistently curates such high-quality exhibitions meant the world to me.”
Exhibitions aren’t just a celebration of a handful of winners, but a recognition of an entire collective of artists who compete not for an award, but for the sake of inspiring one another. As any one of the winners in the 62nd Annual Student Exhibition will tell you, it takes a village of family, friends, and educators to get an artist to that point. The unparalleled creativity and dedication that goes into each and every show is a testament not only to the students whose work is exhibited but to the communities who have helped them get there. To view the most recent work of RMCAD’s students, head over to the galleries page and check out the virtual exhibitions from the comfort of your home.
Think You Have What it Takes to be a Winner?
If you want to see your work in the next Annual Student Exhibition, you can’t compete if you don’t submit. At Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design, thousands of students are creating new and innovative work everyday to inspire their classmates on-campus and online. Study in one of RMCAD’s Bachelor of Fine Arts programs in areas ranging from Fine Arts and Interior Design, to Animation and Music Production. Learn more about joining this thriving creative community by requesting information today!
