2024 Student Independent Exhibition
78th Annual

Now in its 78th year, the Student Independent Exhibition (SIE) is an honored tradition at the Cleveland Institute of Art. The exhibition showcases work from all areas—from visual arts and craft to digital art and design—all selected by jurors chosen by CIA students. Prizes are awarded during the opening reception thanks to generous donors.

An opening reception will be held from 6 to 9pm Friday, February 23 in Reinberger Gallery. During the reception, an awards ceremony will be held at 7pm in CIA's Peter B. Lewis Theater. The exhibition will remain on view through Sunday, April 7.

SIE 78 AWARDS: NAMED PRIZES

Sue Wall Painting Award
Gwen Canfield '26
"Worth His Weight"

Mary Ann and Jack Katzenmeyer Award for Outstanding Craft
Elly Arvizu '24
"Al Brutus"

David and Ann Deming Award
Bianca Curry-Naguit '26
"Peering"

Almut and Gary Zvosec Award
James Schaffer '25
"I Love My Trans Body"

Karen Skunta & Company Design Excellence Award
Karl Edwards '24
"The Joirma"

Trznadel Family Award
DD Patton '24
"Just Watching"

The Christopher Gentner Creativity Award
Claire Miles '26
"Then & Now"

The Douglas Dibble Creativity Award
Janoi Daley '24
"Cooking for my Nine-Nite"

The Nunes Family Prize
Janoi Daley '24
"Cooking for my Nine-Nite"

UB Greensfelder Award
Mason Kovacs '24
"Reliqueery"

Jurors’ Honorable Mention
Tristen Kovacs '24
"897"

SIE 78 AWARDS: BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRIZES

Board Grand Prize
Grace Robin '26
"red on white"

Board 2nd Prize
James Schaffer '25
"Bound"

Board 3rd Prize
Theadis Reagins '26
"O Judah!"

Board Honorable Mentions
Elly Arvizu '24
"Al Brutus"

Ashton Burton '26
"Graphite"

Karl Edwards '24
"The Jiorma"

Lillian Gomez '26
"Fragmented Memories"

Cale Ours '24
"Principled Cultivation"

Jazzalyn Palma '26
"21st"

SIE 78 JURORS

Bianca Fields is an artist living and working in Boston. She earned her BFA in Painting in 2019 from CIA. Her work has been showcased in the Armory Show with Steve Turner LA, Ruttkowski;68 Paris, L21 Gallery Spain and Frieze Art Fair London with Carl Freedman Gallery. Fields creates paintings that survey and challenge the depiction of the 21st century black female body in action. Re-examining and reflecting on beauty and identity, her manipulation of the image of the monkey recalls both pop cultural phenomena and vintage cartoons, alongside her very own likeness and realm of cultural experience.

Ali Hval is a visual artist currently living and working in Iowa City, Iowa. She is currently a Lecturer in Painting and Drawing at the University of Iowa. She earned her MFA from the University of Iowa in Painting and Drawing with honors, and BFA in Painting from the University of Alabama with honors. Her work merges ceramic, fabric, installation, and painting. The forms and materials she uses reflect her interest in adornment and the relentless critique and politicization of the body.

Haley Josephs draws inspiration from notions of transformation, mortality and femininity. She paints solitary figures in fantastical yet foreboding environments that transcend time and space. A recurring character within Josephs' work is the artist's late sister, who is often evoked in bold, almost daring, portraits that amalgamate intimate and personal narratives of the artist with the universal human condition. Her enigmatic paintings are colorful and whimsical yet also present a dark twist. An underlying sense of power and balance pervades her works, hinting a moment of liberation from one’s ostensibly everlasting psychological conflicts.

Denis Sarazhin was born in Nikopol, Ukraine. He attended the Kharkov Art and Design Academy, graduating in 2008. He specialized in painting and was a pupil of Ganozkiy V. L., Chaus V. N., and Vintayev V. N. Sarazhin was awarded with the 1st Degree Diploma Award for Excellence in Painting from the Ukrainian Art Academy. Since 2007 he has been a member of Kharkov’s section of the association of Ukraine’s Artists’ Alliance. The human figure has been the focal point of Sarazhin’s work for a number of years, but his treatment of the subject is constantly evolving. A common element of his work is to focus on the body rather than the face.

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