B.A. exhibition gives seniors sendoff: Senior art students exhibit their best pieces at the Myers Fine Arts Building

By Sydney Blake

SUNY Plattsburgh Art Museum celebrated graduating art students during an art exhibit in the Myers Fine Arts Building on April 10.

According to Museum Director Tonya Cribb, the 2026 B.A. Art and Design Senior Show can be a stepping off point for students going into their future careers and gaining experience in the professional art world.

The exhibit held works ranging from sculptures and ceramics to painting and drawings. The gallery was open to the public and was set up by Cribb and the art department.

“It highlights what the faculty are able to teach the students,” Cribb said. “Our faculty are able to get the best work out of the students, which is their own voice.” 

Each work offered insight into the students’ artistic processes, allowing for students to pick the best of their works to present.

Alexis Adamkowski’s work consisted of three paintings that represent human sexuality and sexual liberation. Her work featured nude models with flowers blooming around them. When creating her work, Adamkowski interviews the subject she draws to better understand them. She then chooses botanicals to incorporate into the piece based on the interviews. 

“Because of my themes of immunity and ideas about sex, I really wanted to portray this very innocent female friendship, where they’re just very comfortable with each other, and very caring,” Adamkowski said.

Kate LaPoint had many pieces to share within the gallery, including ceramic mugs that brought a marsh setting to life. The mugs were unique in design, each having a lily pad handle with a frog perched on it.

LaPoint said she first creates a design and changes it throughout the building process. She had refired the mugs in the kiln, causing them to become an unexpected color, but said it worked out for the better. She gets help and guidance from her peers and teachers when needed.

“Sometimes we give each other critiques and bounce ideas off each other. So that’s really helpful when being in a community studio,” Lapoint said.

When creating work for the exhibit, art professors help whenever possible. According to Assistant Professor of Art Bright Kontor Osei, his role isn’t to tell the students what to do, but rather help them create and choose works that they want to be a final display for their exhibits. Osei encourages students to take more away from art while still enjoying it.

“Just enjoy or love art, and then the message is clear,” Osei said. “Let people know that art is not just about having fun, but also sending serious messages.”