King Exhibition & Awards 2026
About the King Exhibition & Awards
All awards are based on artistic merit. In 2013, Gretchen King (BA in English ’59) worked with the Department of Art & Art History to establish the King Competition and Exhibition, the department’s first juried student exhibition. Since that time fellow alums, Meridee Moore (BA in Philosophy ’80) and Kevin King (BFA in Fine Arts ’81) have joined Gretchen in generously supporting the annual competition and exhibition, allowing the department to offer undergraduate and graduate students monetary awards, and to showcase their work in the Visual Arts Complex.
The 2026 Awardees
Undergraduate Finalists:ÌýMax Flynn (1st place), Polly Torian (2nd place), JaneMelyn Strode (3rd place), Kimberly Avelyn Era (honorable mention), Addison Morrison (honorable mention)
Graduate Finalists: Bocheng Zhang (1st place), Mahda Purmehdi (2nd place), Eileen Hinckle (3rd place), Brionna Garcia (honorable mention), ÌýAllison Radomski (honorable mention)
The 2026 Jurors
Ìý
Undergraduate Student Finalists
Please click on images to enlarge
Max Flynn — 1st Place
Peeper Polaroids, spring 2025, acrylic, found photographs, wooden frame, 23"x8.25"
Family Portrait, fall 2025, acrylic on found photograph, 10.5"x14
Infested Family Photo Album; spring 2025, photo album, acrylic, found photographs, paper, 11"x1x10"
Polly Torian — 2nd Place
Bird of Prey, 2025, Flag post, halyard, PLA plastic, security cameras, fog horn, speaker, swivel clips, painted steel, flashing LED light, digitized bald eagle call, 10' tall.
Bodies, 2025, Wood, paint, 3′ x 8′ x 2′ per barricade
Tagged, 2025, Cattle tags, vinyl, paint, 1′ x 3′
JaneMelyn Strode — 3rd Place
"Mom", 2025, Oil on canvas, 32 x 42 inches
"Dad", 2025, Oil on canvas, 32 x 42 inches
"Four Portraits of Ladies, No Fire" [quadriptych], 2025, Oil on canvas, 30 x 40 inches each
Kimberly Avelyn Era — Honorable Mention
'Among', 2026, 10-layer reduction woodblock, Rives BFK lightweight paper, Cranfield Ink, 8.5 x 10 inches
"Still", 2026, Linocut, 100% recycled water bottle insulation, Rives BKF, Cranfield ink, marker, 8.5 x 15 inches
'The Meeting, 2025, 10-color linocut reduction, Japanese and Arnhem papers, Cranfield Ink, 8 x 11 inches
Addison Morrison — Honorable Mention
'The Meeting, 2025, 10-color linocut reduction, Japanese and Arnhem papers, Cranfield Ink, 8 x 11 inches
Graduate Student Finalists
Please click on images to enlarge
Bocheng Zhang — 1st Place
MillstoneÌý
2024 Moving-Image Installation
Mahda Purmehdi — 2nd Place
Ancraophobia
2025 | 00:08:00 | USA | Color | Stereo | 4:3 | 16mm
Excerpt:
It Will Come Back One Way or Another
2025 | 00:12:19 | USA | Color | Sound | 16:9 | HD Video
Excerpt:
Noli me tangereÌý
2025 | 00:04:29 | USA | Color | Silent | 16:9 | HD Video
Excerpt:
Ìý
Eileen Hinckle — 3rd Place
Lazy Bones, Branch, lock, bone replica, lead weights, epoxy, molding paste, coffee, turmeric, oil paint, 50 x 10 x 12.5 cm
Cross Section, Oil paint on found wood, 39.5 cm x 9 cm x 38 cm
Passing through, graphite on birch panel, 95 x 72 cm
Allison Radomski — Honorable Mention
The Mundane Magic Lantern Spectacular (closeup view of handmade slides); January 2026; glass, plastic, and paper tape; 3.25 x 4"
Ìý
Brionna Garcia — Honorable Mention
miscarriage 1, 2025, watercolor on paper, 9x12"
miscarriage 2, 2025, watercolor on paper, 9x12"
miscarriage 3, 2025, pencil, watercolor and ink on paper, 12x9"