Open. Original. Thoughtful.
Blue hair or chinos, first-gen or tenth, international or Chicagoan—whatever your style and wherever you’re coming from, SAIC is a place where you can feel safe being exactly who you are. Bring your identity, your culture, your interests, and bond with people who may share little or a lot with you. What binds you together is a life engaged in the world through art and design. And when you graduate, you’ll take with you a network of friends and potential collaborators who share your values.
In Their Words
Alyha Khalil, BA
Describe yourself in three words.
Hardworking, kind, optimistic.
What are you passionate about?
Making art that represents the Black community and having conversations that create a new layer for my creative process.
Hal Shipman, MFA
Describe yourself in three words.
Overeducated, homophile, redneck
What are you passionate about?
Social history and the preservation and elevation of historically erased voices, particularly of LGBTQ+ communities.
Hai-Wen Lin, MDes in Fashion, Body, & Garment
Describe yourself in three words.
Has nice hair
What are you passionate about?
I'm genuinely passionate about art! But my definition of what I consider art is admittedly broad, and there's little that I don't consider art, so it's like I'm saying I'm passionate about everything.
Gemma Kim, MA in Arts Administration & Policy and Modern & Contemporary Art History
Describe yourself in three words.
Curious, sentimental, mindful
What are you passionate about?
Making art and art spaces inclusive, equitable, and accessible to everyone and working to dismantle institutional barriers and social inequalities deeply rooted within the system of arts institutions.
Valerie Lowder, BFA
Describe yourself in three words.
Strong, sensitive, and compassionate
What are you passionate about?
I'm passionate about representation, healing, dancing, investing in creativity, and my plants.
Ngọc Quyên Nguyễn, BFA
Describe yourself in three words.
Adventurous, enthusiastic, and hungry (for success!)
What are you passionate about?
Other than art, I am also interested in the psychology field. I hope I can learn the best of both fields and pursue a career that could bring out a real change.
Sarita Kvam, MA in Art Therapy and Counseling
Describe yourself in three words.
Intuitive, playful, and driven
What are you passionate about?
Finding sustainable and creative approaches to support wellness in disenfranchised communities, specifically for women and fem-identifying immigrants and refugees.
We’re an International Community
Place shapes our ideas and their expression in our work. SAIC’s students come from more than 60 countries, which means you’ll learn with people whose perspectives and experiences will open you to new possibilities.
Our Diversity Is Key to Our Creativity
It’s a fact: The most creative communities are the most diverse—racially and ethnically, across gender identities and ages and abilities. They’re communities where people swap stories, eat at one another’s tables, and find value in understanding different ways of seeing the world. That’s our model for SAIC—a place where we all come together to make sure that every person has the space to be themselves and everyone feels heard.
Fostering a Sense of Belonging
Student-Led Groups
Students’ shared interests, identities, and ideologies are the foundation of SAIC’s affinity- and diversity-based groups. Organizations like BLK@SAIC, Queerspace LGBTQIA+Faith, and SAIC Hillel foster deep connections and a sense of belonging.
Inclusive Spaces
Student voices were the force behind many of SAIC’s inclusive spaces, among them the Cultural Oasis—a community hub by and for students of color, gender-neutral bathrooms, and the LGBTQ+ Paper Tour, a self-guided map of LGBTQ+ resources across Chicago.
Creating an Anti-Racist Campus
Students play a key role in the school’s anti-racism work. We’ve been mobilizing to remove barriers so that everyone here can find their voice and make their work in the space of caring.
Helping Veterans Heal Through Art
Iraq War veteran and alum Richard Casper (BFA 2012) introduces fellow veterans to the healing potential of the arts.
The Artist
Richard Casper
Richard Casper teaches Intro to Art for Veterans at SAIC. Photo: Sara Condo
The Inspiration
After surviving a blast from an improvised explosive device in Iraq, Casper was diagnosed with a traumatic left-brain injury and post-traumatic stress. In search of a place to express himself privately, Casper turned to art. “I had so much inside of me that I needed to get out.”
Early artwork by Richard Casper
The Work
After graduation from SAIC, Casper set out to start a new organization where he could empower wounded veterans to heal through the arts and music. In 2013, he founded CreatiVets. Through songwriting, visual arts, music, and creative writing, CreatiVets helps veterans foster self-expression that “helps [them] live again.”
Image Credit: Richard Casper and retired Petty Officer Chris Goehner during a CreatiVets songwriting session. Photo: Lukas Augustin, courtesy of Time
The Process
The program operates in partnership with SAIC, where veterans are flown to Chicago for three-week summer sessions with Casper at his alma mater. “I sit with each veteran, and they tell me their story for the first time, and I show them what that looks like as a conceptual piece of art,” Casper explained. They explore SAIC’s facilities, such as the woodshop, the metal shop, and the 3D print lab, to translate their experiences into art.
Credit: Entrance to Warrior Brain + Artist Mind, an exhibition featuring CreatiVets participants at SAIC
What Is This?
A Place for First-generation Students
It’s not easy being the first person in your family to go to college, let alone art and design school. But at SAIC, one in five students are first-gen, and the school both supports you and celebrates you.
We’re Pushing Past Carbon-Neutral
SAIC became carbon-neutral in 2020. Today, students participate in the Unplugged competition for residence hall energy reduction, Bike SAIC, and SAIC Surplus, a freecycle for used and unused materials.
