Established in 1998, the MIT Arts Scholars Program brings together students who are passionate about exploring the diverse array of arts available at MIT and in the Boston area, and interacting with fellow students, faculty artists and other experts in the art world. The program is structured around monthly excursions or workshops, with an expert in the relevant field of art in attendance.
For more information contact:
Sam Magee
Manager of Student Arts Programs
617.253.4004
Agnes Cameron is a master’s student in the Viral Communications group, in the MIT Media lab. She works on decentralized networks, with a focus on new and weird forms of internet. She holds an MEng in Information and Computer Engineering from the University of Cambridge. She likes art about systems, and makes installations for parties.
Sharon Lin is an undergraduate (2021) studying electrical engineering and computer science, with an intended minor in Art, Culture, and Technology. She has worked in the Media Lab Design Fiction Group, and is an officer for the MIT Animation Group. Her past experiences include serving as the New York City Youth Poet Laureate and and a poetry reader for Polyphony HS. She is also involved in the Student Cable Club and was selected as a Tribeca Film Fellow. She is interested in creative nonfiction, filmmaking, and animation.
Andrea is an architect with the Ontario Association of Architects and a founding partner of designGUILD, an artist collective, based in Toronto, Canada, that focuses on large-scale public art projects. As a former project lead at Philip Beesley Architect, she worked on a series of immersive kinetic installations exhibited at the Museum of Modern & Contemporary Art in Seoul, the Fiber Arts Triennial in Hangzhou, the Fondation EDF in Paris, the Dutch Electronic Arts Festival in Rotterdam, the Sydney Biennale, and VIDA Fundacion Telefonica in Madrid, amongst other places. She was also the project co-ordinator for the studio’s collaboration with Dutch fashion designer Iris van Herpen on her VOLTAGE collection. Andrea is currently a research assistant in the Mediated Matter research group. As a Master’s candidate, she is interested in physical story-telling and making things by combining technological and biological tools with traditional processes. In her free time she loves travelling, dancing, and playing with her nephews and niece.
Ohyoon communicates her thoughts and feelings through her art, usually in paint medium. Ohyoon is Korean. She spent her middle school and high school years in New Jersey.
Daniel Oran is a graduate student in the Media Lab’s Synthetic Neurobiology group and holds a BA in photography and natural science from Hampshire College. Previously Daniel worked as an artist, archivist, and printmaker, before starting his own printmaking business. As an artist he explores the boundaries of what defines Photography (light-drawing) and works to create unique artistic practices by manipulating forms of light and photographic materials. In making his artwork Daniel takes on the roles of sculptor, painter, scientist, and inventor coupled with that of a photographer. With this work he aims to explore the fundamental reactions of the psyche to imagery that, while abstract, is representative of the forces that comprise the world. As a scientist/engineer in the Media Lab, Daniel now works on developing a method for the rapid prototyping of three dimensional nanotechnologies. He hopes to use this work to create a platform for the research and development of photonic crystals and optical metamaterials; ultimately, allowing for the manipulation of light to a degree never before possible.
Sunanda Sharma is a graduate student in the Mediated Matter Group in the Media Lab. Her research focuses on creating functional products that incorporate living organisms or their properties. She is interested in the history and practice of scientific illustration, and is learning to represent life through watercolor, sketching, high resolution imaging, and digital illustration. In her free time, she spends nearly all of her time and money on traveling, and the rest on baking.
Allan is an undergraduate studying Comparative Media Studies and Computer Science. He absolutely loves making art, including fiber arts (like knitting plushies or sewing fabric portraits), traditional art (like drawings, paintings and watercolors), and most recently 2-D animations. He first dipped his toes into the world of augmented reality by making his AR animation for the mural he made as part of the Borderline Project, and would love to continue exploring animation in the future. On his free time, he adores watching Steven Universe and Studio Ghibli movies, and listening to the soundtrack of The Great Comet on repeat.
Danny is an undergraduate studying Comparative Media Studies and Computer Science. Danny loves making art out of almost anything, from acrylic and oil paints to fabric and yarn. On his free time he enjoys making art while listening to musical soundtracks, obsessing over Steven Universe, and knitting. He loves telling stories and wants to learn more about conveying them through visual media like animation and augmented reality.
Lily Bailey is an undergraduate studying biology and computer science, with a minor in design. She is fascinated with the ways that proteins fold and interact and specifically wants to work on solving the incredibly complex problem that is predicting protein structures. The arts have always provided her with an important stability and community of people, so she sees them as playing an instrumental role in whatever she does with her life. Her hobbies include using photography as a means of connecting with people, playing on the MIT women’s soccer team, and spending time outdoors.
Melanie is an undergraduate studying computer science who is interested in art and design. She enjoys playing violin, hiking, experimenting with ink, charcoal, acrylic, oils, and typography, and exploring local history and culture through food, museums, and touristy activities. She aims to live life to the fullest, and part of that during her time her at MIT is through exploring all forms of the arts in Boston and gaining new experiences every day.
Talia Khan, an Arizona native, is a sophomore at MIT. She plans to major in Course 3 (Materials Science and Engineering) and minor in Music. Talia studies vocal jazz through the Emerson Arts Scholarship and performs in the MIT Vocal Jazz Ensemble. She has also appeared in many professional musical theater performances and is a student of classical voice. Talia is a member of the Society of Women Engineers, is historian of her sorority, Kappa Alpha Theta, and is on the executive board of Tea With Teachers at MIT.
Isabel Chien just finished her undergraduate degree here at MIT, and is now a Master’s student studying computer science, focusing on computational biology. She loves to read, cook and subsequently eat, discover new music, paint, and knit, and also hosts a weekly radio show on MIT’s student radio station, WMBR (88.1fm). She’s excited to have this space to nurture these hobbies that have taken a backseat since starting college.
Davie Rolnick is a PhD student in Applied Mathematics, also working in the Media Lab (Synthetic Neurobiology) and CSAIL (Computational Connectomics). His research involves training computers to understand the structure of the brain a combination of machine learning, computational neuroscience, and discrete math. Davie finished his undergraduate studies at MIT in 2012 with a double major in Math and Music, and spent a year at the Free University of Berlin as a Fulbright Scholar. Outside research, Davie studies voice with Richard Conrad and performs with the Boston Cantata Singers, MIT Chamber Chorus, and other groups. Davie also enjoys running, writing, teaching, and wandering off into the woods to look at birds and insects.
Pip Mothersill is a PhD student in the ObjectBased Media group at the MIT Media Lab, where she explores the language of design, particularly how objects can communicate information to us through their form. Through research that connects design theory, synesthesia, and linguistics, she investigates computational processes for the design of static and dynamically expressive objects and explores how the design attributes of physical objects can become a more active medium for communication. Pip’s convoluted journey before coming to the Media Lab included a MEng in Aeronautical Engineering from the University of Bristol, a joint MA/MSc degree in Industrial Design Engineering from the Royal College of Art and Imperial College, London, three years working as a product designer for Procter & Gamble, and lots of cooking, sewing, painting, theatre, ballet and art galleries.
Elizabeth, but you can call her Bibit, hails from the forests of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she was raised to love trees, hills, running, and just about any body of water. In her free time, she keeps busy building stuff, eating, and messing with people. She will admit that she is very attracted to power tools. When she gets old, she plans on shaving her head and buying a hundred acres where she’ll live in a tent until she finishes building her own house, probably in a tree.
Marianna is currently a graduate student in the biomaterials/tissue engineering field, with interests in fabrication, regenerative medicine, and drug delivery.
Cynthia (Syn) Odu is a third year student in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning. With interests primarily in urban art and design, they hope to better understand how art and beauty can influence new ways of being. Syn selfidentifies as a cheating vegan, a closet existentialist, a lover of the natural world, and much, much more.
Hane is an Electrical Engineering student minoring in music. She has lived with classical piano ever since she can remember, but she is increasingly spending more time plucking piano strings, reading pieces composed by friends, and listening to minimal music and bebop jazz. Hane also loves the visual arts (Vermeer! Cubists! Contemporary art museums!), literature, and often develops an impossible weak spot for performance art.
Known as “jmfessy” by many and her brass rat, Jane was born and raised in the Berkeley, California, which explains her frequent use of “hella” and “chill”. Now a MechE, she first discovered her love of building in the garage of her 90 year old neighbor who would let her and all the neighborhood kids play with his power tools at an age much too young to be handling power tools. With her parents as photographers, grandfather as an architect, she was destined to love art, still continues to use it today. Jane also enjoys playing soccer for the MIT women’s soccer team, traveling, and saving the environment one compostable item at a time.
Holly is a junior at MIT studying Comparative Media Studies. She is passionate about making art that is publicly accessible, current, and political. She is interested in the shape of the music industry, the social effects of the internet, and the way that our constant media constructs our globalized worlds.
Hailing from Berkeley, California, Johanna is no stranger to the arts scene. She went to an arts high school where art was integrated into every aspect of the classes and culture. There she was introduced to (and fell in love with) drawing, painting, sculpture, dance, printmaking, photography, film, and more. She aspires to apply her passions for art and design as a double major in Architecture and Urban Studies & Planning, as well as take advantage of all of the opportunities for art, music and cultural exposure in the city of Boston during her time at MIT.
Neerja Aggarwal is an engineer, artist, and athlete. She studied electrical engineering and theatre arts in her undergrad at MIT. She is continuing at MIT for a masters in electrical engineering. Neerja is originally from Houston, TX and grew up with a passion in both science and theatre. She trained as a stage director at MIT, has directed two major stage productions so far: The Importance of Being Earnest (Nov 2014) and Now Then Again (Nov 2015), and is currently working on her third production of Einstein’s Dreams. Neerja is interested in exploring the intersection of science and theatre. She has also competed on the MIT Women’s club ultimate frisbee team all through college.
Julia Rue is a senior majoring in Mechanical Engineering with a concentration in Product Design. She has been creating art ever since she could remember, attended the Orange County School of Arts as a student in the Visual Arts, and now creates 2D art pieces for commission regularly. However, she is interested in all forms of art and how art elicits response from those who interact with it, and applies her love for art in her mechanical engineering projects. Her current favorite mediums of art are oil paints.
Rima is a junior in Course 2A (mechanical engineering). She loves doing anything hands on, whether that’s building robots or creating embossed cards to send to friends back home! Almost every art form has enchanted her at some point–she did competitive theater when she was younger and played piano for 8 years, she currently dances, writes, reads like a maniac, and does projects in the visual arts to de-stress from schoolwork. She’s excited to be an arts scholar and get more involved in the arts community at MIT!
Xin is currently a Master candidate in Fluid Interface Group, MIT Media Lab. Questions of body, perception, affect and sensation have been the focus of her works. Xin uses mixed media installations and performances to examine the intertwined relationship between body and mind. She is particularly interested in the transformation and adaption of a social, sensorial, corporal body in our current technology mediated life.
Laura Perovich is a PhD student in the Object Based Media group at the MIT Media Lab. Her research focuses on re-imagining the relationship between citizens and scientists through ubiquitous computing and artistic, emotionally-resonant approaches to data interaction. She is a textile artist, creating quilts, clothing, and handmade fabrics. She also enjoys ballroom and latin dancing.
Henry is an undergraduate studying Electrical Engineering and was raised in Arlington, VA along with five siblings. Violin and good music hold a special place in his life. He also has experience creating ceramics, small metal sculpture, and doing some glassblowing, however, there is no limit to the art forms he wishes to explore. In his free time, Henry plays violin (sometimes with friends), builds things, learns about web development, and watches YouTube videos on old cars and fine machining. He has a particular fascination for old things, in which there is a beauty and clever simplicity to how such things work. He also runs and bikes for exercise and recreation.
Sasha is a 3rd year MIT undergraduate studying Math and Computer Science. She enjoys playing a variety of instruments in styles ranging from jazz to classical to pop. In her free time she enjoys being outside, going for extended biking trips, caring for her garden, writing and reading.
Jessie is an undergrad who is studying Computer Science because of her appreciation for logic. She also enjoys drawing, film photography, and concept art. She loves concept art-ing with all her heart, because it is creating logical worlds that can’t exist, and communicating them through visual art. Jessie hopes to be a visual development artist at Dreamworks one day, but meanwhile you can probably spot her on campus chasing dogs around with her camera.
Nolan is a physics major focusing on quantum chemistry and nanotechnology. His current research with Grossman Group explores the electron transport properties of quantum dot thin films. Nolan studies cello performance with his teacher at New England Conservatory and performs with the MIT Chamber Music Society and Emerson Scholars, among others. He is also interested in pottery, string instrument restoration, and German language.
Kate is an undergraduate student studying architecture. She has loved art of all kinds since the young age of three when she used to draw instead of taking a nap. Since then she has enjoyed painting, photography, several forms of dance, singing, set design, visiting art museums, and watching plays and musicals. In her (limited) spare time, she also enjoys cooking, knitting, yoga, drinking tea, and caring for her plants.
Garrett is an emerging production designer, multi-disciplined engineer, and musician currently wrapping up his studies in Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science and Theater at MIT. His goal in both his professional and personal work is to combine the powerful tools of engineering with the emotional depth of design and culture to create products, experiences, and shows that push the boundaries of technology and art. His past work has spanned both ends of the spectrum, from working as a system engineer for Walt Disney Imagineering, to assistant-directing a professional theater production, to performing as a professional drummer in New York City. His purest mission is to create happiness, solidarity, and empathy in the world and all of his work directs him towards this goal.
Jierui is a freshman who adores the color orange and making art with just about every medium including photography, printmaking, charcoal, graphic design, oil, and acrylic. Her first memorable experience with art was a five-pound book on Monet she “borrowed” from her aunt. Beyond visual art, she also used to play the piano, flute, and violin and has moderate experience in traditional Chinese dance. In her free time, she likes to skate, look at bodies of water, compulsively read the news, eat spicy foods, and make lists. She’s hoping to keep on adventuring in different art forms at MIT, especially in glass, metalworking, and film.
Cristina is a 2018 MBA candidate at the MIT Sloan School of Management. She completed a degree in biochemistry, with minors in French and Studio Art, at Southern Methodist University in Dallas and went on to work at an international brand design agency in Trends and Innovation. She loves both creating and experiencing art—she is a practicing ceramicist, an avid museum-goer and has seen the Nutcracker ballet over 20 times. She also enjoys sailing, exploring her new home of Boston and baking pies.
Ivy is an undergraduate studying physics and literature, both stemming from an aesthetic appreciation of the universe and the human condition. After taking AP Art Studio in high school, Ivy discovered the wonders of watercolor, and has since then been creating surrealistic watercolor pieces depicting morphed human bodies. When not working on art, Ivy analyzes data from the Galactic Center, writes movie reviews for The Tech, shoots rifles, and collects vinyl records.
Amy is an undergraduate studying computer science and design. She draws, paints, and codes in all sorts of mediums and languages, and is particularly fond of the complexity of Internet subcultures, graphic design, and electronic empathy. In her free time, Amy can be found hip-hop dancing, sketching, and/or sipping on a latte.
Megan is an undergraduate at MIT studying computer science, neuroscience, and design. She is an avid photographer (both freelance and with MIT technique) and an enthusiastic consumer of dark chocolate and tea. She enjoys the outdoors, creating amusingly kerned posters and small objects, and pondering bayesian representations of life.
Sarah is an undergraduate planning to study biological engineering who is interested in art and design. She enjoys playing board games, listening to music, experimenting with weird mixed media combinations, reading, and exploring Boston through food, museums, and cool buildings. She’s really interested in the intersection of her really varied interests, and hopes to learn a lot during her time at MIT!
Alan Osmundson is an undergraduate studying Aerospace Engineering and a jazz musician. He has performed on the trumpet across the United States and Europe at festivals, competitions, and restaurant gigs, and he is determined to never stop playing. Currently, Alan is an Emerson Fellow, plays with the MIT Festival Jazz Ensemble and occasionally the Berklee Concert Jazz Orchestra, and has recently begun writing original music in the jazz idiom. Other than jazz, Alan is a fan of cats, abstract expressionism, Mahler’s 5th Symphony, and autonomous systems.
Matt Carney is a PhD candidate in the Biomechatronics group at the MIT Media Lab, where he is designing and building next-generation bionic limbs. His specialty in mechanical design and mechatronic systems was born from years of experience working at the industry leading firms Meka Robotics (humanoids) and IDEO (product design). He is formally trained with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from CalPoly and UC Berkeley, as well as an additional master of science in Media Arts and Sciences from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In addition to machine design, he also has strong interests in art, culture, politics, civic action and social justice.
Nicole L’Huilier is a transdiciplinary artist, musician, and architect from Santiago, Chile. She is currently based in Boston as a PhD researcher at the MIT MIT Media Lab, Opera of the Future group. Her work explores spatial experience, perception and the relationship between sound & space, based on the idea of sound as a construction material. She works at the intersection of art, music, architecture, science, and technology in order to open questions about possible futures, redefine how we perceive our world, and most importantly: trigger connection and empathy between human and non-human agents. She is also an experimental musician, drummer, synth lover and one-half of the space pop duo Breaking Forms.
Sam Magee is the Manager of Student Arts Programs at MIT. His background is in Art Education and student programming. Sam feels it is his primary duty at MIT to advocate for the arts at every turn and to involve students in arts experiences they may not have had a chance to participate in before. Sam also promotes the arts through a business – focused arts competition, community building through the continuum of student and alumni engagement, and educating students about the role of arts in innovation and entrepreneurship.