School of Visual Arts (SVA) presents “Mentors,” an exhibition of work by BFA Photography and Video students inspired by their working relationships with world-renowned artists, curators, editors and directors from our global arts community. Organized by department chair Joseph Maida, the exhibition will be on view online from Monday, March 8, through Sunday, March 28, at galleries.sva.edu.

Drawn from the ranks of the industry’s best-known photographers, curators, art directors, publishers, art dealers, critics and writers, mentors are matched with students based on their field of expertise and the students’ area of concentration. The 2020 – 2021 mentors include Mariette Pathy Allen, photographer; Jennifer Blessing, senior curator, photography, Guggenheim Museum; Jessica Dimson, deputy director of photography, The New York Times Magazine; Michael Famighetti, editor, Aperture magazine; Christopher Lew, associate curator, Whitney Museum; Jennifer Pastore, executive photo director, WSJ. The Wall Street Journal Magazine; Drew Sawyer, curator, Photography, Brooklyn Museum; Nadia Vellam, photo and video director, T: The New York Times Style Magazine.

The Mentors program at SVA is designed to cultivate relationships between established and emerging artists and to introduce new talent to the broader community. Established in 1992, this program pairs select fourth-year students with key figures in the arts community, giving them professional insight into their work during a culminating point in their education.

Image: Idrissa Sidibe, Sleepy Charles, 2021, Pigmented inkjet print, 3 x 2 inches