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Art and Design Faculty

Our faculty are a unique blend of researchers, educators and professionals who are proven experts in their fields.

Najjar Abdul-Musawwir, Professor

Drawing, Painting, Core Curriculum

Najjar Abdul-Musawwir was born October 25th, 1958, in Chicago, Illinois. He is an internationally-acknowledged artist who has exhibited throughout the United States, Africa, Asia and Europe. He currently works as a Professor of studio arts and art history in both the School of Art and Design and Africana Studies program at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.



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Najjar Abdul-Musawwir

Allyn Building 5A
618-453-3019
mekka@siu.edu 
Curriculum Vitae

Carolina Alarcón, Assistant Professor

Art History

Dr. Carolina Alarcón is assistant professor of Art History at SIU where she teaches courses in the early modern period. Her interdisciplinary research and teaching focuses on the role of prints in mediating cross-cultural exchanges in the development of science. Her book project, Materia Medica: Anatomical Illustrations in Early Modern Spain, ties agents of Spanish anatomical medicine to the broader history of natural science and medical knowledge in the late fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Whereas her previous research was concerned principally with medical knowledge, her next project brings similar investigative approaches to bear on the sixteenth century chronicles of the conquest, people, and landscapes of early modern South America.



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Carolina Alarcón

Allyn Building 007C
618-453-5704
carolina.alarcon@siu.edu

Mont Allen, Associate Professor

Art History & Classics

Mont Allen is an art historian & archaeologist of the ancient Mediterranean world. His research interests include Greek and Roman funerary sculpture, ancient sculptural tools and techniques, Greek mythology, Roman painting, Late Antique religions, intellectual history, and urban geography.



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Mont Allen Faner Hall 2031
618-536-5571
montallen@siu.edu
Personal Website

Pattie Chalmers, Head of Graduate Studies, Professor

Ceramics

Pattie Chalmers received her BFA in printmaking from the University of Manitoba in Canada, and her MFA in ceramics from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

She has exhibited in group exhibitions on five continents, in six countries and thirty-three states and over the past ten years has had work in over ninety exhibitions. Chalmers has taught at Southern Illinois University since 2006.



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Anthony Deal, Assistant Professor of Practice

Sculpture

Anthony Deal earned his MFA from Southern Illinois University Carbondale and a BFA
from Appalachian State University. Prior to residing in Illinois, he taught at Valencia
College, Orlando. As well, he was awarded a three-year artist residency at the Art &
History Museum Maitland, Florida.
Deal’s studio research focuses on sanctuary as an environment that one could listen,
discover, and contemplate. This work combines traditional and digital methods to
investigate space as a sculptural medium. His spatial compositions celebrate the
discarded and ignored.



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Anthony Deal

Glove Building 104B
anthony.deal@siu.edu

Haley Farthing, Associate Professor of Practice

Drawing, 2D Foundations

Haley Farthing received an MFA in drawing and painting from the University of Washington in 2009, a BFA in painting and BA in art history from Boston University in 2007. She has been a member of the faculty at Southern Illinois University Carbondale since 2012. Previous to that, she taught drawing at the Elliot School of Fine and Applied Arts in Boston and bookmaking at the Pratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle. Her teaching experience includes courses in 2D foundations, intermediate painting, bookmaking, and all levels of drawing.

In her artistic research, Farthing investigates her relationship to the environment through drawing. She aims to highlight moments of visual contrast and subtle aesthetic experiences that often go unnoticed, as well as question her personal impact on the environment. Farthing has exhibited her drawings throughout the country.



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Haley Farthing

Allyn Building 209
618-453-7767
hfarthing@siu.edu

Laurel Jean Fredrickson, Associate Professor

Art History

Laurel Jean Fredrickson (Ph.D., Duke, 2007) is a historian of contemporary and modern art with a global emphasis. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on cross-cultural and transnational intersections of experimental art and political dissent from the 1960s to the present.



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Laurel Jean Fredrickson

Allyn Building 6D
618-453-4987
lfredrickson@siu.edu
Curriculum Vitae

Travis Janssen, Assistant Director, Associate Professor

Printmaking

Travis Janssen received an MFA degree in Printmaking from Arizona State University in 2007 and a BFA from the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 2000. He has taught as SIU since 2008.His creative practice bridges gaps between contemporary and historic methods of printmaking as well as forays into video and installation art mediums, often in conjunction with print media.



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Travis Janssen

Glove Factory 114
618-453-5274
travisj@siu.edu

Sun Kyoung Kim, Associate Professor

Metalsmithing, Jewelry

Sun Kyoung Kim was born and raised in Seoul, Korea. Kim received both a BFA and MFA in metals from Sungshin Women’s University in Seoul, Korea, and her second MFA in metals from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Illinois, USA. Kim has discussed her idea about the body and human relationships in her artwork.



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Sun Kyoung Kim

Pullium Hall
Industrial Wing 16C
618-453-3774
sunkim@siu.edu
Curriculum Vitae
Personal Website

Jiyong Lee, Professor

Glass

Jiyong Lee has been heading the glass program at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, and working as an active studio artist since 2005. He earned his MFA at Rochester Institute of Technology in 2001 and taught there for four years as a visiting assistant professor before coming to SIU. He served as a member of Board of Directors for the Glass Art Society for six years (2009-2015).



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Jiyong Lee

Pulliam Hall
Industrial Wing 14C
618-453-7772
jiyong@siu.edu
Curriculum Vitae
Personal Website

Alex Lopez, Associate Professor

Sculpture

Alex Lopez earned his MFA degree in sculpture from Alfred University, NY (1998). He taught at Trinity University and The University of Texas, both located in San Antonio before coming to Southern Illinois University Carbondale.



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Alex Lopez

Glove Factory 109
618-453-8635
alxlpz@siu.edu

Robert Lopez, Associate Professor

Art & Design

Rob Lopez is a designer and educator with experience in a wide range of 2D and 3D design. He is also the current Area Head of the SIU Design Program, and is the co-founder of Deft Lunch. He received his BFA and MFA in Industrial Design from the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign (UIUC).



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Robert A. Lopez

Pulliam Hall 52
618-453-7590
roblopez@siu.edu
Curriculum Vitae

Antonio Martinez, Head of Undergraduate Studies, Associate Professor

Photography/Intermedia Arts

Antonio Jacob Martinez, M.F.A. (b.1979), is a fine art photographer who currently teaches as an Associate Professor of Photography/Intermedia Arts at Southern Illinois University. Antonio defines himself as a traditional and digital image-maker whose work combines old and new imaging technologies.



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Mark Morris, Assistant Professor of Practice

Glass

Mark Morris taught glass at Tulane University for three years. He received his MFA in glass from Tulane in 2020 and earned a BA in sculpture from the University of New Orleans in 2018. Prior to that he served as teaching artist and glass studio manager at the YAYA Arts Center in New Orleans for ten years and taught workshops at Urban Glass in Brooklyn and Bullseye Glass Factory in Portland, Oregon. In 2009/10 he taught at the Toyama City Institute of Glass Art in Japan. Some of his most enriching experiences have been at Pilchuck Glass School, where he has participated as a staff member, student and teaching assistant for twelve summers. At SIU’s school of art and design, Mark works dual roles as assistant professor of practice and glass studio technician.



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Mark Morris Pulliam Industrial Wing 14C
618-453-7772
mark.morris@siu.edu

Carey Netherton, Associate Professor of Practice

3D Foundations, Sculpture

Carey Netherton was born and raised in east central Illinois, and received a B.A. in 3-D Studio Art and Philosophy in 1998 from Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois. In 2000, he became an Instructional-Supervisory Staff member at the Johnson Atelier Technical Institute of Sculpture in Mercerville, New Jersey.



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Carey Netherton

Art Foundry
618-453-2029
cnetherton@siu.edu
Personal Website

Erin Palmer, Associate Professor

Painting , Drawing

Erin L. Palmer is an Associate Professor in Painting and Drawing. She received her MFA from Yale School of Art in 1993. Her work is primarily figurative from direct observation and is included in a number of private collections.



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Erin Palmer

Glove Factory 201
618-453-7767
epalmer@siu.edu
Curriculum Vitae

Jody Paulson, Lecturer

Art Education

Jody Paulson is an artist and educator who has worked in Art Education for 30 years in variety of settings and capacities. She has taught art in Montana, Utah, Nevada, and now in Carbondale, Illinois. Jody’s areas of focus in the field of Art Education include authentic art assessment, transdisciplinary curriculum development, and community partnership.



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Jody Paulson

Allyn Building 6B
618-453-4315
jody.paulson@siu.edu

Mark Pease, Associate Professor

Digital Media

Mark Pease creates work in a variety of media to explore visual ideas inspired by consumer nostalgia, simulacra, suburban landscapes, and modernist architecture. He works with printmaking, animation, 3D visualizations, painting, and photography to recreate moments of daydream, interactions with the artificial, and the recognition of our own visual sensitivities.



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Mark Pease

Glove Factory 110
618-453-3260
markpease@siu.edu
Personal Website

Angela Reinoehl, Senior Lecturer

Art History, Core Curriculum

Angela Reinoehl received a BA in Art History from Indiana University, and a MA in Art History, theory and criticism from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her Master’s thesis challenges traditional interpretations of feminist performance art from the 1970s. Reinoehl held various positions, including Curator of Exhibitions at Craft Alliance in St. Louis.



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Angela Reinoehl

Allyn Building 7D
618-453-8631
reinoehl@siu.edu
Curriculum Vitae

Aaron Scott, Associate Professor

Design

Aaron Scott received an MFA in Industrial Design from Purdue University and a BFA in Three-Dimensional Arts from Weber State University. He has experience in design, marketing and sales, sculpture, and education. As a design professional and educator he identifies innovation opportunities, creates products and graphics, and develops strategies for product/system integration and promotion. He is an advocate for the value of design.



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Aaron Scott

Pulliam Hall 62
618-453-7503
ascott@siu.edu
Curriculum Vitae

Xuhong Shang, School Director, Professor

Painting

Xuhong Shang is a transcontinental multimedia artist. He holds an M.F.A degree from Tyler School of Art at Temple University, and a B.A degree in Painting from Shanghai Teachers University. Throughout his career, he has worked in various locations, including New York City, Southern Illinois, and Shanghai, drawing inspiration from diverse cultures.



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Xuhong Shang

Glove Factory 107 A&B
618-453-7745
xhs.107@siu.edu
Personal Website

Alison Smith, Assistant Professor of Practice

Photography/Intermedia Arts

Alison A. Smith received an MFA in studio art - photography with Distinction from the University of Georgia in 2010 and a BFA in studio art - photography with a minor in Women's Studies from Miami University in 2006.



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Alison Smith

Comm 1110 
618-453-2365
smithaa4@siu.edu

Rick Smith, Professor

Metalsmithing, Blacksmithing

Rick Smith earned his MFA from Southern Illinois University Carbondale in 1992. He is a Professor specializing in blacksmithing and forge welding techniques. Smith’s work is in the permanent collection of the Arkansas Arts Center at the Decorative Arts Museum in Little Rock, AR. He has received two fellowships from the Illinois Arts Council. Smith has taught classes at many prominent crafts schools across the nation, including Penland School of Crafts, and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts.



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Rick Smith

Pulliam Hall
Design Wing 66
618-453-3774
rshotforged@gmail.com
Curriculum Vitae

Corey Tester, Associate Instructor

Communication Design

In addition to working as a freelance designer and photographer, Corey is a lecturer in the Communication Design program and the School of Art and Design's Visual Resource Specialist. Corey earned his BFA in Communication Design from Southern Illinois University Carbondale in 2002.



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Corey Tester

Pulliam Hall 56
618-453-7598
corey@siu.edu
Personal Website

Jason Wonnell, Assistant Professor of Practice

Design

Jason specializes in printmaking, illustration, typography, UI/UX design, and animation. Jason is a co-owner of CTRL Media+Design, a new local media group that is currently working on branding and communications for a congressional campaign and a regional solar group buy program. He is also preparing a mural project for downtown Carbondale this spring.



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Jason Wonnell

Pulliam Hall 155
618-453-7554
jasonwonnell@gmail.com

Kari Woosley, Assistant Professor of Practice

Ceramics

Kari Woolsey received an MFA in Ceramics from SIUC and a BFA from Florida Atlantic University. She has completed artist residencies at Clay Arts Vegas, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, New Harmony Clay Project and Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts as their 2020 Salad Days Artist. Kari’s studio practice focuses on the everydayness of objects and vessels through making functional pottery, as well as installations.

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