SOVA alumna’s artwork featured in virtual exhibition responding to pandemic

Penn State School of Visual Arts alumna and Southwest Philadelphia artist D’nae Harrison, 2014 bachelor of fine arts, has been named as a winner of the 2020 MOZAIK Future Art Awards. The annual competition was amended to reflect artistic expression during the pandemic. In April, MOZAIK Philanthropy, a national foundation committed to democratizing philanthropy, invited artists across the country to share an art piece inspired by times of crisis and social upheaval that could “shed light on the COVID-19 global pandemic.” Harrison, an award-winning interdisciplinary artist that is working to create a public art initiative dedicated to improving the quality of life in distressed and impoverished neighborhoods, was one of more than 1,100 artists to respond to the call and submitted “Shaded Oppression,” a 4 foot by four foot mixed-media painting created in response to the 2016 election results. The social commentary piece, which utilizes oil paint, fabric and wood to depict a scene of several individuals masked by their government flag, was chosen as a top-10 finalist of MOZAIK’s Future Art Awards and was a recipient of a $2,000 artist honorarium. The inclusive contest, which welcomed all mediums including visual arts, sound arts, performance and social practice, was open to all professional and amateur artists in the country. A virtual exhibition, showcasing the works of the featured artists as well as special mention artists, is open and free to the public on the organization’s website.