For everything a season: Fall Fine Arts Showcase is here. SCAD painting, photography, printmaking, and ceramic arts programs present an evening of outstanding student and alumni work this Friday, October 13, 5-8 p.m. Over 560 works of art by more than 200 student and alumni artists will be showcased in Alexander Hall and the new state-of-the-art SCAD photography building, The Graham Scott.

“This is a great opportunity for the community to come see outstanding work from SCAD,” said Honor Bowman, Dean of the School of Fine Arts and School of Visual Communication, of the free event, open to the public. “Everyone is welcome to come experience graduate students and seniors in their studios sharing their creative processes, as well as take in interactive faculty demonstrations that allow guests to watch an artwork in process or make something of their very own.”

Guests will have the opportunity to view and purchase art available for sale through SCAD Art Sales, the university’s in-house art consultancy. SCAD is the only university to offer a commercial gallery service that exclusively represents the work of students, alumni, and faculty to international clientele.

In Alexander Hall, visitors will view Sherah Rosen’s thesis exhibition Disillusion: The Search for the Sublime. Rosen (M.F.A., painting, 2023) presents contemporary renditions of 18th-century Romanticism, showcasing intense, figurative paintings that take after the historical movement’s dramatic style and explorations of the “sublime.” She encourages her audience to consider the potential what is ultimately unattainable.

“The people in my paintings are looking for an escape from the mundane, that which is otherworldly and transcends the everyday,” Rosen writes. “They want to come to something extraordinary.”

On view in The Graham Scott Gallery will be a SCAD photo exhibition highlighting photographic work spanning a wide range of subjects, styles, and material explorations. A pop-up collaborative exhibition will display work by alumni Julia Kier Wilson (M.F.A, photography, 2018) and William Glaser Wilson (B.F.A, photography, 2017).

SCAD artists shape wood, concrete, bronze, light, digital projections, and other materials in large public art works, movie miniatures, props and prosthetics, commercial prototypes, fine art, site-specific installations, set designs, and more. The university’s students and alumni exhibit at world-renowned museums—from the Guggenheim to the Museum of Modern Art to the Smithsonian.

Guests have the opportunity to tour studio spaces peek behind-the-scenes at a photoshoot, pull a print on a press, experience a photobook showcase, learn to slip cast, and be transported to the landscapes of Lacoste, France through a video projection exhibit. The showcase takes place in Savannah this Friday, Oct. 13, 5-8 p.m. at Alexander Hall and The Graham Scott on Indian Street.

Kassidy Keenehan, B.F.A. painting, "Jane, 1976," 2023, oil on canvas, 25 x 30 in.

Courtesy of the artist.

For architectural historians, annual conferences are an opportunity to showcase and see new research, scholarship, and analytical approaches, connect with colleagues from across the country, and learn about the host city through tours and presentations. The annual meeting of the Southeast Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians (known as “SESAH” and pronounced see-saw)—attracts architectural historians, historic preservationists, social historians, architects, and independent scholars.

At this year's meeting, held Sept. 27-30 in Little Rock, Arkansas, SCAD had another great showing, with a total of seven presentations by faculty, a current graduate student, and three alumni—the largest representation by any institution of higher education. 

Architectural history faculty members David Gobel, Patrick Haughey, and Chair Robin Williams presented, respectively, on early 20th century Savannah architect Henrik Wallin, U.S. Presidential libraries, and Savannah's early sports infrastructure. M.F.A. student Bethany Laskin drew from her master's thesis project in presenting on the pioneering all-female architecture firm Gannon and Hands and the impediments they faced in a nearly all-male field in the early 1900s. Five alumni of the department attended the conference, with three presenting papers: Nathan Walker (M.A. 2006), Alesha Cerny (M.A. 2011) and Glen Umberger (M.F.A. 2015). Alum Ruben Acosta (M.F.A. 2010) serves on the SESAH Board of Directors as the Florida representative.

Beyond the scholarship on display, the SESAH board unanimously approved SCAD's bid to host the 2026 SESAH annual meeting in Savannah, which will coincide with the architectural history department's 30th anniversary. SCAD last hosted the SESAH meeting in 2003. David Gobel concluded a four-year term on the Board as chair of the Editorial Committee overseeing the publication of SESAH's annual academic journal Arris.

Each year SESAH recognizes excellence in scholarship with four publication awards selected by a dedicated committee. Chair Robin Williams was honored with the Best Essay in an Edited Volume award for his chapter "The Global Spread of Street Pavement Materials and Technology, 1820-1920" in Infrastructure Designs: Global Perspectives from Architectural History, edited by Joseph Heathcott (Routledge, 2022). This was the second publication award received by SCAD faculty. In 2018, Williams and four departmental co-authors won the Best Guidebook award for Buildings of Savannah (University of Virginia Press, 2016).

Among the architectural highlights of Little Rock are the Old State House, the oldest state capitol building west of the Mississippi (built 1833-42, Gideon Shryock and George Weigart, architects) where the concluding keynote address took place, the William J. Clinton Presidential Center (built 2004 by Polshek Partnership, now Ennead Architects), and the dramatically renovated and expanded Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts by Studio Gang, which opened in April 2023. These buildings of historical significance were a fine setting for another successful SCAD experience at SESAH.

Congratulations to Chair Robin Williams, recipient, "Best Essay in an Edited Volume" Award, SESEAH 2023.

Learn more about architectural history at SCAD.

Group photo, left to right: Ruben Acosta, Nathan Walker, David Gobel, Robin Williams, Elizabeth Clappin (M.F.A., architectural history, 2016), Bethany Laskin, Glen Umberger, Alesha Cerny and Patrick Haughey.

"Human-centered design is seldom truly equitable," says Haleemah Sadiah (M.F.A., design for sustainability, 2021). "To me, 'Indigenizing Design' means bringing the Indigenous perspective to design. It means having Indigenous people frame their language for design."

Sadiah, Senior Designer at Catapult Design, is a newly-named GreenBiz "30 Under 30" honoree for her exceptional design work with social and environmental impact. Essential to that recognition is her role in Indigenizing Design. Funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, Catapult's place-based project partnered with Indigenous organizations including Brian P. Skeet, Indigenous Community Collaborative, Cahokia PHX SocialTech + ArtSpace and the local community of Indigenous creatives, designers, and entrepreneurs in downtown Phoenix, Arizona.

"We've built a framework for Indigenizing Design which includes markers that serve as both the values that define Indigenizing and as indicators if Indigenizing has happened in a space," explains Sadiah. "One special thing for me as a designer is that we had community members in the room when we were synthesizing data, the first time I've experienced that. That adds tremendous value to the design process. When people with lived experience are in the room making design decisions it really does decolonize design."

From Bangalore, India, Sadiah is dedicated to advancing the principles of social justice. As a graduate student at SCAD, her thesis project focused on increasing the agency of women carpet weavers in the village of Aspura. Design for sustainability professor Scott Boylston says: "Haleemah exemplifies the best of our design for sustainability program due to her unique blend of deep thoughtfulness and purposeful action. Her reliably calm demeanor and the diversity of her skillsets allow her to work with any group. Haleemah is an inspiring changemaker paving the way for others interested in this challenging, rewarding career path."

"I recommend every SCAD student take classes in sustainability," Haleemah says with enthusiasm. "The program changed the way I look at the world and my place in it. All of us—from diverse backgrounds—can be activated agents promoting sustainability from both an environmental and social impact perspective. And, you know, just being good human beings."

As SCAD prepares to celebrate its 45th anniversary, it's worth noting that the university is a relatively young institution. On this point, Haleemah makes a connection between her work at Catapult and her status as a SCAD alum: "It's about generational connection."

At Catapult, Sadiah often teams up with program manager Laura Ramirez (M.A., design for sustainability, 2021; B.F.A., fashion, 2020), and has worked with Annemarie Spitz (M.A., design for sustainability, 2012), who currently teaches at Washington University in St. Louis.

"As SCAD design for sustainability alumni we have a knowledge base in common, and since Annemarie has been in the working world for ten years, I've learned from her how to bring that to my own creative practice." Current SCAD sustainability students now reach out to Sadiah for guidance. "I think that's a really nice thing in the world, where we're looking out for each other," she says.

This weekend, Sadiah will return to Phoenix to speak at the AIGA Design Conference. "We're going to be introducing the Indigenizing Design framework from the lens of how Catapult partnered with Indigenous communities, and the impact that work has had on our own practice at Catapult Design. There's always so much to learn."

GreenBiz "30 Under 30" honoree Haleemah Sadiah. 

(Banner image: Haleemah working with fellow SCAD alum and Catapult Design Manager Laura Ramirez.)

Rev up your Unreal Engine, it's time for SCAD AnimationFest!

The highly anticipated festival returns this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, Sept. 28-30, 2023, as the first major event to be held at the new 700-seat SCADshow theater in Atlanta. SCADFILM's signature festival for digital media will feature sessions with top executives and creatives from Netflix, Gearbox, Cartoon Network Studios, FOX, Viva Kids, Animal Repair Shop, Crafty Apes, Artie, and FuseFX, as well as SCAD faculty and alumni at the forefront of animation, motion media design, and visual effects. This year, SCAD AnimationFest programming expands to include gaming and virtual production, industries that have intertwined to create a new transmedia entertainment world.

"As the nation's biggest and best festival celebrating student animators and industry trends, SCAD AnimationFest shines in three-dimensional wonder—especially true this year, as SCAD unveils our state-of-the art theater in the heart of Midtown, where the screen is as colossal as SCAD's student talent," said President Paula Wallace. "It's the perfect stage for the world premiere of The Last Dungeon, the latest triumph from SCAD Animation Studios and a collaborative marvel from more than forty SCAD Bees. Truly a masterpiece in motion!"

SCADFILM is honored to recognize Adam Muto as the 2023 Spotlight Award recipient for his innovative contributions to animation and entertainment. Muto will be presented with his award on Friday during a special screening event for his new Max series Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake, followed by a Q&A to share insights about his incredible journey in animation.

SCAD will also honor keynote speaker Theodore "Ted" Ty with the Outstanding Achievement in Animation Award. The global head of character animation at DNEG Animation, Ty will present a behind the scenes look at the popular Netflix movie Nimona, based on the acclaimed 2015 graphic novel by ND Stevenson.

On Saturday night, FOX will host an exclusive screening of the comedy Krapopolis, with members of the production team on hand to give attendees a behind-the-scenes look at the new animated series. Several sessions at SCAD AnimationFest feature work from students and faculty, including a preview of the new animated film Inspector Sun and the Curse of the Black Widow, which is followed by a Q&A with producer and film professor Jason Kaminsky and screenwriter Rocco Pucillo.

The Last Dungeon: a true SCAD collaboration.

SCAD Animation Studios, the world's only animation studio at a university, is excited to host the premiere screening of The Last Dungeon, the first student animated film to be created using Unreal Engine. A true SCAD collaboration, students from many different degree programs worked together on the production, including animation, visual effects, acting, and sound design students, to build a cohesive, harmonious score and riveting soundtrack that pulls the film together.

"This year, SCAD AnimationFest explores how technology is evolving beyond traditional definitions of animation to develop new and innovative transmedia storytelling," said Leigh Seaman, senior executive director of SCADFILM. "As a top-ranked university in animation, interactive design and game development, visual effects, motion media design, illustration, and more, SCAD is uniquely qualified to host the best in the industry as presenters and mentors."

To purchase passes and view the full schedule, visit scad.edu/animationfest.

"When there is a lack of representation, you assume there's a good reason why," says Jelly, Ben & Pogo creator Jalysa Leva (B.F.A., animation, 2015). "And there isn't."

In 2021, PBS Kids debuted Leva's program about a young Filipino American brother and sister (that would be Jelly and Ben) and their sensitive, sometimes silly sea monster (Pogo). The show represents the siblings' cultural reality with fun, educational stories suitable for Pre-K viewers. In one episode, they prepare a balikbayan box for a cousin in the Philippines. In another, they enjoy a kamayan feast with their best friend's family. Jelly and Ben's grandmother, Lola, speaks primarily in Tagalog.

"I wanted to give [Filipino American] kids [watching the show] a sense of validation that they don't know they need yet—when they get older they'll realize it's important," Leva told Asians in Animation in a 2022 YouTube interview.

Now, she expands on that idea, explaining how representation is an invitation: "I've gotten feedback from parents of all types of families and they specifically call out, ‘We're not Filipino, but we love the show. We even tried halo-halo!'"

After graduating as salutatorian from SCAD Atlanta in 2015, Leva went to work at Primal Screen, a studio with a close relationship with PBS Kids. "Jelly, Ben & Pogo was a result of a PBS Kids request for proposals for new content from new creators, and they specifically wanted more diversity," she says of the network home to Curious George and Molly of Denali. "That was perfect for me."

On Friday, Sept. 29, Leva will appear at SCAD AnimationFest on the Alumni Voices panel, hosted by professor animation Matt Maloney. "Having Jalysa take part in our Alumni Voices panel will be a highlight of what’s sure to be another incredible AnimationFest," says Maloney. "As both a creator and creative leader, she exemplifies the best of our professional animation alumni, and sets a sterling example for our students."

SCADFILM Executive Director Leigh Seaman is equally enthusiatic: "Alumni Voices is always one of the most popular panels and we are thrilled to have Jalysa join us this year. It is no surprise to those of us who know Jalysa that she's had incredible success in the industry, and it's exciting to have her back to inspire current students as they prepare to launch their own creative careers."

Leva is a dab hand at live events. At conventions like WasabiCon and Dragon Con, she represents as a Filipino American creator with her TOTO-O character brand offering toys, puzzles, hats, blankets, and yes, a shrimp crackers pillow.

"When I take my business to convention spaces, Filipinos always recognize that we're Filipino," she says. "They're grateful because they're getting what we've been giving our Jelly, Ben & Pogo audience, which is representation in a space where they thought there wasn't room for them. It's really rewarding."

A cool conversationalist, Leva is also an attuned leader. Close to twenty SCAD alumni have worked on Jelly, Ben & Pogo, demonstrating the power of creative collaboration in a professional setting.

"I believe a strong leader should not be the strongest artist in the room—they should be the strongest leader," Leva says. "The leader is meant to support their strongest artists. I love doing that."

Meet leader, creator, and super cool person Jalysa Leva at SCAD AnimationFest 2023!

photo: Alex Kelly

SCAD is proud to announce Dominica Baird as Chair for the pioneering business of beauty and fragrance program within the DeSole School of Business Innovation. Baird assumes her role immediately for the 2023-2024 academic year.

An accomplished SCAD alumnus with an M.A. in luxury and fashion management and a B.A. in fashion design, Baird brings over fifteen years of experience as a leader, strategist, storyteller and trend innovator in the beauty and fashion industries. As Chair, Baird will oversee the academic leadership and vision for the business of beauty and fragrance program at SCAD, one of the university's fastest growing majors, and its curriculum.

Dominica Baird, Chair, business of beauty and fragrance.

"I am delighted to join SCAD as the new chair of the department of the business of beauty and fragrance, and doubly enthused to bring great energy and focus into this new academic year," said Baird. "I was privileged to earn my master's degree in luxury fashion management at SCAD, which set me up for an incredible decade-and-a-half at the high end of the industry. Bringing that experience back to SCAD—while working in gorgeous Morris Hall with my colleagues and our students—is a dream come true."

Most recently, Baird held the position as Global Director of Trends and Digital Innovation at Maybelline (L'Oréal), influencing and translating global product concepts into real-world activations. Her insights have redefined storytelling, identified groundbreaking opportunities, and accurately forecasted macro beauty trends that have rippled through culture and society. Prior to Maybelline, Baird was a highly sought after beauty, fashion, and marketing consultant and previously a fashion designer for luxury womenswear brand Elie Tahari. For the past three years, Baird has also engaged with the university's students as a professional mentor.

"Dominica Baird embodies a unique blend of experience, creativity, and mentorship, and as we build upon our incomparable business of beauty and fragrance program at SCAD, her keen understanding of industry insights and innovation is essential," says Meloney Moore, Associate Dean for the DeSole School of Business Innovation. "Our students know that what distinguishes our program is that they are learning from professionals who have already excelled at the top of their industry. We are excited to have Dominica's talent, experience, and leadership propel this program to new heights."

SCAD offers an elite academic program dedicated to the business of beauty and fragrance, an over $530 billion-dollar global industry. Since its launch in 2018, the program's groundbreaking focus of study is dedicated to all facets of innovation within the industry, and to preparing SCAD students for elite, successful careers.

Through exceptional instruction guided by faculty with international experience at the world's most prestigious and compelling brands, SCAD students are prepared at an expert level to succeed in their creative professions in this lucrative, and ever-evolving field. SCAD students gain an in-depth understanding of the beauty industry grounded in future-forward marketing techniques, product development, branding packaging, and entrepreneurship. The program culminates with the development of a new-to-market beauty brand, product, business model and retail strategy.

Alumni of SCAD's beauty and fragrance program now hold leadership positions at the world's top beauty brands including L'Oréal, Estee Lauder, Coty, Chanel, Lancôme, Saks Fifth Avenue, MAC Cosmetics, and Maybelline.

Learn more about SCAD's top-ranked business of beauty and fragrance degree program.

In honor of the moon at its fullest and brightest, the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival is a worldwide celebration of harvest, abundance, and family. Since ancient times, Chinese people have celebrated through the traditional sharing of mooncakes, honoring the moon goddess Chang'e, and by lighting paper lanterns, all while reuniting with loved ones. For international student Tong "Lily" Sheng (M.F.A. illustration), studying far from her hometown in Tianjin means sharing customs with new friends and family at her second home: SCAD.

Sheng looks forward to the festival—which arrives this year on Sept. 29—as an opportunity to share her home culture with her chosen family in the States. "The feeling of home is a sense of belonging and security," she says. "At SCAD, I feel that I am embraced and I belong. I feel a sense of security that I can do anything I want to do. No matter how big your dream is or how small you are, you can always find your place here."

To honor her heritage and the significance of the holiday, Sheng plans to creatively commemorate the Mid-Autumn Festival with her American boyfriend Alexander L. James (B.F.A. industrial design). The two will learn to make the customary egg yolk and lotus seed paste mooncakes that are typically shared during this festival. The couple will also create decorations—including a custom 3D-printed mooncake—to mark the occasion.
 
"I'm thrilled to delve into traditional China's fascinating history and customs," says Sheng. "Each exploration brings fresh insights and knowledge, making it an endless process of self-discovery. This is also one of the reasons why I love traveling: the more I see, the more I feel about other cultures, the more I appreciate China."

"In His Eye," digital photo collage, 2023.

She loves to create in an array of styles, including linocut print self-portraits, funny cat comix, and digital photo collage. She believes that her artwork reflects different aspects of herself and her personality. While flipping through her diary, she found a quote from her favorite professor of illustration, Richard Lovell: "Draw what you really love, and others will feel it." This inspired her to pursue her passion for illustration, love what she does, and expand her artistic identity.

Sheng spent spring quarter 2023 studying at SCAD Lacoste, immersed in the color and history of Provence, affirming her growing artistry and sense of global citizenship.

Soon, under the bright moon of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Sheng will reflect further on the journey that brought her to SCAD, where she has found a supportive community that builds her confidence as an illustrator. As she says, "SCAD helped me relax and believe in myself, increasing my self-expression."

Follow Sheng's work on Instagram @lilylanguage22.

"Live your life in an introspective way, and express your story through your work," says Tal Shenholz (B.F.A., animation, 2021).

Originally from Tel Aviv, Israel, New York City-based Tal works as a technical director for satirical hit TV show South Park, creating characters and backgrounds, rigging characters, and setting up and framing shots. He has worked on two longform South Park specials streaming on Paramount+ and all episodes of seasons 25 and 26 of the show that stream on HBO Max.

Tal Shenholz:

Since I was a little kid, I loved drawing. When I was in high school, I found so much curiosity and love for cinema. I remember watching films of Bergman and Kieślowski. The different approaches and possibilities of cinema blew me away. Later, I learned to treat animation as a form of cinema. Animation is an art form combining two things I am passionate about: drawing and cinema. I knew that I had to pursue it as a career.

My position as a technical director is challenging because it combines technical skills with creative, artistic, and cinematic principles. I will get a rough storyboard, which I have to turn into a fully rendered shot on the software for the show. The characters and backgrounds must have the right South Park-y look, and the framing, scaling, and proportions all have to be correct. Part of my growth as an artist and a director is identifying a given shot's purpose and directing it according to that purpose. Our South Park team is surprisingly small, which makes me that much prouder to be a part of a team that has won multiple Emmy awards.

The range of topics and characters in the show is incredible. Each episode offers something new, which keeps things interesting. I absolutely loved working on the episode "Pajama Day." I created the girl with the pajama, while also setting up and framing the shot. The pajama is super over-the-top and imaginative, while also being functional as far as the rigging and animation. In the episode "City People," I created the entire background, while setting up and framing the shot. When creating the door for the background, I had to make nine different door positions that make sense so that frame-by-frame it looks like the door opens and closes. Another thing to consider is that the characters move toward the camera, meaning that they scale up in size. The framing has to make sense throughout the whole duration of the shot.

The programs and professors at the animation department in SCAD are unbelievable. As someone who works for a company that recently signed a $900 million deal, I can assure you that during my time at SCAD, I learned the newest industry-standard techniques. It is also the interactions with your peers, the group projects, the presentations, the critiques, and the way you think about art and animation. Only now do I truly understand how relevant and valuable these skills are in the animation industry.

Connect with Tal Shenholz.

"How has your day been?"

When a doe-eyed aid worker named Daria poses this question to Grigory, a beleaguered border control officer, his day has already been drab, difficult, and decisive. But not without hope.

The scene is from Glory To The Nation, the directorial debut by Danil Pervukhin (B.F.A., film and television, 2023). It is indicative of the 13-minute short film itself, where what takes place is both literal and figurative.

"Like myself, Grigory realizes that it is impossible for him to change the course of the war, to change everyone's lives." says Pervukhin, a native of Kharkiv, Ukraine, who graduated from SCAD Atlanta this spring. "However, he has the power of changing one life at a time."

"I believe that I have been blessed with a chance to tell this extremely important story," the director continues. "When I stared writing Glory To The Nation, I was heavily inspired by the events in my home country."

Played by actor Evan Vihlin, protagonist Grigory works in a cinder block building in a town called Ustinovka, where close to 35,000 refugees are trying to flee occupying forces. These details create context for the war outside, as Grigory stamps the travel papers of men, women, and children with one of two words: APPROVED or DENIED. When he meets Daria (Mallory Ivy), he is confronted with a choice that calls into question issues of ethics and patriotism.

"I always encourage our students to make films with stories they're uniquely positioned to tell, and Danil has embodied this ethos through his connection to the conflict in his home country," says Quinlan Orear, associate chair of film and television, SCAD Atlanta. "In his film, Danil uses a sunflower to signify hope, and the film has been his own sunflower of sorts."

Glory To The Nation is a story about hope, agrees Danil, "but not the kind of hope when you sit around waiting for a miracle to happen. It is about the hope that your endeavors, struggles, and bravery will pay off."

By focusing primarily on a single set-up for the film, Glory To The Nation comes alive in the editing. Pervukhin's classmate Jake Bell (B.F.A., film and television, 2023) worked on the film as editor and digital imaging technician.

"Cutting the film involved a lot of back and forth between Danil and I," Bell says. "It can be intimidating when you have hours of footage and infinite possibilities. Many times, we'd be totally on the same page for how a scene should go together, and other times I might try cutting multiple versions of a scene and we'd talk about which one worked best and why. Danil really shined as a director with great professionalism, and I really wanted to make sure each cut intentionally pushed the story forward."

Pervukhin completed the film while maintaining a pristine GPA. This drive to excel reflects the young filmmaker's awareness of circumstance.

"Being an international student away from home during the escalation of the military action made me feel like by leaving I betrayed people I care about," he says. "Why do I get to see the sky, clear of smoke and missiles, every time I look up?"

Read the Shoutout Atlanta interview with filmmaker Danil Pervukhin.

With Cloud Studio, Chloe Campbell (B.F.A., fashion, 2019) has made event painting nearly as synonymous with weddings as ring bearers and cutting the cake.

Over the past seven years, the entrepreneur has grown what began as a weekend gig while a student at SCAD into an agency with six artists painting weddings across the country and even overseas.

"We get a full spectrum of clients, from people who want a painting to be exactly their vision, to those who are like, ‘We trust you!'" she says. 

As Cloud Studio has bloomed—turning "special moments into irreplaceable keepsakes"—Campbell has nurtured her own creative career. And when the business owner got married herself in April of 2022, she tried out a new idea.

"I had three of my six artists there at my wedding, all capturing little moments throughout the day, whatever inspired them. That was the first time we tried what we call the plein air series, which we now offer to our clients."

Although a show called "Real Wedding Painters of the Lowcountry & Beyond" isn't in production quite yet, Cloud Studio has just launched its own YouTube vlog with major dish. To be sure, a conversation with Chloe is itself a special entertainment.

Chloe Campbell:

I studied fashion design at SCAD. I knew I was good at painting, but I didn't want to be in a studio alone for the rest of my life. Then freshman year a friend said, "Hey Chloe, I saw someone painting at a wedding. You should try that!"

Since I grew up in Oldfield where there are lots of weddings, I contacted a wedding planner, and it turned out she was actually getting married herself and said, "Would you want to try and paint my wedding?" That was spring of 2016. By junior year I was painting around 40 weddings a year. It just took off.

I knew the direction I wanted to go was to hire artists to work with me under the banner of Cloud Studio. I interviewed a lot of candidates to get the original three artists I hired. I wanted to align with them as people. What we do isn't just wedding painting, we are multitasking. You have to be a people person because [as wedding painters] we are part of the entertainment of a wedding.

Every one of our artists has a little bit of a different style. I teach them my techniques, based on workshops I've taken with plein air painters in the southeast. I work a split primary palette, and I share my go-to color combos for the wedding world. Like, when you see a black tux, don't use black. I studied at SCAD Lacoste, and I'm more impressionistic—I love capturing the light and shadows of the landscape. 

When I was a SCAD student, I'd get people who would say at weddings, "Oh this is a fun hobby, what do you do for money?" Even now sometimes people doubt this is a business. That's why I like to brag on my team.

All my artists are going viral, and collectively we have I think 300,000 followers on social media. We get leads coming in from TikTok every day, and a strong foundation with the wedding planners I've been working with for seven years. Two of our artists left the medical profession [to join Cloud Studio] because of how much this business is thriving.

I feel honored to support the women I work with as we continue to grow. I'm proud that this is a business I started at SCAD. It's been a phenomenal journey.

Chloe Campbell of Cloud Studio.