The School of Art and Design continued its expansive growth and now has over 1,300 undergraduate students and fourteen MFA candidates. The most popular undergraduate programs are graphic design and interior architecture, which will be enhanced by two new faculty members in Fall 2025.
Student success was exemplifed by the School’s representation at the SDSU Student Symposium, where six of our students participated and three received awards. Faculty achievements were recognized by an NEA grant, a fellowship, awards, and exhibitions.
Our student galleries hosted seventeen exhibitions of undergraduate and graduate work, while the University Art Gallery presented three professional exhibitions that welcomed 2,300 viewers.
These achievements are made possible by our kindhearted donors and dedicated faculty, staf, and students. We appreciate your support of our educational mission!
Tina Yapelli, M.A. Director Professor of Art and Design Senior Curator, University Art Gallery School of Art and Design
Propelling the SDSU Community Forward
Richard Anthony Marks Endowed Gallery Program
This gift provides support for gallery improvements, art, and/or design exhibitions, and gallery related visiting artists and designers with the goal of enriching the educational experience for students and promoting the gallery program at SDSU.
The Richard Anthony Marks Gallery
Thriving in the Aztec Experience
Crystal Choi, Class of 2025 Class Level: Undergraduate Student College: Professional Studies and Fine Arts
Major: Art History
Crystal Choi has been named both the Outstanding Undergraduate Student from the School of Art and Design and the 2025 Outstanding Undergraduate for the College of Professional Studies and Fine Arts at SDSU. An art history major with a minor in interdisciplinary studies, Choi has demonstrated a strong commitment to cultural representation, museum accessibility, and academic excellence.
“My goal is to create museum spaces that refect the richness and diversity of the communities they serve,” Choi shared. Her passion for Asian diasporic art, inclusive exhibition design, and curatorial research has shaped both her academic journey and her career aspirations.
Following graduation, she plans to work in art conservation or curatorial research, with the goal of pursuing an M.F.A. or Ph.D. in Art History or Conservation, and eventually teaching at the college level.
Choi credits much of her growth to the mentorship of Dr. Gillian Sneed, who, she says, “gave me the confdence to believe that a future in the arts—whether in conservation, curation, or higher education—was not only possible, but worthwhile.”
My goal is to create museum spaces that refect the richness and diversity of the communities they serve.
Yena Kim, Class of 2025
Class Level: Graduate Student College: Professional Studies and Fine Arts
Major: Art
A dedicated M.F.A. student, Kim recently completed her thesis, Uncanny Garden, which evolved from a single basketweaving technique—a method that guides her entire process and shapes the woven forms.
“I appreciate both the predictability of repetition and the endless choices: when to break the weaving pattern or allow the inherent qualities of reed to guide my hands as I work with it rather than against it through force,” she explains.
“Positioning each piece in relation to the environment and the negative space between them, I constructed a landscape reminiscent of both the known and the unknown—perhaps even the imagined.”
This specifc technique serves as a framework for exploring variations of abstract form. The result is a collection of works that feel both natural and unfamiliar.
Kim’s goal is to create large-scale sculptures and installations using traditional techniques.
“SDSU has helped me refne my skills, deepen my understanding of materials, and develop my artistic voice. The program has given me the confdence to focus on researching traditional materials in depth, producing immersive work that challenges viewers’ perceptions.”
“
SDSU has helped me refne my skills, deepen my understanding of materials, and develop my artistic voice.
Celebrating Shared Success
Recent Rankings
SDSU School of Art and Design ranked No. 13 in California and No. 105 nationally
Statistics of Interest
Faculty: The School of Art and Design features a diverse and accomplished faculty with expertise across a wide range of disciplines, including ceramics, graphic design, interior architecture, jewelry and metalwork, painting and printmaking, photography, sculpture, and multimedia.
Research Initiatives: SDSU has earned R1 classifcation, placing it among the top research universities in the United States. This prestigious designation highlights the university’s strong commitment to research excellence and innovation.
Exhibitions: The school hosts more than 20 gallery exhibitions annually, ofering students valuable opportunities to present their work in a professional setting and engage with the broader arts community.
Recent Highlights
The School of Art and Design has expansive facilities that ofer students studio space and state-ofthe-art equipment. In addition, the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, the San Diego Museum of Art, the Stuart Collection, and the Timken Museum of Art provide access to a wide range of contemporary and historic global art, along with specialized libraries for art and design research. All venues are easily accessible by public or personal transportation. Numerous community college and commercial galleries also ofer a wide variety of exhibition opportunities.
No. 13 and No. 105
SDSU School of Art and Design ranked No. 13 in California and No. 105 nationally.
20+
The school hosts 20+ annual exhibitions, giving students the chance to showcase their work professionally and connect with the broader arts community.
Yin Yu, Ph.D.
Title: Assistant Professor, Interior Architecture College: Professional Studies and Fine Arts
Achievement: Dr. Yin Yu is an artist, designer, and engineer. Her research explores the potential of interactive multimedia environments and the intersection of architecture, music, and emerging technologies. Her practice spans a broad spectrum, including product design, furniture design, haptics, architectural design, interactive design, wearable design, and art installation.
She has received numerous awards, including the Oregon BEST Red List Design Challenge, the Academic Excellence Design & Paper Award, and the Lyman and Judith Johnson Interior Architecture Award. Dr. Yu was also the recipient of the Olivia Long Converse Fellowship and the Nascence and UO Hong Kong Alumni Scholarship.
Her work has been published and exhibited at international venues such as the Human-Computer Interaction (CHI) Conference (U.S.), the Haptic and Audio Interaction Design (HAID) Workshop (France), the Wearable Technology Exhibition (Spain), the Expanded Animation Symposium at Ars Electronica (Austria), and the Xenakis22 Symposium (Greece).
Dr. Yu has professional experience in both technology and architectural design frms, including the Fortune 500 Global No. 1 design frm AECOM, where she served as interior architect for the Apple China Campus project. She has also worked with local and international frms such as BENOY (a top 50 U.K. design frm), Optoplex (ranked in the Fast 50 Program for Silicon Valley Telecommunications), Group 70 International (one of Hawaii’s top three architecture design frms), and SDC Solutions, a system development company based in Manchester, New Hampshire.
Dr. Yu’s research explores the impact of social, cultural, and environmental innovation on human perception and wellbeing through interdisciplinary work in art and architectural design.
