Manifest MFA Exhibition 2024: Columbia College Chicago MFA Thesis Catalog

The 2024 MFA Thesis Exhibition, presented as part of the Manifest Arts Festival at Columbia College Chicago, brought together a group of artists whose work reflects a sustained engagement with the tension between instability and intentionality that defines contemporary experience, which creates their theme of Chaos and Control.

Among the artists included, André Barker Jr's Shifting the Narrative is a collection of acrylic paintings through a contemporary lens of Afro-Surrealism, using symbolism, lighting, and narrative to articulate the emotional terrain of navigating a society shaped by fear, misunderstanding, and inherited trauma. His work reflects a broader effort to reposition Black experience beyond spectacle and stereotype.

This catalog was designed by Liz Czech and features artworks by students in the MFA program, including those by André Barker Jr., are by students in the MFA program.