a woman in a animal print blouse smiling to a group of people in a meeting
a large group of people sitting around a series of tables at a meeting
four people smiling and looking at the camera
two people smiling, looking at the camera
two people looking at another person across a desk
three students smiling for the camera
a student giving a presentation from a podium
a large group of people sitting around a series of tables at a meeting
two people looking at the camera and smiling
a student giving a presentation from a podium
students on break from Defense session, eating snacks
a student giving a presentation from a podium
three people at a desk looking at the camera

Excitement for Thesis Defense 2023

Apr 10 2023

photos by Leon Liu and Todd Carroll

Ventures, ready, set to go. The finish line is in sight.

The first annual event that MFADers work so hard to prepare for has come and gone. The Class of 2023 is less than two weeks away from the Venture Forum, the penultimate leg of the race toward graduation and receiving their MFAs. (The ultimate requirement is the pitch book.)

This year’s class of 21 students produced an exciting, at times surprising, array of ventures. Each one based on uniquely personal narratives that manifest in products made for distinctly broad audiences.

The audience for Thesis Defense included Kenny Batu ‘15, Johnson Tang, Ada Whitney, Wes Gott ‘11, Allan Chochinov, Tim Cohan ‘14, Nelee Sim, Felipe Garcia ‘15, Sukanya Bose ‘21, Aaron Wheeler, Laura Gunther ‘03, Michael Enten ‘19, Juan Soto ‘06, Kevin Brainard, and Deborah Adler ‘02.

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