The Grinnell College Museum of Art (GCMoA) is currently displaying the Bachelor of Arts Exhibition, known as BAX, a juried show featuring work by studio art majors across a range of media.
The exhibition, hosted in the GCMoA, brings together student work selected by the Studio Art Student Educational Policy Committee (SEPC), a body made up entirely of art students who evaluate and vote on submissions from their peers. The art in the final exhibit is chosen by the SEPC, and students can win prizes for work that enters the show.
Because SEPC members are choosing from the work of their peers, the process includes built-in safeguards against conflicts of interest. Alina Ihnatesku `26, a member of the SEPC, said the committee tries to stay as unbiased as possible, and described a process in which members regularly recuse themselves from voting on submissions by students they are close to. Museum staff also play a role in the process, advising on submissions and completing all installation and setup work for the final exhibition.
Winning work is selected by an outside juror, a role filled this year by Kevork Mourad, a highly regarded Syrian-Armenian artist whose practice brings together visual art and music, with many of his pieces exhibited alongside original compositions. James Snyder `26, one of the students whose work was featured in the exhibition, described what it meant to have a juror with that kind of background. “They’re bringing their own art making and their own background to the way that they approach pieces,” he said.
Several awards were given at BAX annually, with prizes decided by both the department and juror Kevork Mourad. The Department of Art Fourth Year Portfolio Award, went to Henry Loomis `26, and the Third Year Portfolio Award, went to Ethan Versh `27.
Mourad selected the remaining award recipients. James Snyder `26 received the Inez Louise Henely `14 Best in Show Award. Lee Steffen `26 received the Tammy Zywicki Memorial Prize for Photography, Kaz Hurley `27 received the Louis Glenn Zirkle Memorial Prize for Sculpture, and Henry Loomis `26 received the Film and Media Studies Moving Image Award. Natalie Sato, Alina Ihnatesku `26, Ethan Versh `26 and Keisya Park `26 each received Merit Awards.
This year, the winner of the Inez Louise Henely `14 Best in Show Award was Snyder, whose collection centered on the concept of taxidermy.
Snyder described his background with the subject through the lens of hunting. “There’s memories behind that, and the story behind each taxidermied piece,” he said. “It also has levels of pride.”
His collection included a diverse range of art forms, among them what he called a humor piece, meant to evoke a more unserious response from viewers. He also explored taxidermy through a non-harmful lens, with one piece consisting of horns carved from wood rather than real bone.
“How could I make horns that don’t take away an animal’s life, but are just wooden?” he asked.
Snyder has shown work at Grinnell before, including a Smith Gallery show last year titled “Amidst Rurality,” which explored what it feels like to live in a rural setting.
He also spoke to the dynamic created by one piece in the current exhibition that features a set of eyes oriented toward the viewer. “The eyes are flipping the relationship between a taxidermied piece and the observer,” he said. “Walking through the museum, I am just blown away by the work that was in there.”
Ihnatesku, who won last year’s Inez Louise Henely `14 Best in Show Award, also had a collection in this year’s exhibition. She said she values the opportunity BAX provides, noting that Grinnell’s exhibition culture is something she appreciates.
“This is one thing that I really love about Grinnell College, because we have a lot of opportunities to exhibit your work,” she said.
The exhibition as a whole spans a wide range of media and themes, including pottery, silkscreen prints, photography, painted works and film.
Student collections explored identity, family, body image and societal influence, with a large ceramic heart suspended near the entrance serving as one of the first works visitors encounter upon entering the gallery.
Bachelor of Arts Exhibition will be shown until May 18, 2026. Editor’s Note: Henry Loomis is the Visuals Editor at The S&B. He was not involved in the writing or editing of this story.
