Notice Otis Event Draws Friends, Alumni, Board Members, Parents, and Employers to Campus

Alumni, Students, Programs, News | October 25, 2024

Attendees took classes and mingled with current students, alumni, and faculty at the open house.

The third annual Notice Otis event took place on September 28, 2024, showcasing the campus as well as student and alumni work to an audience of Trustees, Governors, employers, parents, alumni, and friends of the College. Attendees met and mingled with Otis faculty, students, and alumni during an opening reception, which was followed by art and design classes taught by Otis College faculty. Participants made ceramic pieces, silk-screened tote bags, painted watercolors, designed garments, drew comic book characters, and hand-sewed wallets—immersing themselves in the types of creativity that is central to life at Otis, while meeting students, alumni, and fellow friends of the College.

“Notice Otis provides a chance to grow and celebrate our community,” says President Charles Hirschhorn. “It’s a wonderful way to reconnect with friends, introduce people to the College, make art together, and share the creative work of our students and alumni.”

After classes, guests were invited to join a guided tour, and later enjoy a student and alumni exhibition on view throughout the evening. The exhibition of select works showcased a small portion of what students learn and what alumni have achieved since graduating from Otis. Paintings, sculptures, clothing, and a set of Olympics posters were all on display, the latter of which were created as part of a poster competition organized by the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture in partnership with the City of Paris, centered around the 2024 Paris Cultural Olympiad and the run-up to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

Several works were exhibited throughout the campus, including “Be Immense,” Lil Joe with the Liberation Fro, a monumental figurative sculpture that was recently installed between Ahmanson Hall and the Galef Center. Standing more than 10 feet tall and weighing over half a ton, the large-scale bronze is the work of JosephBrandon Thomas (’18 BFA Toy Design) and depicts a character created by the multidisciplinary artist and designer who also teaches in Otis’s Creative Action Integrated Learning program. The sculpture, installed to coincide with Notice Otis, will remain on view through the Fall semester.

Darel Carey (’16 BFA Fine Arts) was also on hand to update Untitled (2021), a mural he installed on the Otis campus three years ago.

If you are interested in being a bigger part of the Otis community, consider taking an Extension class; hiring Otis students for internships and jobs; or investing in the future of art and design.