DANBURY, Connecticut — The Department of Art at Western Connecticut State University has announced the 2026 Master of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition. It will take place in The Gallery at the Visual and Performing Arts Center, 43 Lake Ave. Extension in Danbury from Thursday, March 26, through Sunday, April 12, 2026.
An opening reception sponsored by the Department of Art will be held on Thursday, March 26, 2026, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Gallery. The reception and exhibition are free and open to the public. The Gallery will be open for viewing from noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. RSVP for the reception at www.eventbrite.com/e/wcsu-2026-mfa-thesis-exhibition-opening-reception-tickets-1984648427873.
The Master of Fine Arts is the terminal degree for practicing professional artists. The M.F.A. Thesis Exhibition is the capstone experience of the graduate program, demonstrating a personal direction and mastery in the work of the artists. Five graduate students will present their thesis work this year, featuring diverse media and innovative approaches that reflect their unique artistic visions.
Loren Birtha was born in Meriden, and currently resides in Wolcott. She holds a B.F.A. in Photography and Digital Imaging and is now completing her M.F.A. in Interdisciplinary Visual Arts at WCSU. She explores topics of self, nature, and fantasy through an ongoing investigation of the unseen connections that tie us to the natural world and to each other. Her various media include photography, painting, drawing, sculpture, digital creation and video.
Birtha’s work has been shown in Bridgeport at the Schelfhaudt Gallery in four exhibitions from Fall 2021 to Spring 2023. It also has been displayed at the Durham Fair, earning awards for her panoramic landscapes and abstract images. At WCSU, she has worked as a Graduate Assistant in the Gallery, and as a Teaching Assistant in the undergraduate Photography program. Birtha is the founder and director of LAB Photography, a portrait photography business she established in 2019.
About her work, Birtha writes, “As I continue to explore the territory of interdisciplinary creativity, I want my art to transcend boundaries, inspire wonder, and appeal to an idea of shared discovery. … Each piece is an invitation to experience a world where the boundaries between reality and fantasy are just a little hazy. I am fascinated by the intricate dance between the small, overlooked details of the world and the wide-ranging realms of our imagination. My work comes from a deep-rooted curiosity and fascination about the physical, natural and fantastical.”
Octavia C. Byrd is a Connecticut-based painter whose work explores femininity, chronic illness, and embodied empathy. Drawing from her personal experience living with endometriosis, her paintings center on tenderness, resilience, and the quiet strength of the female body.
Byrd earned her B.A. in Studio Art from WCSU in 2024 and is currently completing her M.F.A. in Painting. Her work has been exhibited throughout Connecticut, including at the Ferguson Library in Stamford and City Lights in Bridgeport. She has contributed to numerous community art initiatives and nonprofit collaborations, as well as mural projects in Milford and Boston, Massachusetts. Since 2019, Byrd has taught art classes in Milford, Bridgeport, and currently in the Hartford public schools.
In her artist statement, Byrd writes, “Through painting and drawing, I approach the figure with softness and empathy. I create spaces where femininity, fragility, strength, and grace can coexist. My work holds tension between discomfort and delicacy — between what is felt internally and what is presented externally. I often use pink to empower femininity, layered textures, and fluid forms to suggest both the tenderness and complexity of the female experience. Chronic illness can feel isolating, but it can also deepen one’s awareness of the body and spirit. Ultimately, my paintings are offerings — to myself, and to every woman who has learned to carry strength quietly. Through tenderness, I seek to make space for recognition, healing, and shared understanding.”
Jacqueline Joyce is a New York-based artist who specializes in drawings, paintings, prints and other illustrative works of the fantasy genre. She holds a B.F.A. in Drawing and Painting from SUNY Purchase and is currently pursuing her M.F.A. in Illustration at WCSU. Her work is often based on characters, places and events that only exist in the fantastic realms of fiction. For her thesis exhibition, she has developed and constructed “Mall Rats,” a board game, complete with character pieces and player forms, based on the rules set of Dungeons and Dragons Fifth Edition, and inspired by an abandoned suburban mall.
Joyce has participated in conventions and fairs for the past five years, and received commissions for album cover designs. Her work has been exhibited in group shows since 2018, when she was included in the “Young Artists” exhibition at the Katonah Museum of Art. Additionally, she has curated shows in Peekskill and Purchase, New York, and has worked as a Graduate Assistant in the Gallery at WCSU.
In Joyce’s own words, “I’ve always been a big daydreamer and a fan of folklore and fantasy, and the veil between worlds. Heavily influenced by titles such as ‘Lord of the Rings,’ my deep love of medieval, renaissance and Victorian art history, and my fascination with dead malls, liminal spaces and the decline of the accessible third space, my work is often about fantasy realms and storytelling as an escape from the real world.”
Katherine Moran is an interdisciplinary artist from Newtown. She received her B.A. in Studio Art from WCSU in 2022, and is now completing her M.F.A. in Interdisciplinary Visual Arts. Her practice is anchored in printmaking, alternative photography, painting and sculpture. She is drawn to carefully combine unlikely materials, such as readymade cattle panel with raw canvas drop cloth, utilizing physical space and materiality.
In her artist statement, Moran writes, “My art navigates my interest in the fragility and resiliency of life. Creating a delicate tension between unexpected materials allows me to explore grief, memory, and the intimacy of small, everyday moments. I often collect images and phrasing that repeatedly weave their way into my work. By incorporating found objects to act as the vessels that hold my art, I’m pushed to explore the boundaries of materials to print on.”
Moran’s work has been exhibited in Danbury and Newtown. She has worked as a studio assistant for local artists, and as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at WCSU. For seven years, she worked at Edmond Town Hall in Newtown in various positions, including Theater Manager. Through her design and installations, she led numerous community art projects. She is now Manager for Greenwood Features in Bethel, where she continues her creative practice in community work.
Riley Weaver is a multimedia artist from Chestnut Ridge, New York. He earned his B.A. as a double major in Graphic Design and Photography from WCSU in 2023. Currently, he is pursuing his M.F.A. in Interdisciplinary Visual Arts with a concentration in printmaking. His work explores the process and experience of becoming through his use of discarded materials and various artistic processes. He draws a connection between the discarded physical consumer world and the people and places in his life, personifying materials to tell a story.
In his artist statement, Weaver writes, “When we as artists create, we allow the experiences that make us who we are inform our art. Growing up with the rise of digital cameras and the early days of the internet, I was exposed to a lot of photography and design, all while enjoying more traditional art forms. … I love to experiment with new media as the opportunity arises, depending on the task or message I want to convey. With my love for typography, collaging my photos, 3D printing, or learning a new medium for the sake of a project, my irreverent humor and artistic expression challenge the norms and dare to ask, ‘Why not?’”
Weaver’s work has been shown in solo exhibitions in Danbury and Waterbury, and in group shows; recently in “Words,” an exhibition at Yonkers Arts, in Yonkers, New York. He has contributed to the publication, design, and marketing for several programs and projects at WCSU, and is currently a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the Art Department.
Western Connecticut State University changes lives by providing all students with a high-quality education that fosters their growth as individuals, scholars, professionals, and leaders in a global society. Our vision: To be widely recognized as a premier public university with outstanding teachers and scholars who prepare students to contribute to the world in a meaningful way.