WVU Art in the Libraries is proud to present the 2025 Graduate Student Exhibit Award winner and WVU PhD student, Franny Perez-Ramirez. Perez-Ramirez will discuss her artistic process and showcase her award-winning work, “Layers of Self: Visual Narratives of Teaching,” during a talk and exhibit reveal on October 21.
Join Art in the Libraries on Tuesday, October 21 at 4:00 p.m. in Classroom 104 of the Downtown Library in Morgantown, West Virginia.
At the talk, Perez-Ramirez will discuss the process of creating the exhibit and the research that celebrates the richness and diversity of identities in social justice education.
“Creating these collages has been more than an artistic process, but also a journey of co-constructing, interpreting, and honoring the voices and identities of teachers,” Perez-Ramirez said. “My hope is that visitors leave the exhibition not only with a deeper understanding of educators’ experiences and beliefs, but also with an appreciation of how the arts can make research more human and accessible.”
My hope is that visitors leave the exhibition with a an appreciation of how the arts can make research more human and accessible. Franny Perez-Ramirez, PhD Student, WVU
The exhibit explores how graduate teaching assistants’ lived experiences, beliefs, and backgrounds shape their teaching philosophies through a series of collages. Each piece is inspired by in-depth interviews and identity maps created by educators who reflect on the many identities they carry into their classrooms and how these roles influence their approaches to creating more inclusive and empowering learning environments.
Anyone interested in viewing the exhibit can visit in person in the Graduate Commons at the WVU Downtown Library or visit Perez-Ramirez's website.