SAN FRANCISCO – Concluding another school year loaded with originality and innovation, Academy of Art University proudly displayed its students' best work from the 2023-24 academic year for the annual Spring Show. A fascinating and interactive in-person setup combined with the virtual version (a concept that emerged in 2020) to provide a live look at the 40+ areas of art and design which included a showcase of talents and portfolios from more than 30 current and former ART U student-athletes.

A quintet of projects featuring Urban Knights from women's and men's soccer could be found in the School of Architecture with Hannah Moore's portfolio and B.Arch Thesis Award design among the group. Her concept "Turning Tides: Holistic Remediation" based on revitalizing the Harris Shipyards in her hometown of Bellingham, Wash. through repurposing materials found on the site toward housing, jobs, and community programs was recognized for achieving "a distinct design identity through a synthesis of research, commitment to social responsibility, well-calibrated architectural expression, and compelling spatial experiences."

Moore's teammate Katie Williams also had her portfolio available along with her own hometown exploration, "Redensification of Hamilton Central, New Zealand," which sought to connect divided communities through the inventive use of traditional Maori typologies, Marae and Wharenui, that were adapted to create contemporary urban housing. Meanwhile, fellow 2024 ART U women's soccer member Kayla Hampton shared the spotlight with her physical display combining architectonics, unique slants and angles, intersecting planes, and a laminating effect for multi-layered house concepts based in the Netherlands.

From men's soccer, Kendryx Soriano was a collaborator on a "Stay Over Program Mobile Folding Beds" project that earned the B.Arch Community Building Award. Working directly with Buena Vista Horace Mann K-8 Community School in San Francisco, Soriano was among the student group who used extensive prototyping to co-create 66 folding beds on wheels with storage compartments incorporating the suggestions of the shelter families.

When he wasn't working on the field alongside Soriano, Breki Einarsson was building a collection of architectural designs such as an athletic center and library to provide a place of belonging to teenagers in San Francisco's Western Addition.

After signing off on a stellar collegiate career as one of ART U volleyball's top outside hitters to date, Amalie Rupertova joined with Erica Hellbe of the 2024 Pacific West Conference Champion women's tennis team to create a Lucid Motors x Academy of Art Team Serenity campaign that integrated skill sets from the Schools of Industrial Design and Interaction & UI/UX Design. The innovative concept, which outlined a car that would adapt to its driver's mood, was presented on stage by the team to Lucid Motors at Spring Show.

The duo of Rupertova and Hellbe each had individual projects featured as well. A 2023 CSC Academic All-District Team honoree, Rupertova nurtured her own passion for childcare by introducing "Evolve," an adaptive toy designed to engage and nurture children's development across multiple stages of life through active learning and play. Under her Interaction & UI/UX Design umbrella, Hellbe put forth "Hub," an app designed to help its user find the perfect event for any given occasion through personalized offers, filtering, and reviews.

"Taking part in the Spring Show was such a fun and inspiring experience for me," Hellbe said. "To have industry professionals from Lucid Motors come and see us present our work was a great learning experience and inspiring moment. Seeing my work presented in the Spring Show also felt very rewarding and it made all those hours of hard work feel worth it."

Other contributors to the Urban Knights' PacWest title could also be found throughout the show including Paulina Alvarez and Viktoria Leth. Alvarez worked with eight others from the School of Interior Architecture & Design on "Level and Loft," a commercial design introducing fresh additions like a café, library, and wellness center to multiple Academy of Art locations. Though a Interaction & UI/UX Design major, Leth, the PacWest Tournament Most Outstanding Player and honoree of the CSC Academic All-District Team award, had two of her School of Advertising elective projects, colorful and eye-catching campaigns for Lagunitas Hazy Wonder IPA and Clover Sonoma's Pasture Raised Eggs, displayed.

Another School of Advertising elective project featuring Clover from ART U women's cross country/track & field's Lina Hanich. Hanich's hilarious "Clover: Luxury Chicken" commercial combined with the two PacWest titles (800m, 4x400m), four All-Region selections, and three All-America honors she added to her resume this season.

But that wasn't quite all as Hanich, Leth, Hellbe, and track & field's Jason Bayindoula were all among the various models walking the runway in the prestigious 2024 Academy of Art Fashion Show. They each sported bold and unique collections while School of Fashion student-athletes such as Jade Alverio and Kara Aradóttir from women's soccer assisted behind the scenes.

Additionally, Darria Matthias of track & field and the School of Fashion made contributions to both the Fashion Show as well as Spring Show, styling models in both instances with her elegant and daring portfolio featuring the visual tale of "Royalty in the Cityscape" as well as collaborations with Nike, Chanel, and others.

This year's Spring Show School of Fashion showed off plenty of graduating student-athletes as Brooklyn Villapudua of women's soccer and Nina Vallejos of softball plus multiple women's golfers were among the notable portfolios. Villapudua's collections included "Smooth Elegance," "Western Chic," and "Suit Up," the latter of which brought in men's soccer alumni Davis King as a model. Vallejos also collaborated with student-athlete models in her work, joining former teammates Marissa "Roo" Menard and Cailee Grayhorse-Pupecki for a "KENZO" case study in addition to Grayhorse-Pupecki for "Ever Evolving" and "Sisterhood."

The work of three women's golf seniors had places throughout Spring Show with both Jae Eun Park and Napat "Plern" Rattanaprakarn in the School of Fashion and Tessa Geenen in the School of Advertising. Park's marketing and brand development campaigns for "CHEEHOO!", "Fore Golf," and "Kiehls" showed versatility while Rattanaprakarn's creativity shined through in the case studies for Issey Miyake and Jacquemus that made her a two-time Fashion Scholarship Fund Scholarship recipient. The "NotHangover - We Think Not" advertising campaign from Geenen presented vibrant and engaging visuals in support of the NotCo brand's hangover combatant.

Award winners from the 2024 edition of NXTUP Fest, an awards show recognizing the Schools of Entertainment (Acting, Motion Pictures & Television, Writing for Film, TV & Digital Media) fittingly graced Spring Show as well. Track & field and the School of Acting's Elijah Roberts, who was in last year's "Night Swim" film, was recognized for his work in "Next Time" with the Best Undergrad Actor in a Drama while Calvo Mendez produced the Best Commercial/PSA award-winning "Your Future Begins Here" promoting the San Francisco Sheriff Department.

Within the School of Photography's Spring Show Gallery were multiple evocative black-and-white gems from volleyball and basketball's Lola Martin as well as track & field's Shareez Hamm. Martin put her teammate Emilia Dougherty front and center for "Connections" while adding "Golden Girl" and "Hands and Comfort." Meanwhile, Hamm, the newly-crowned NCAA Division II National Champion in the 400m hurdles, powerfully incorporated "Say Their Names" into his photographs "Blinded" and "Tired."

"Having people looking at my work in the show is a blessing," Hamm said. "The inspiration for the project was the people who have tragically lost their lives to police brutality."

Numerous Urban Knights were highlighted within the School of Communications & Media Technologies as basketball's Maddie Morrow and Quintin Metcalf each had segments on display. Morrow's "Finding the Fulfilling" told the emotional roller coaster story of a teammate finding out about a family member's passing while Metcalf unveiled his uniquely entertaining cooking series "Qpski Plates."

All-American Alicia Thomas had three pieces available including "Change," an inspiring candid look at her fellow track & field teammates, "Discovery," Ajani Ince's exploration of Black history, and a thoughtful PSA "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle." A trio of Spring Show selections also came from former baseball student-athlete Chris Fung who had his own "Discovery" about electronic dance music, authored the tale of German shepherds rescued with "Koda and Sheppa," and found his own passion in "The Last Inning."

Video haikus were also displayed from track & field six-time All-American Juvonna Cornette and volleyball's Lina Ellilä with the former offering perspective from among San Francisco rooftops and the latter venturing into more wooded surroundings in nature.

Tasked with coverage of the opening of Spring Show, the Communications & Media Technologies department naturally brought many student-athletes into the day's production. Interviews across numerous departments were conducted by tennis' Maria Vittoria Casucci and women's basketball's Ashana Hinds while others such as Haley Vaughan and Jossart Jodito supported behind the scenes and all were offered opportunities to meet with industry professionals in attendance. Hinds and Fung each also earned COM Gold Awards for their outstanding work this past year.

Spring Show's "Foundations" section, which focuses on the core skills of drawing, painting, and sculpture from various majors, brought fourth intriguing and vivid "Mandala" designs by softball's Olivia Glover and volleyball's Kaia Fittz who share early paths within their respective Animation & Visual Effects and Industrial Design majors.

Creator of a colorful sculpture of her own, Anna Maggi-Brown of women's soccer and the School of Fine Art visually told an aquatic tale with a ceramic piece standing 36 inches tall. The work of her teammate and Visual Development major, Nicole Peoples, also could be found in the School of Animation & Visual Effects as she provided concept art for an 3D animated film called "Chain."

Whether entering their respective design industries as 2024 graduates or continuing to build their portfolios in the coming years, these 30+ student-athlete Spring Show honorees represent some of the best and brightest artists Academy of Art has to offer.