MFA Student Gino Castellanos: Winner of Best in Show at Arts in the Airport
Gino Castellanos, MFA student with a concentration in printmaking at the UT School of Art won Best in Show at Arts in The Airport for his woodcut Pilgrim. Ashton Ludden, ITK Print alumna won an award of merit.
Juror John Powers, Professor of Sculpture and Time-Based Art at The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, provided this statement about the exhibition: I am so thankful for the opportunity to have been a part of this year’s exhibition. It is always very challenging to select works for an exhibition like this with so many strong and diverse submissions, but it is equally rewarding to get this glimpse of all the amazing creative work that is happening every day in our community and in the region.
Please note: the exhibition is normally available for viewing only by visitors flying in or out of the airport. Otherwise, visitors may view the exhibition by appointment with Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority staff.
Gino Castellanos is an MFA student in printmaking at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Some of these images portray the creative expression of Castellanos and his work each day in the printmaking lab.
Gino Castellanos is a Cuban-American printmaker who obtained his bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design from Florida Atlantic University in 2020. Prior to attending graduate school in Knoxville, he worked as a freelance designer and artist. Gino lived in Cuba until the age of 16, where he saw and experienced a different culture, with enough hardships that shaped his character. When coming to America in 2011, he understood that the only way forward was with diligence and discipline, which he has used to focus on his education. Today, other than his family, Gino’s primary focus is his work and getting better at it with each passing day.
Artist Statement
As an artist, I’ve made it my purpose to use my own private experiences and extensive years of research and learning to create a body of work that tells archetypal stories that can be universal and relatable. I intend to go deeper than usual in my work and touch upon topics that are more critical and universal than whatever the current social issues might be. I strive to make my work relatable today as well as a thousand years into the future.
My work is informed by Mexican Printmakers’ graphic aesthetic and German expressionism.
