Gallery reopening featuring alumni portfolios

“We are trying to widen the lens in which designers see their field, whether that be environmental design or product design. There is a wide variety of things to be working on and not just kinds of print pieces and T-shirts,” said Judson Copeland, an Art and Design instructor at Oklahoma Christian University. 

The reopening of the gallery kicked off with a departmental chapel on Sept. 18, 2025, which featured a panel of graphic design alumni including Tim Watson, Tessa Wright, Jonathan Curtis, and Stephen Bell. Several of these individuals are also featured in the displays. The subject of the talks revolved around the designers’ faith and purpose within their jobs.

“I was tasked to see if I could fill [the gallery] with design alums, and I tried to find alums who are five years or more out of school, so they kind of have a nice body of work going. So I just reached out to them and pestered some to make something for me,” Copeland said. “I gave a creative brief to each designer, and they could fill it in however they wanted. They basically had print parameters, and so they laid everything out, and then the staff here printed and hung the posters.”

“In the beginning I really wanted it to be pure graphic design…but there are some albums that are not in the field right now, or there is something more that they’re more passionate about, or their path has gone a different way. So at the beginning, that is what I wanted, but once I kind of got to see the work that other people are doing that isn’t heavy in graphic design, that’s why we pivoted into that,” Copeland said.

The gallery was scheduled to open earlier this year, but complications arose.

“I was actually trying to get this show of graphic design alum going before the end of last semester, but it was just challenging to get so many different people kind of rowing in the same direction and getting that submitted on time. So that was really what [the Art and Design department] was wanting to do, but we just had to pivot into starting it at the beginning of the semester,” Copeland said.

The display was created with a number of goals in mind.

“First would be for students to be excited to see what [they] can do with graphic design, but then also try to get re-engagement from Art and Design alums [for them] to be reinvigorated by the program… We haven’t done that much engagement in a while with alums. Alums do help us in other ways, like I’ve had two of the alums that are featured in the gallery right now as judges for the senior capstone class… Then we also have some alums that will come back and do adjunct work,” Copeland said. “So it’s to build up a little more connection with our alums who have been out of school for a while and want to come back to the school and see.”

Alumni had several surprises in store after responding to the request to showcase their work.

“Some have been very excited that they’re getting asked to come back or to show off their work. I had Tim Watson, who had been an adjunct years ago. It was a big surprise to have him come. He also did a poster and was on our guest panel, so that was really exciting. Scott Horton, [who] was very close to one of the first graduating classes [of the department], came to the gallery reopening, and I did not know he was going to be there. It’s pretty exciting to see alum come back that had not been able to get a poster for us,” Copeland said.

Future plans for the gallery are in the works, particularly concerning the timing of exhibit rotations.

“We’re trying to decide on what would be the best flow for [the rotation]. Last year we had a partnership with one of the high schools where we have a graduate who is a teacher, and he had his students come and do an exhibition here. So we’ve talked about doing that, and we would love to highlight each new department whether there is interior architecture, or gaming animation, or digital fine art.

Due to the positive recorded response for the departmental chapel, similar events are being brainstormed. Possibilities include Alumni speakers or student-led chapel for future events.