New Assistant Directors of Graduate Study: Maria De Los Angeles appointed in Painting/Printmaking and Sandra Burns appointed in Sculpture

The Yale School of Art is pleased to announce that faculty members Maria De Los Angeles and Sandra Burns have been appointed as the Assistant Directors of Graduate Study, in Painting/Printmaking and Sculpture, respectively. Both De Los Angeles and Burns are alums of their programs, and will work closely with students as both faculty and vital administrators.

In an effort to provide clarity and consistency to administrative roles across the School, Stavros Niarchos Foundation Dean Kymberly Pinder worked with Directors of Graduate Study to convert existing departmental coordinator positions to Assistant Directorships. Dean Pinder explained, “Coordinators such as Sandra have been performing duties serving student, admin and curricular needs in a role typical of one who assists the director, so we needed to just recognize this work already being done.”

In her new role as Assistant Director of Graduate Studies, Maria De Los Angeles, Critic in Painting/Printmaking, will work alongside the program’s Director of Graduate Studies, Meleko Mokgosi, to lead the Painting program at the Yale School of Art and its 43 MFA students. “We are so honored to welcome Maria to our community!” Mokgosi shared of De Los Angeles’ appointment. “Not only does she bring with her a wealth of knowledge as a respected practicing artist, she also possesses invaluable expertise as a distinguished educator that cares deeply about both graduate and undergraduate students, as well as students’ academic and professional developments. We look forward to her many contributions and vital presence at the School of Art!”

Maria De Los Angeles is a multidisciplinary artist who addresses ideas of migration, belonging, and identity through her drawing, painting, printmaking, and wearable sculptures. She holds an MFA in Painting & Printmaking from Yale School of Art (2015), a BFA in Painting from Pratt Institute (2013), and an Associate Degree in Fine Arts from Santa Rosa Junior College (2010). She was awarded the Blair Dickinson Memorial Prize by Yale University (2015) for her artwork and her role within her community.

De Los Angeles has also been in residence at notable institutions such as the MASS MOCA, El Museo del Barrio, LACMA, and Mana Contemporary. In addition to multiple solo exhibitions, including at the Museum of Sonoma county in her hometown of Santa Rosa, California, De Los Angeles has recently participated in group exhibits with the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, Los Angeles County Museum, IPCNY, and Every Woman Biennial, among others.

Her public murals include Glen Ellen, California (2021), Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital (2022), and an upcoming mural for Santa Rosa Junior College to be installed in 2023. Previously, De Los Angeles has served as faculty at Pratt Institute, Fashion Institute of Technology, and Southern Oregon University.

“As a previously undocumented person, student, artist, and DACA recipient, I want to state that I believe everyone should be able to unlock their potential and follow their dreams regardless of legal status,” De Los Angeles shared of her appointment, “I’m here to support all my students and community in the pursuit of their dreams. I’m thrilled to be back at the Yale School of Art.”

Sandra Burns first joined the School of Art faculty in 2011 as a lecturer in the Film/Video/Interdisciplinary department. She joined the Sculpture program in 2015 and in 2020 was appointed Senior Critic. Formerly the Graduate Coordinator in Sculpture, Burns will continue her longtime commitment to the department as its first Assistant Director, leading alongside Director of Graduate Study, Aki Sasamoto. “I am thrilled to work with Sandra, as she is like a good doctor,” Sasamoto shared, “she is able to see how the department is doing, also she has a great style, and great compassion for the students and her colleagues.”

A 2001 alumna of the School of Art’s painting and printmaking program, Burns was an artist-in-residence at the MacDowell Colony and has been a recipient of the Chenven Foundation Grant, as well as grants from the Connecticut Commission of the Arts and the Vermont Studio Center’s Clowes Fellowship. Burns’ work is rooted in somatic and psychological experiences of the built world and explores how queer bodies navigates such spaces.

“There’s a certain rhythm to bumping into and out of various types of spaces. I interpret this mobility as a form of queer navigation,” Burns explained. “By focusing my practice on the discursive material touchpoints that exist in seemingly oppositional spaces, I work to illuminate how two opposing systems might establish common ground, both temporally and spatially.”