spring 2023 artist bios

Rob Le Cates: Rob is a student photographer who hopes to go into photojournalism. He work at The Daily Eastern News as the Photo Editor and is an sophomore journalism major. A key component in photography is capturing moments so ‘Rainy Day Late’ is one of his favorite moments he’s captured in the past two years.

Alyssa Decker: Alyssa is a senior at EIU studying digital media and graphic design. She practices several mediums, but especially enjoys digital illustration and collage. This piece in particular was created using photos taken around EIU's campus and magazine clippings. Alyssa appreciates the challenge of finding the beauty in preexisting conditions and working across platforms to make something entirely new. Upon graduation, she hopes to continue using mixed media in the professional world to create graphic design solutions for a variety of audiences. Her Instagram is @amdartss.

Pamela Miller: Pamela has been drawing pictures since she was four years old. As a child she was deeply impacted by the beautiful illustrations she would find in vintage and antique books, as well as those in the American Girl historical book collections, which she loved. She has always wanted to create art that pulls the viewer into its story, the same way she was pulled into the fascinating worlds of her childhood books. Her recent projects can be found on her Instagram account, @illustrationsbypamela.

Makenna O’Rourke: “Tell Me I’m Pretty” by Makenna O’Rourke explores gender expression through a self-portrait oil painting. Gender is an expression of oneself, but society pushes for set rules that create boundaries. With a “feminine” pose and the word “pretty” used in the title, the audience may label this imaginary figure female, but why do they feel compelled to label something male or female? “Tell Me I’m Pretty” is focused on the confidence and personality of the figure without the need for a binary label.

Robert Humphrey: Robert was born in Champaign, Illinois, went to Unity high school where he found his passion for drawing and theater. Robert graduated high school in the year 2010 and started at Eastern in the fall of 2022. Robert drew coldest night in drawing II class with professor Jenny Chi. She made him have the same passion he felt in high school.