SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- Academy of Art University Alumni Arlene Elizabeth, Graphic Design, and Sebastian Parker, Fine Art, will have their Asian-inspired artwork featured in Friday Nights at the de Young: College Night on November 14, 2008 from 5:00PM to 8:45PM. Winning a juried competition with submissions from throughout the Bay Area, Elizabeth and Parker gain invaluable exposure by working with San Francisco's internationally renowned de Young Museum.

This special event will feature artworks, performances, artist demonstrations, and live drawing demonstrations by local San Francisco Bay Area university and college art students. Their creative work projects draw inspiration from and pay tribute to the museum's current exhibition Asian/ American/ Modern Art. The works bring awareness to the contributions, struggles, and artistic intentions of Asian American artists from 1900 to the present, examining issues of cultural identity and artistic processes.

"It is a wonderful chance for students and alumni to showcase their work in a fine art institution, and it's good for us to get to know new and existing talent," said show curator Robert Melton. "It can be difficult for new artists to connect with museums; this show gives them the opportunity to refine their approach and cultivate relationships."

Elizabeth was thrilled to learn she would be featured in the de Young College Night exhibit. Since graduating from AAU, she has sampled a variety of vocations including book designer and custom furniture maker. "The Academy of Art University is the greatest thing that ever happened to me," she said. "I studied so many different things that I wouldn't have been able to study at another school. It made me a more versatile, confident artist."

Elizabeth's piece "Greetings from Tibet" resembles a quilt from afar, but in fact is constructed with hundreds of origami cranes. Elizabeth views her mosaic work as a way to express her passionate political views, with the origami cranes acting as a powerful symbol of peace.

An aura of asymmetrical Zen surrounds Parker's sculpture "Whirlybird." Parker fuses inspiration from the graceful forms and smooth turns of Japanese-American sculptor Isamu Noguchi, as well as the kinetic sculpture of Alexander Calder. Parker's artwork landed the prime spot on the show's invitation.

These talented Academy of Art University alumni's acceptances to the De Young Museum's College Night exhibit define the mission of AAU. Students not only unlock their potential and ignite their passions, they also gain real world knowledge and contacts.