SAIC
FACULTY
SABBATICAL
TRIENNIALAugust 25—
December 6, 2025

FACULTY SABBATICAL TRIENNIAL

This fall, SAIC Galleries is pleased to present the second SAIC Faculty Sabbatical Triennial, featuring a wide range of work across multiple disciplines by School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) faculty who have completed a sabbatical or other paid leave over the past three academic years. Significant gallery-based presentations and a scheduled program of talks, performances, workshops, and events, alongside this dedicated website, represent the research and practices of these renowned SAIC faculty members.

SAIC offers sabbaticals, or salaried leaves-of-absence, to eligible full and part-time professors after seven years of service. During a sabbatical, faculty are relieved of their teaching and administrative duties so they may embark on a dedicated period of inquiry, experimentation, and production to help sustain their instructional and professional excellence. This exhibition highlights the importance and impact of this supported time away and provides the opportunity for SAIC faculty to share their recent bodies of work and current subjects of study with the SAIC community and the public.

SAIC faculty members who are participating in the 2025 edition of the Triennial include Marzena Abrahamik, Giovanni Aloi, Claire Helen Ashley, Jonas N.T. Becker, Jeremy Biles, Sara Black, Jerry Bleem, John Bowers, Tom Burtonwood, Odile Compagnon, Tirtza Even, Pablo Garcia, Gaylen Gerber*, Susan Giles, Michelle Grabner, Adam J. Greteman*, Diana Guerrero-Maciá, Rebecca Keller, Piotr Michura, Frédéric Moffet, Judd Morrissey, Marlena Novak, Tyson Reeder, Sarah Ross, Alison Ruttan, Roberto Sifuentes*, Shawn Michelle Smith, Chris Sullivan, Savneet Talwar, Christine Tarkowski, Jim TerMeer, Jan Tichy, Lan Tuazon, Amy Vogel, and Adrian Wong.

The 2025 SAIC Faculty Sabbatical Triennial is organized by Staci Boris, Director of Exhibitions at SAIC Galleries, with Senior Exhibition Manager Carlos Salazar Lermont, and Graduate Curatorial Assistants D Coates, Callie Elms, Mikayla Hernandez Guevara, and Soo Kim.

*participating with a program or performance/not in gallery show

A Reflection on Sabbaticals from the Dean of Faculty

In a time of constant change, especially in these post-pandemic years, faculty sabbaticals offer far more than a reprieve from the rigors of daily teaching; they are a vital component of a professor’s academic and creative journey. These dedicated periods of inquiry, experimentation, and reflection provide the necessary space for faculty to recharge intellectually and creatively, ensuring they can continue to inspire and guide the next generation of innovators. This exhibition and its accompanying programs are a testament to the value of sabbaticals, reminding us of the profound importance of time for resetting and renewal.

From an institutional perspective, sabbaticals are an essential investment in the long-term health of both our faculty and the School as a whole. By supporting faculty in their efforts to consider new modes of research and making, engage with global communities, and inspire beyond their creative practices, we ensure that SAIC remains a place where teaching is informed by ongoing personal and professional growth.

Whether addressing pressing environmental concerns, exploring the materiality of the built world, or reflecting on the complexities of identity and migration, the work in this triennial challenges us to think critically and expansively about the present moment. They encourage us to question, to dream, and to reconsider the boundaries of what is possible. For SAIC, these projects represent the very essence of what it means to be an institution that encourages intellectual risk-taking and fosters a creative community that is deeply connected to the world around us.

T. Camille Martin-Thomsen

Dean of Faculty and VP of Academic Affairs