Cross Connections International, an international design festival in global design academia since 2009, returns with its fourth edition in 2024, featuring an exciting series of events including a design competition, a juried exhibition and webinars about design thinking. Curated by the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), the International Museum of Art and Science (IMAS), and the Brownsville Museum of Fine Arts (BMFA), the Cross Connections 2024 International Juried Exhibition of Visual Communication Design and Emerging Media Design showcases the exceptional talents of students and faculty from twenty international institutions around the world. With 100 print-based artworks and 84 screen-based multimedia pieces spanning diverse visual mediums. The Cross Connections 2024 International Competition of Visual Communication Design and Emerging Media Design received 525 entries from 20 international institutions. The theme of the CC-2024 event is “Unleash your creativity: explore your design beyond borders, cultures, concepts, media and subjects”. The exhibition aims to transcend borders and disciplines, offering an inspiring amalgamation of contemporary design trends. Experts meticulously evaluated these artworks for the internationally juried exhibition, featuring selected works that will tour higher education institutions around the world during the spring and fall of 2024. The following lists show the participating institutions in alphabetical order based on their abbreviated forms in English:
Cross Connections 2024: Participating Institutions:
North American Institutions:
- California Polytechnic State University, USA (CALPOLY)
- Oklahoma State University, USA (OSU)
- School of the Art Institute of Chicago, USA (SAIC)
- Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, USA (TAMUCC)
- Truman State University, USA (TSU)
- Autonomous University of the State of Morelos, Mexico (UAEM)
- University of the Americas, Puebla, Mexico (UDLAP)
- University of Minnesota Twin Cities, USA (UMN)
- University of Texas at Arlington, USA (UTA)
- University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, USA (UTRGV)
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, USA (UWM)
European Institutions:
- Polytechnic Institute of Cávado and Ave, Portugal (IPCA)
- LUCA School of Arts, Belgium (LUCA)
Asian Institutions:
- Central Academy of Fine Arts, China (CAFA)
- Hanyang University, Korea (HYU)
- Luxun Academy of Fine Arts, China (LAFA)
- Ming Chuan University, Taiwan (MCU)
- National Taiwan University of Arts, Taiwan (NTUA)
- Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, China (SAFA)
- Sichuan Fine Arts Institute, China (SFAI)
Cross Connections 2024 Juried Exhibition at UTRGV
Date: March 18 – 26, 2024
Closing Reception: 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., March 21, Thursday
Exhibition Venue: UTRGV Visual Art Gallery
Announcement for the honorable mentions of juried exhibition and design competition and two Special Judging Awards of Design Competition: 6:30 p.m., March 21, Thursday.
Honorable Mentions of Juried Exhibition (Student)
- Honorable Mentions – Print-Based Visual Communication Design
- Honorable Mentions – Screen-Based Visual Communication Design
- Honorable Mentions – Emerging Media Design
- Honorable Mentions – Creative Thinking and Visualization with Generative AI
Honorable Mentions of Juried Exhibition (Professional/Faculty)
- Honorable Mentions – Print-Based Visual Communication Design
- Honorable Mentions – Screen-Based Visual Communication Design
- Honorable Mentions – Emerging Media Design
- Honorable Mentions – Creative Thinking and Visualization with Generative AI
Special Judging Awards & Honorable Mentions of Design Competition (Student)
- Honorable Mentions in Design Foundation – Typography
- Honorable Mention in Design Foundation – Illustration
- Honorable Mention in Design Foundation – Publication
- Honorable Mentions in Marketing Graphic Design
- Honorable Mentions in Interactive and Emerging Media Design
- Special Judging Awards for Excellence in Design Foundation
- Special Judging Awards in Marketing Graphic Design
Honorable Mentions of Design Competition (Professional/Faculty)
- Honorable Mention in Visual Communication Design – Print
- Honorable Mention in Visual Communication Design – Screen
Cross Connections 2024 Juried Exhibition at BMFA
Date: April 9 – 27, 2024
Opening Ceremony: 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., April 9, Tuesday.
Exhibition Venue: Permanent Collection Gallery, Brownsville Museum of Fine Art
Award Announcement of the design competition:
6:30 p.m., April 9, Tuesday
Students:
- Grand Award
- Gold Awards
- Silver Awards
- Bronze Awards
Professional/Faculty:
- Grand Award
- Gold Awards
- Silver Awards
- Bronze Awards
Cross Connections 2024 Juried Exhibition at IMAS
Date: June 1, 2024 – September 8, 2024
Opening Ceremony: 5:00 – 7:00 p.m., May 31, Friday
Exhibition Venue: Cardenas Gallery, International Museum of Art & Science
Award Announcement for the juried exhibition: 5:30 p.m., May 31, Friday.
Students:
- Best of Show Award
- Special Judging Award – Print-Based Visual Communication Design
- Special Judging Award – Screen-Based Visual Communication Design
- Special Judging Award – Emerging Media Design
- Special Judging Award – Creative Thinking and Visualization with Generative AI
Professional/Faculty:
- Best of Show Award
- Special Judging Award – Print-Based Visual Communication Design
- Special Judging Award – Screen-Based Visual Communication Design
- Special Judging Award – Emerging Media Design
- Special Judging Award – Creative Thinking and Visualization with Generative AI
Cross Connections 2024: Professional Exhibition Venues
- Brownsville Museum of Fine Art, Brownsville, USA (BMFA)
- International Museum of Art and Science, McAllen, USA (IMAS)
- The Goldstein Museum of Design, St. Paul, USA
- The Royal Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts, Belgium, Brussels (KVAB)
- Cheng Center for Contemporary Art, Beijing, China
- The Museum of Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing, China
- The Museum of Luxun Academy of Fine Arts, Dalian, China
Cross Connections 2024 Juried Exhibition on the Global Stage
(Co-Host of Exhibition, Exhibition Venue and Exhibition Duration)
The Cross Connections International Exhibition is a collaborative event that will be gracefully hosted by participating institutions across various global venues, as outlined below. The sequence of exhibition venues follows an arranged chronological order based on the exhibition time.
| The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (Milwaukee, WI, USA) Exhibition Venue: UWM Arts Center Gallery | April 8 – 22, 2024 |
| Central Academy of Fine Arts (Beijing, China) Exhibition Venue: Museum of Central Academy of Fine Arts | April 8 – 22, 2024 |
| Luxun Academy of Fine Arts (Dalian, China) Exhibition Venue: LAFA Museum of Fine Arts (Dalian Campus) | April 8 – 22, 2024 |
| Truman State University (Kirksville, MO, USA) Exhibition Venue: Truman State University – Art Gallery | August 26 – October 9, 2024 |
| University of Minnesota (Twin Cities, MN, USA) Exhibition Venue: The Goldstein Museum of Design | September 5 – 20, 2024 |
| LUCA School of Arts (Ghent, Belgium) Exhibition Venue: The Royal Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts, Belgium (KVAB) | September 5 – 20, 2024 |
| Polytechnic Institute of Cávado and Ave (Barcelos, Portugal) Exhibition Venue: IPCA Gallery | September 26 – October 10, 2024 |
Cross Connections 2024 Curatorial Committee
- Ping Xu, Associate Professor of Visual Communication Design, UTRGV
- Elena Macias, Professor of Art, UTRGV
- Marcelo Ramirez, Chief Curator, International Museum of Art & Science
- Deyanira Ramirez, Executive Director, Brownsville Museum of Fine Art
Cross Connections 2024 Exhibition / Installation Committee (UTRGV)
- Ed Pogue, Professor of Art, Director of School of Art and Design at UTRGV
- Robert Gilbert, Associate Professor of Visual Communication Design, UTRGV
- Gina Palacios, Associate Professor of Art, Associate Director of School of Art and Design at UTRGV
- Jesmil Maldonado, Director of UTRGV Visual Art Gallery
The Cross Connections 2024 Design Exhibition Jury
 Robin Landa Distinguished Professor of Graphic Design, Michael Graves College at Kean University, New Jersey | One Show Awards Jury, HOW Design Competition Jury, ADCNJ Award Winner, GDUSA Award Winner, Authored 26 graphic design books and articles featured in publications such as Harvard Business Review, Columbia University Press, FastCompany graphic design magazine and Inc magazine. |
 Kent Lu Chief Creative Officer & General Manager, Bates Advertising, Shanghai | Former Executive Creative Director, DDB China One Show Asia Awards – Jury 2018, 2019, 2020 AdStars Jury – 2017, 2018 Digitaling Awards Jury – 2021, 2022, 2023 One Show Awards Winner 2016, Longxi Creative Awards Winner 2017. |
The Cross Connections 2024 Design Competition Jury
 Robert Hower MFA – Cranbrook Academy of Art | President, and Executive Director, United Designs Alliance 2022-2023 Professor & Chair Emeritus, Department of Art & Art History, The University of Texas at Arlington. Robert Hower, with an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art, served as President of the United Designs Alliance from January 2022 to December 2023. Prior to this, he held key academic roles, notably as Chair and Professor Emeritus at the University of Texas at Arlington, overseeing significant growth in the department, including the establishment of a nationally recognized MFA program. His artistic contributions have been showcased in prestigious exhibitions worldwide and are housed in esteemed collections such as the Minnesota Museum of American Art and the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. Engaging actively in interactive projects and collaborations with organizations like the U.S. National Park Services and Warner Brothers, Hower’s influence extends both nationally and internationally in the realms of art and design. |
 Chien Hwang MFA – ArtCenter College of Design | Head of Creative, Gusto, San Francisco Former Executive Creative Director, TBWA\Worldwide, Greater China London International Awards (LIA) Jury – 2023 AdStars Jury – 2008, 2000, Chien Hwang has been at the forefront of leading creative teams worldwide, providing support to some of the most renowned brands on the planet, such as Apple, Pepsi, GE, HBO, Frito-Lay, FedEx, Mars, and Mercedes-Benz. His exceptional contributions have not only garnered recognition in prestigious publications like Adweek, AdAge, Graphis, CA, and Archive but have also been celebrated at esteemed awards shows, including Cannes, AICP, LIAA, and New York Festivals. Chien takes great pride in witnessing former members of his creative teams now assuming leadership roles in departments and organizations across the globe. His unwavering commitment revolves around fostering creative communication and nurturing meaningful human connections, both in the professional sphere and in his personal life. Chien continuously explores the limitless possibilities that arise at the intersection of technology, creativity, and heartfelt endeavors. |
UTRGV Selected Entries for the Cross Connections 2024 International Juried Exhibition
https://pxstudio.us/blog/?p=66703
Exhibition Agenda in the Valley
- March 18 – 26: CC-2024 Show at UTRGV Visual Art Gallery
- March 29: Delivery of posters to BMFA
- March 30 – April 8: Show installation at BMFA
- April 9 – 27: CC-2024 Show at BMFA
- April 30: Retrieval of all posters to Visual Art Building for storage
- May 13: Delivery of all posters to IMAS
- May 20 – 30: Show installation at IMAS
- May 31: Opening reception at IMAS
- June 1 – September 8: CC-2024 Show at IMAS
- September 10: Retrieval of all posters back to UTRGV.