RISD Grad Show 2026
Graduate student work representing 19 advanced degree programs will be on view online and in person at the Rhode Island Convention Center starting May 21.
Thesis work by students completing master’s degrees at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) will be on display at RISD Grad Show 2026, the school’s annual graduate thesis exhibition. Celebrating the creativity that RISD’s newest graduate alumni will bring to the world, the exhibition and digital publication includes work by students in Architecture, Ceramics, Design Engineering, Digital + Media, Furniture Design, Glass, Global Arts and Cultures, Graphic Design, Illustration, Industrial Design, Interior Architecture, Jewelry + Metalsmithing, Landscape Architecture, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture, Teaching + Learning in Art + Design, and Textiles. Work can be viewed digitally at risdgrad.show beginning May 21.
The exhibition will be on view at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Halls C & D from May 21 to 30, 2026. The show is free and open to the public daily from 12 to 5pm (10 to 5pm on May 30, the day of RISD Commencement), with a public opening reception on May 20 from 6 to 8pm.
Highlighting the creativity of students at all stages of the thesis process, from sketches and drafts to completed works, RISD Grad Show 2026 invites viewers to experience an expansive range of exploratory work by emerging artists and designers. The work selected represents the culmination of each student’s experience in RISD’s dynamic and diverse graduate programs. As in years past, the 43,000-square-foot -sf space will be custom-constructed, with more than 2,000 linear feet of walls forming a network of smaller galleries. The unique configuration of the large, flexible space provides remarkable opportunities for graduate students to show multiple pieces or large installations from final thesis projects representing one to three years of research, experimentation, critical thinking, and production.
Graduate study at RISD brings together artists, designers, and thinkers from around the world to research, experiment, create, and push the possibilities of practice.
To learn more, visit risd.edu.
