This annual exhibition presents works related to the Benjamin Menschel Fellowships granted to selected Cooper Union students to further work on interdisciplinary projects related to art, architecture, design, and engineering. “Each fellow has followed their curiosity into territory where conventional boundaries—between art and research, personal and political, fragility and resilience—begin to dissolve,” notes Buck Wanner, program director. “What emerges in these investigations is a particular kind of attention to vulnerability … [that] suggest that true resilience might begin with embracing, rather than resisting, impermanence.” 

This year's fellows and projects include: 

“Corroso” by Chiara Leopardi A’25 which explores the slow chemical deterioration of UltraClear Glass (UCG). 

“Learning From Manoomin: The Architecture of Food Sovereignty” by Aaliyah Torres AR’26 and Gabriel Riley Howard AR’25 which considers a decolonial, Indigenous future through the farming of Manoomin.

“Paradox/Dragline” by Zaid Arshad A’25 which looks at the effects of phosphorus mining, production, and usage in “Bone Valley,” a region of Central Florida. 

“Plant Doctor 植物 師” by Ginger Jingzhe Fan A’25, Evan Chiang AR’25, and Arthur Lee AR’25 which focuses on developing a more environmentally conscious path toward agricultural cultivation in Taiwan. 

“Desert of Absurdities” by Katherine Sazhin AR’27, Sophie Wang AR’26, and Daniel Luo AR’26 which examines the origins of essential resources—water, energy, and food—in the deserts around three cities: Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Palm Springs. 

Opening: February 4, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. 

Gallery hours: Daily from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.