Announcing the Winners of the Images of Research Exhibition

The Graduate Center is pleased to introduce the four students whose works were selected for the 2022 Images of Research exhibition. The winning images, chosen for their visual appeal and success at conveying each student’s research, will be displayed on the Graduate Center building, along 34th Street, later this year.

The winning students are:

Yamaly Barragán (Ph.D. in Biology) for “Exploring the Underwater Museum.” Barragán writes, “Here I am searching for marine invertebrates, particularly sea anemones in the Gulf of California, the aquarium of the world.”

Barragán, an international student from Peru, says she is pursuing her "dreams in marine research."

Agustina Checa (Ph.D. in Music, Ethnomusicology concentration) for “Making Tape Cuts, Creating Values.” Checa writes, “My dissertation studies the practices of cassette labels in Argentina, which rose considerably in the last seven years, tracing how cassettes are now being used to elicit different kinds of relations, economies, and values around music. This picture captures the warmth and care of artisan practices of cassette production.”

Checa has been appointed an assistant professor of music at Lehman College. 

Da Cui (Ph.D. in Biochemistry) for “The Atomic Model of Scanning Factor DHX29.” Cui writes, “DHX29 is essential for unwinding mRNA stem-loops during translation initiation, the first step of protein synthesis. This picture shows the first atomic model of this protein, revealing a potential mechanism of its unwinding activity.”

Sheehan Moore (Ph.D. in Anthropology) for “Pipeline Canals in the Wetlands of Lafourche Parish, Louisiana.” Moore writes, “Two months after Hurricane Ida made landfall in 2021, I joined researchers in a flight over southeast Louisiana to survey damage from the storm. Oil storage facilities like the one pictured sit among 9,000 miles of canals dredged for pipelines and navigation. These canals accelerate saltwater intrusion and are a major contributor to the loss of more than 2,000 square miles of wetlands in Louisiana over the last century. My research examines the state's coastal restoration efforts and the communities that are left out.”

Conceived by President Robin L. Garrell, Images of Research displays to the public the breadth and depth of research that Graduate Center students undertake. Students are invited to submit one image that encapsulates their scholarship. This year, 44 students entered the competition. A jury of faculty and administrators evaluated the many strong entries for their aesthetics and correlation to each student’s research project.

In addition to having their images displayed at the Graduate Center, winners receive $250.

The Graduate Center congratulates the four winners and thanks all the students who participated in the 2022 competition.

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