Faculty research themes and topics connect across disciplines -- from studio art to design, architecture, and merchandising. In the unique place of design exchange that is the Eskenazi School, faculty pursue issues of global relevance through research and creative activity that is recognized across the U.S. and internationally.
Featured research + creative activity
Hoa Vo
Assistant Professor of Interior Design Hoa Vo investigates how VR, AI, and EEG technology can be used to reduce design errors and costs before construction. Her research has been recognized by the 2025 Amazon Research Award (through the Build on Trainium program) and IU Bloomington's 2025-26 Presidential Arts and Humanities Fellowship, and she has also received a 2026 Trustee Teaching Award.
Melanie Cooper Pennington
A bronze portrait of lauded Hoosier activist Ryan White created by Eskenazi School Senior Lecturer of Sculpture Melanie Cooper Pennington was installed June 10, 2026 in the South Lounge of the Indiana Memorial Union. Titled "Keep Going," the sculpture memorializes the teenager renowned for his heroic fight against the stigma of AIDS.
Osamu James Nakagawa
Ruth N. Halls Distinguished Professor of Photography Osamu James Nakagawa created a photographic trilogy based on his 25,000-mile pilgrimage to the sites of Japanese-American incarceration camps. Seeking to represent the trauma embedded in the landscape, Nakagawa's "American Truths" series was exhibited in the 2025 Paris Photo expo and Houston's 2026 FotoFest Biennial. Nakagawa is the recipient of a 2009 Guggenheim Fellowship and IU Bloomington's 2026 Distinguished Faculty Research Award.