NEXT Festival

Students at the Corcoran have exhibited their thesis work for more than 30 years. In 2011, the exhibition came to be known as NEXT in a nod to the public seeing “what’s next” in contemporary art and scholarship. In 2023, NEXT evolved into a festival format to encompass the diversity of all the school’s programs and provide more public facing programming for the DC community. The festival offers an opportunity to highlight the school’s dynamic programs and cultivates more interdisciplinary partnerships among the students and faculty.

Attendees are able to view and engage with the vast displays of the end-of-year projects and appreciate the contemporary arts, dance performances, musical pieces, and research writing that the students have to offer.

NEXT Festival projects take many forms in the fields of theatre, dance, music, studio arts, design, art history, interior architecture, museum studies and more. They all represent a culmination of a student's learning experiences at the Corcoran and a glimpse of future promise. Their work also reflects the care and commitment of our faculty and staff in supporting, teaching and mentoring our students’ work. Students exhibit their theses and presentations to an audience of their peers, faculty and the George Washington University and D.C. arts community.

See NEXT shows from the last few years, including exhibition books, virtual projects and tours of the Flagg Building.

NEXT ARCHIVE