Candice Chovanec
- (she/her)
- chovane4@msu.edu
- Kresge Art Center
- Foundations Coordinator and Assistant Professor
- Art, Art History, and Design
Biography
Candice Chovanec was born in Catania, Sicily, and lived most of her life in Southern California. In 2008, she completed her BFA in Drawing and Painting from Laguna College of Art and Design. In 2017, she completed her MFA from California State University. Candice has won numerous awards and shown in group exhibitions throughout the United States. In 2017, her work received 1st Place from the Portrait Society of America in the Members-Only Competition and “Best in Show” from the Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art for portraiture. Candice is an Assistant Professor in the departments of Arts and Letters and Integrated Arts and Humanities at Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI where she has taught since 2019.
Works
Exhibitions
Drawing Discourse at UNC Asheville, Asheville, NC 2024
Solo Exhibition – Sweet Tooth, University of Olivet 2024
Solo exhibition – Sweet Tooth, Holland Area Arts Council, Holland, MI 2024
Faculty Triennial, Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, East Lansing, MI 2024
Solo Together at LowellArts, Lowell, MI 2023
Faculty Triennial, Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, East Lansing, MI 2023
Alexandria Museum of Art, Alexandria, LA 2019
West Michigan Area Arts, Kalamazoo Institute of the Arts, Kalamazoo, MI 2019
Art League of Hilton Head’s Biennale, Hilton Head, SC 2019
West Michigan Arts Competition, LowellArts, Lowell, MI 2019
Greenwich House Gallery, Cincinnati, OH 2018
Butler Midyear, Butler Museum of Contemporary Art, Youngstown, OH 2018
Reclamation, Helen Day Art Center, Stowe, VT 2018
Urban Institute of Contemporary Art, Grand Rapids, MI 2018
1st Annual ANJE, Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art, Wausau, WI 2017
Lore Degenstein Gallery, Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, PA 2017
Viewpoint 49, Greenwich Gallery, Cincinnati, OH 2017
ArtPrize, DeVos Place Convention Center, Grand Rapids, MI 2017
89th Regional Exhibition, Muskegon Art Museum, Muskegon, MI 2017
Festival of the Arts, Kendall College of Art and Design, Grand Rapids, MI 2016
Members’ Only Competition, Portrait Society of America, Tallahassee, FL 2016
Overview, Graduate Solo Exhibition, CSU Fullerton, CA 2016
Plein Air Perspective, Millard Sheets Art Center, Pomona, CA 2016
Like MARK, Coastline Community College, Costa Mesa, CA 2016
Cast of Crowns, Grand Opening Exhibition, Laguna Beach, CA 2016
Gold Medal Exhibition, California Art Club, Los Angeles, CA 2016
MFA Biennial, Brea Art Gallery, Brea, CA 2016
Women painting Women, RJD Gallery, Sag Harbor, NY 2015
International Salon, Art Renewal Center, Tallahassee, FL 2015
Irvine Center for the Arts, All Media Exhibition, Irvine, CA 2015
Orange County Fair Visual Arts Exhibition, Costa Mesa, CA 2015
Lore Degenstein Gallery, Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, PA 2014
Women Painting Women, Principal Gallery, Charleston, SC 2014
All Media Juried exhibit, Chico Art Center, Chico, CA 2014
FAME, American Artists Professional League, New York, NY 2014
Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Los Angeles, CA 2014
Made in California, City of Brea Art Gallery, Brea, CA 2014
Topanga Canyon Gallery, Topanga Canyon, CA 2014
Awards
6th Place, Members’ Only Competition, Portrait Society of America, Tallahassee, FL 2019
1st Place, West Michigan Arts Competition, LowellArts, Lowell, MI 2019
Honorable Mention, 32nd of September Competition, Alexandria, LA 2019
1st Place, 82nd National Midyear, Butler Museum of American Art, Youngstown, OH 2018
1st Place, Non-Commissioned Portrait, Portrait Society of America, Tallahassee, FL 2018
Finalist, International Salon Art Renewal Center 2018
Best in Show, 1st Annual ANJE, Wausau Museum of Contemporary Art, Wausau, WI Award of Excellence, Fine Art Connoisseur, Boca Raton, FL 2017
Top Prize in 2D, Festival of the Arts, Grand Rapids, MI 2017
Finalist, Non-commissioned Portrait, Portrait Society of America, Tallahassee, FL 2016
Finalist, International Salon, Art Renewal Center, Port Reading, NJ 2016
1st Place, LA County Fair Plein Art Painting Competition, Los Angeles, CA 2016
Finalist, International Salon, Art Renewal Center, Port Reading, NJ 2016
Scholarship, Art Alliance Tribute Fund, Fullerton, CA 2014
Scholarship, Future Art Masters Exhibit, New York, NY 2014
Publications, Papers, and Online Press
2023: Creating an Inclusive Pedagogy, white paper written with faculty at MSU
Chovanec, C. L., Aniskiewicz, A. A., & Ma, S. (2023). Creating an Inclusive Pedagogy.
2018: Artists to Watch, Southwest Art Magazine, June issue
Agricola, K. (2018, June). Artists to watch. Southwestern Art Magazine. Retrieved 2018, from https://www.artistsnetwork.com/store/digital-magazines/southwest-art-digital/southwest-art-june-2018-digital-edition/.
This article can be found on my website or by clicking HERE
2018: The Art of the Portrait, International Artists Magazine, May/June issue
Tidwell, Al. (Ed.). (2018). The art of the portrait. International Artists Magazine.
This article can be found on my website or by clicking HERE
2018: Art Renewal Center Salon Finalists, Fine Art Connoisseur, May Issue
Tippi, P. (Ed.). (2018). Art Renewal Center Members-only competition winners. Fine Art Connoisseur.
This article can be found on my website or by clicking HERE
2017: Grand Opening and Awards, Fine Art Today, October Newsletter
Webster, A. (2017). Fine art today.
The article can be found through the Fine Art Connoisseur website, click HERE
2015: Figural Movement, Poets and Artists Magazine May issue
Hess, F. S. (2015). Poets and Artists. Retrieved 2025, from https://www.poetsandartists.com/buy/figural-movement-curated-by-f-scott-hess.
2015: Women painting Women at RJD Gallery, American Art Collector, October issue
Palmer, T. (2015). Women painting women at RJD gallery. American Art Collector, (120).
Education
MASTER OF FINE ART IN ART
California State University, Fullerton
BACHELOR OF FINE ART IN DRAWING AND PAINTING
Laguna College of Art and Design
Gallery
College of Arts & Letters News
- Cross-Border Art Project Between MSU and Canadian Students on Display at (SCENE) MetrospaceCollege of Arts & Letters
November 4, 2025Michigan State University’s Department of Art, Art History, and Design presents “Faces and Traces: A Cross-Border Portrait Project” exhibition, showcasing the collaboration between students from MSU and Ontario College of Art and Design University (OCAD U). The exhibition […] Read Now →
- Drawing Marathon Returns to Summer Circle Theatre Courtyard Sept. 23College of Arts & Letters
September 12, 2025The annual Drawing Marathon, hosted by MSU’s Department of Art, Art History, and Design, returns this year to the Summer Circle Theatre Courtyard, located in front of the Kresge Art Center, on Tuesday, Sept. 23, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. In the event of rain, the Drawing […] Read Now →
- Art Project Brings U.S. and Canadian Students TogetherCollege of Arts & Letters
August 13, 2025When Emma Sambaer, an Art Education student at Michigan State University, was paired with Shiva Mohseni, an OCAD University student from Toronto, for a unique cross-border art project, she noticed how much they had in common despite being separated by an international border. […] Read Now →
- Art, Art History, and Design Faculty Triennial Exhibit Runs Through July 21 at MSU BroadCollege of Arts & Letters
February 5, 2024The works of 22 Department of Art, Art History, and Design (AAHD) faculty are now on display through July 21, 2024, at the MSU Broad Art Museum as part of an exhibition that highlights the diverse, experimental, and interdisciplinary creative practices of these talented and […] Read Now →
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