Senior art students will explore a number of themes, ranging from a look into a budding cultural movement to a playful Western spin on traditional Japanese food packaging during the Elmhurst College Art Department’s 49th Annual Spring Capstone Art Exhibition.

The high point for every graduating art major, the capstone exhibition requires students to create a body of work in their area of concentration, then plan the exhibition and design the promotional materials for it.

Amarelis Morales’ project explores the nature of the emerging LatinX social movement, which Morales defines as a gender-neutral way of referring to a person of Latin-American descent. In order to fully capture the nature of the LatinX community, Morales interviewed numerous members of the Latin community, culminating in a 36-page book on the topic.

“I hope any person who reads LatinX can learn something new, if not a new word to include in their vocabulary, then a look into the current climate of the Latino community,” said Morales, of Elmhurst.

Justin Lonski, of Elk Grove Village, has created a series of concert posters, inspired by different eras of graphic design, that pay homage to a different celebrated graphic designer.

Diamante Hicks, of Bellwood, crafted a series of packages for traditional Japanese meals, exploring the ways in which each dish fits into modern Japanese culture.

Erin Bartholomew created an original graphic novel, The Corpse Walker, inspired by the ancient Irish folktale of the same name. “The layout is inspired by traditional children’s books, and the illustrations pay homage to turn-of-the-century illustrators such as Harry Clarke, Aubrey Beardsley and Virginia Frances Sterrett,” said Bartholomew, of Elmhurst. Her book and original illustrations also will be on display during the exhibition.

The Elmhurst College Spring Capstone Art Exhibition runs from Saturday, May 6, through Saturday, May 27, in the Barbara A. Kieft Accelerator ArtSpace. The Accelerator ArtSpace is open Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. The space will be closed, however, from May 22 to May 26. A public reception will be held on May 6 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Barbara A. Kieft Accelerator ArtSpace. The exhibition and reception are free and open to the public.