Instead of crunching numbers or preparing dissertations, graduate students from the School of Visual Arts are now showcasing another form of research on campus, found in their artwork.

The Annual Graduate Research Exhibition began March 28 with a new exhibition in the HUB-Robeson Galleries. The exhibition will run through April 20.

"It's part of a university-wide research exhibition," said Bethany Van Velsor, publicist for the HUB-Robeson Galleries. "Other departments give symposiums or talks. This is the entry from the School of Visual Arts."

Cristin Millett, an associate professor of art and graduate student coordinator, was in charge of informing the graduate students about the exhibition and encouraging them to participate.

"We encourage all students to participate at least once," Millett said. "The exhibition is designed to showcase the art of [masters of fine arts] grad students in their first or second year. They're being pushed to do research and to be aware of contemporary issues in the art world."

A judging panel chose the winning entry during a reception last Sunday, Millett said. She said the panel was composed of alumni, guests from the community and faculty from all disciplines -- not just visual arts.

Ten students are taking part in the exhibition, Van Velsor said, but some are submitting more than one piece of art.

Millett said the artistic formats in the exhibition run the gamut, including painting, ceramics, new media and printmaking.

While the exhibit will still feature traditional forms of art, Van Velsor said the work is often "more conceptual and more experimental" than other exhibits at the HUB-Robeson Galleries.

Millett noted the wide variance of topics, including political issues, war and identity.

"One student is using sports and football, which is appropriate for Penn State," she said. "Another is exploring identity as an immigrant. There's the idea of being from two places, yet not fitting in either place."

Millett was speaking of Urmila Mohan (graduate-art), who uses clay and fabric to display images in her sculptures that revolve around identity issues.

"Most of my inspiration comes from the world that I grew up in and includes Hindu and Buddhist symbolism," Mohan said.

Although she has lived in this country for eight years, Mohan said she became a United States citizen last year after emigrating from India.

"So I used the question, 'What does this mean?' " Mohan said.

One of Mohan's pieces uses her American passport, printed onto silk fabric, positioned on top of a sculpted suitcase. This shows how she is split between two cultures, Mohan explained.

Van Velsor said the annual event is usually well received and encourages different people to look around the HUB-Robeson Galleries.

"People who go to our galleries get the chance to see something kind of off the beaten path," Van Velsor said. "For people who don't usually come, the art encourages them to step inside and look. It's not just something pretty hanging on the wall, and the public really takes an interest in that."

Mohan said she was interested to get a public response from her art.

"To make a cliché, art is subjective. People put different interpretations to your work, and it's always interesting to see what they have to say," she said.

This is the last new exhibit at the HUB-Robeson Galleries for the spring semester. The summer exhibitions will begin May 30.