Chris Whittey is the Vaughn Vennerberg II Chair of Art, Professor of Art, and Head of the Department of Art, Graphic Design, and Art History at Oklahoma State University. Prior to this he served as the Alan F. Rothschild Distinguished Chair of Art at Columbus State University. Other previous positions include Vice President of Faculty Affairs and Chief Academic Officer at the Cleveland Institute of Art, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean at Maine College of Art and Dean of Academic Services at Maryland Institute College of Art where he served as faculty from 2001-2009.
After studying at the Center for Creative Studies and receiving his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Wayne State University, Whittey worked as a master carpenter building stage sets and props in New York for such prestigious venues as the Metropolitan Opera, Saturday Night Live and The Conan O'Brien Show. In 1989, he returned to complete his formal education at the Rhode Island School of Design and received his Master of Fine Arts Degree in 1991. The following year, Whittey was selected to attend the prestigious Whitney Museum Independent Study Program.
Whittey's work has been showcased in numerous locations including White Columns and The Thread Waxing Space in New York. He has received a New Jersey State Council on the Arts Fellowship, Van Lier Foundation Grant (awarded by the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program), Individual Artists Grant from New York's Artist Space, and a faculty development grant from MICA. Publications include The Detroit News, The New York Times, The Village Voice, Documents and World Art.
CV available upon request.