Alumni Spotlight: Designer of the Year at Trout Museum of Art, Alisa Nikishin
We are thrilled to announce that PWS Alumna, Alisa Nikishin ‘22, has been named the first-ever Designer of the Year at the Trout Museum of Art in Appleton, WI.
Alisa was selected by a jury composed of nonprofit and corporate design professionals, including representatives from the museum’s design team. As Designer of the Year, she will design a custom, 20-foot mural for the Museum Store and create an exclusive limited-edition merchandise line. Her work will debut with the opening of the Trout Museum of Art’s new location on October 11, 2025.
Speaking to this partnership, Alisa said, “My goal is to craft a mural and line that celebrates creativity and the unique spirit of the Trout Museum of Art, becoming a memorable centerpiece that resonates with visitors and complements the store.”
A freelance illustrator and designer, Alisa Nikishin joined PWS in the 3rd grade and graduated from our high school in 2022. She is a student at Ringling College of Art and Design in Florida, pursuing a degree in illustration with a graphic design minor. She works on narrative-focused digital and traditional illustrations, bringing stories to life for children’s books, visual development, editorial illustration, and more.
Her senior project at PWS was to write, illustrate, and publish a children’s book that told a tale of xenophobia through the lens of a fantasy. She challenged herself to learn and practice digital illustration for this project, which she titled Fika and Kaz.
Looking back on her time at PWS, Alisa thinks most fondly of her connections with her classmates and teachers, something she now sees was unique to her Waldorf education. She also has great memories of learning a wide variety of handwork techniques, overnight class trips, and her senior class kayaking trip to the Puget Sound.
She loved to draw as a kid but was always told the arts were not a reliable career path. It wasn’t until she met someone who was studying illustration in college that she realized it could be possible to pursue her art professionally. With this inspiration, and the support of our College & Career Guidance at PWS, she found Ringling College: a tight knit creative community of about 1,800 students in Sarasota, FL, where she appreciates the focus on studio art classes and her ability to specialize in illustration.
We encourage you to peruse Alisa’s work on her online portfolio and Instagram, and to learn more about her collaboration with the Trout Museum of Art here.
