Featured

Visiting Artist Lecture: Inverted Landscapes by Rebecca Najdowski

Please join us for a virtual artist talk by Rebecca Najdowski this Monday, April 5 at 7:00 PM (EDT), hosted by the Department of Art & Art History. In her presentation titled, Inverted Landscapes, Rebecca will share insights into her Ph.D. research and creative practice, which explore concepts of representation (photo/video), technology, and the environment. More information is below, including an invitation to the Zoom meeting room and an artist biography. The event is free and open to the public — please feel free to share with others who may be interested.

If you have questions or would like additional information, contact clare.benson@uconn.edu.

Topic: Inverted Landscapes – Rebecca Najdowski Artist Talk

Time: Apr 5, 2021 07:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://zoom.us/j/93521728321?pwd=Qmc2NDlQUlpzOXVZZFVuSHp5ekxHUT09

Meeting ID: 935 2172 8321

Passcode: e4w1zr

 

About the artist:

www.rebeccanajdowski.com

Rebecca Najdowski is an American artist, researcher, and educator based in Naarm/Melbourne, Australia. Her practice involves experimental photography, video, and 3D modelling as a way to explore the materiality of photomedia. With a focus on how photo images render representations of nature, she considers the ensuing implications of how we, as humans, comprehend the world around us. Much of her photomedia-driven artwork has experimented with its materiality by inviting natural elements — geothermal activity, the sun, time — to change the content and texture of the work.

Rebecca’s images, objects, and films have been presented internationally, including Aperture Gallery in New York; FORMAT Festival in the United Kingdom; and Athens Digital Art Festival in Greece. She holds a PhD from Victorian College of the Arts (University of Melbourne) and an MFA from California College of the Arts in San Francisco and was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to Brazil. From 2013–2015 she was an Artist Fellow at the Center for Creative Photography in Tucson, Arizona, where her work is now part of the collection. Rebecca has been an artist-in-residence at Banff Centre in Canada; the Institute for Electronic Art at Alfred University, New York; and at Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, California.

Rebecca was raised on the traditional lands of the Pueblo people and the Jicarilla Apache in Northern New Mexico, spent many years on the lands of the Ohlone people of the San Francisco Bay Area, and currently lives and works on unceded Wurundjeri and Boonwurung land.

Art + Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon TODAY

Art + Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon hopes to bring more coverage of gender, feminism, and the arts on Wikipedia. The Art + Feminism Edit-a-thon will be taking place on Monday, April 1 from 4 to 7 p.m. in the Greenhouse Studios and the Humanities Institute, located in the Babbidge Library. If you are at the Hartford Campus, it will take place from 4 to 7 p.m. in HTB 223 Computer Lab.

Read more about the Art + Feminism Wikipedia Edit-a-thon here

CAG Exhibition: Protests, Proclamations and Celebrations

Protests, Proclamations, and Celebrations: 
Sharon Hayes

Part Two of Four Acts

 

shar

 

Artist Sharon Hayes is part of our four part exhibition, Protests, Proclamations and Celebrations. She addresses ideas of romantic love, queer theory, activism, and politics. Incorporating recordings, speeches, songs, and letters along with her own writing, she describes her practice as “a series of performatives rather than performance”. She will be participating in an artist talk and opening reception from 5 pm to 7pm on Monday 25th in the Art Building at UCONN. Please join us for refreshments and conversation with the artist.

 

Ricerche: Three, 2016, Film Still

 

Fingernails on a Blackboard: Bella, 2014, Video Still 

 

We Cannot Leave This World to Others, 2014, Video Still

 

Ricerche: Three, 2016, Installation Shot

 

Protests, Proclamations, and Celebrations: Shen Xin

Part One of Four Acts

 

 

Shen Xin delivered an artist talk to the UCONN community followed by a reception at the Contemporary Art Galleries. Shen also met with the graduate students for individual critiques. 

 

Installation view of Shen Xin’s Escape Forms: Prologue, 2016 and Provocation of the Nightingale, 2017. 

 

Still from Provocation of the Nightingale, 2017

 

Shen Xin speaks at the Thomas J. Dodd Center

Perspectives on #MeToo 

metoo

Thursday February 7, 12:15-1:45 pm 
Branford House, UConn Avery Point

This will be a discussion among UConn students, faculty and staff about sexual violence and consent.It will be offered in conjunction with a gallery installation featuring the work of UConn graduate student Jeanne Ciravolo, and is based on UConn’s Humility and Conviction in Public Life’s “Encounters” reflective, structured dialogue model. This discussion will include a variety of experts: representatives from Safe Futures, UConn’s Counseling and Mental Health Services and UConn’s Women’s Center.

Lunch will be served.

Artist Talk: Shen Xin

February 7th
9am to 11am
Dodd Center Konover Auditorium

Shen Xin

Shen Xin was born in Chengdu, China and currently is living and working in London
and Amsterdam. She graduated from La Salle College of the Arts in Singapore and
earned her MFA from the Slade School of Fine Art in London.

Provocation of the Nightingale , 2017 and Forms Escape: Prologue , 2016, are two of
Shen Xin’s exhibited multichannel media works that are complex and profound, and
require time and concentration to decipher. Both works avoid linear narrative and the
use of irony, for Shen Xin does not want to restrict viewers’ freedom to make their
own assumptions. “It’s a very sensory experience when things are complex because
you have to be open. That’s why I want to move away from irony because I want to
explore how to be even more engaged with that ability to open up space when
viewing the film.” You are continually challenged to assess how you come to believe
and form opinions about something. For Shen Xin, that something is connected with
notions of love, suffering, emotional pain and spirituality along with afflictions of
contemporary capitalism’s relationship with power and how Buddhist philosophy and
everyday life interconnect.

Sendak Young Illustrators’ Prize 2018

 

In conjunction with the CT Children’s Book Fair hosted by UConn and Barnes and Noble, our undergraduate students studying Illustration participated in the Maurice Sendak Young Illustrators’ Prize program.  Participants were treated to an individual critique of their works by professional illustrator Doug Salati.  Salati was a 2015 recipient of The Maurice Sendak Foundation’s Sendak Fellowship.

 

Congratulations to the 2018 Prize winners:

First Place: Hal Tedeschi

Second Place: Aberdeen Taylor

Third Place: Hayley Joyal

Honorable Mention: Gillian Partyka

 

Discovery Day for Prospective Students at Storrs

School of Fine Arts: Discovery Day for Prospective Students at Storrs

Monday, November 12, 2018
10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Observe and participate in classes, workshops, presentations, and exhibits for a unique opportunity to explore what it is like to be a student in the School of Fine Arts at the University of Connecticut in one of the four exciting artistic disciplines: Art & Art History, Dramatic Arts, Digital Media & Design, and Music.

Parking is available in the North and South garages and the Storrs Center Parking Garage (located on Royce Circle) for a nominal fee.

Register at https://connect.uconn.edu/register/sfa-discovery-day

For more information: https://sfa.uconn.edu/openhouse/

Open House: Join Us Sunday, Oct. 21st!

Meet with Dean Anne D’Alleva for the School of Fine Arts Dean’s Welcome 
Von der Mehden Recital Hall
10:00 a.m. – 10:20 a.m.

Then meet with faculty in a round-robin Q & A to explore our Degree options, Areas of Concentration, see student work, discuss career paths in Art and Art History, tour facilities, and more!

Department of Art and Art History
Arena Gallery, Art Building

10:30 am – 1:00 pm

We look forward to seeing you!

Alternative BFA Photography Show – Apr. 17

We are pleased to invite you to view our latest photographic work. This work is independent and reflective of each artist’s endeavors over the past few months in Senior Project. Come and celebrate our finished work and enjoy delicious appetizers and beverages during the opening reception on Tuesday, April 17th from 5-6:30pm. The work will remain hanging in the Art Building until Friday, April 20th.

MFA Studio Art Group Exhibition

Close Third Person: MFA Studio Art Group Exhibition
April 3-May 6, 2018

Opening reception:  Wednesday April 18
5 pm – 7:30 pm
Free of charge and open to the public

Close Third Person highlights new work by the Studio Art MFA class of 2018. The exhibition features painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, ceramics, installation, and digital animation.

The Master of Fine Arts in Studio Art program at the University of Connecticut is an intensive, multidisciplinary approach to the development of work in a wide range of media, including painting and drawing, photography and video, printmaking, sculpture and ceramics, and installation and performance. The three-year program focuses on the advancement of each student’s abilities as an artist. New graduate studio facilities in the historic Kirby Mill, situated on the banks of the Natchaug River, offer each student a fresh, well-lit space in a tranquil setting. Work in the studio and studio-based classes is combined with courses in art criticism, theory and history, and teaching to provide a context of ideas for developing students’ visions. Frequent contact with faculty members and visiting artists exposes the students to diverse viewpoints and practices. The Studio Art MFA program at UConn combines the creative excitement and intellectual energy of an art school and a major research university, providing students with the best of both worlds. Learn more at https://art.uconn.edu.

Artist Talks: Close Third Person
2018 Studio Art MFA candidates discuss their work.
Date: Wednesday, April 18, 3:00 to 5:00 pm.

Participating Artists:

Kelsey Miller
Statement
My art turned overtly political in January 2017 when I made letterpress signs for the Women’s March. Now the air is ever more clouded, fervent. Political opinion simmers continuously below the surface of the everyday and news advances at a rate faster than we can comprehend it. Belief, denial, complacency, and fear are emotional complexities that often seem at odds with scientific data. My work addresses the polarization of opinion and fact, informed by current events, archival documents, nationalism, and weather—a symbol of change and its real harbinger. The act of making resists the act of skimming, insisting that I absorb and respond to what has happened and is happening. My practice is a call to action, but also a pause, with the intention of offering a moment of reflection and sanctuary, in hope of finding better solutions for navigating this changing world.
Bio
Kelsey Miller was born on the island of Antigua and moved to the United States at the age of ten. She earned a BA in Studio Art from Wellesley College and spent four years as a chef on a sailboat before returning to land and pursuing her MFA at the University of Connecticut. Kelsey exhibits work nationally and internationally in solo, juried, and small group shows.

Jelena Prljević
Statement
As a storyteller, I use layering to build narratives. Using erasure, light, and the regenerative power of shadows I suggest time. Through process and material, my drawing serves as an invocation of place and reflects experiences of transition. Life is always in flux. Light and time give perspective, allowing change to unfold. Who defines whom? Does a final form exist or is its essence fluid? These questions are constant in my work. I champion the power of personal mark-making to build structures, erase them and build again to reveal life as it moves between light and shadow. My drawings and animations illuminate intimate observations grounding them in a present moment. Documentary, magical and sentimental, my work embraces the healing potential of storytelling through fragments of time, memory, and motion.
Bio
Jelena Prljević is an artist from Serbia whose practice exists within the intersection of drawing, animation, and installation. She holds a BFA from the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad, RS where she received several awards for painting and drawing. During this period, she participated in many national and international group exhibitions and collaborative projects. Jelena was awarded The Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation Grant to support the development of her MFA thesis project.

Kaleigh Rusgrove
Statement
Narrative photography exists between fact and fiction. I use my camera to create false moments of importance and to record artifacts of questionable authenticity. I interlace the seen with the contrived. Together these elements build a convincing story; one leaving the viewer unable to find their footing in either reality or fantasy. This body of work, this story, focuses on current environmental issues. Climate change falls into the same strange in-between where my work exists. The reality of the situation is distressing, the political response both alarming and laughable, and information presented is often contorted. Through research I find inspiration for image-making, combining what I have witnessed with what I have imagined. In my practice, I have come to learn that the most frightening moments are not always born from the wildness of the mind, but exist in real life.
Bio
Kaleigh Rusgrove was born in Bristol, Connecticut and spent her formative years photographing her younger sister against a leaf-patterned bed sheet with a Kodak disposable camera. Moving on to a point-and-shoot as a teenager, she made a series of portraits of local troublemakers that earned her moderate praise among the other neighborhood kids. Kaleigh eventually settled on the solitude of photographing herself with a DSLR. At some point she decided to keep making pictures forever.

Erin Koch Smith
Statement
My work often starts with something abstract—like a wayward emotion or a decontextualized word or phrase. I like language that feels vaporous and substantial, as if a dream sat on your head. Narrative is important as an impetus to painting, but my paintings are not stories. They are plotless, hero-less, scattershot moments, birthed from boredom, loneliness, and heartache, operating within the welcome limitations of the language of painting. On canvas, there are no rules for gravity, and floating objects can be heavy as lead. I search for form through scraping and damaging the surface, playing with images of swan beds, mangled chairs, and rainbows the way I used to play with Barbie dolls as a kid, bashing their plastic parts together, trying to land on something tender.
Bio
Erin Koch Smith was born in Richmond, VA where she fell in love with drawing and painting at an early age. Her studio practice encompasses a variety of approaches including painting, drawing, installation, and performance. She earned a BFA in Painting and Printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2005, and after living in Ithaca, NY for a number of years, relocated with her family to pursue an MFA in Art at the University of Connecticut.  

Claire Stankus
Statement
Tidy piles of studio scraps, flowers on the floor, puzzle pieces, and birthday cakes are recurring features in my work. I collect seemingly banal and discarded objects and paint my daily encounters with them; expressing that even a pile of junk is worth painting. While some paintings are made directly from observation, others start from photographs of quickly-passed moments. I use casual marks, flattened fields of color, and invented line and shadow to break down the recognizable into something ambiguous yet familiar. The remaining abstraction is where we may find unexpected humor or joy. I want each painting to become something odd or sweet and give viewers a second chance to spend more time with an experience they may have overlooked.
Bio
Claire Stankus was born and raised in the suburbs of Albany, NY and earned a BFA in Painting from Syracuse University in 2012. She has attended artist residencies at the Chautauqua Institution, Vermont Studio Center, and Woodstock Byrdcliffe Guild. Claire was recently interviewed and featured on the podcast Studio Break.

Acknowledgements
We would like to express our gratitude to our families, friends, faculty, and peers who have provided continuous support and guidance over these three years.
We would also like to thank UConn’s Design Center for the creation of this catalog and accompanying materials.

Art & Art History Scholarship Show is Coming!

Hello Art & Art History Majors,

Before you leave the thrills of Spring Break behind…I thought I’d remind you to bring back your best artwork from home for the Scholarship Show.

The official call for entry will be sent out when you return next week.

It’s free to enter, and we have literally thousands of dollars to give away in scholarship money, so keep your eyes peeled for the email reminders!

 *APPLICATIONS will be DUE Monday March 26th

As always, we look forward to seeing what you’ve got!

Professor Paul

Open Position: Department Head and Professor, Art and Art History

Applications and nominations are invited for the position of Department Head, Department of Art & Art History in the School of Fine Arts at the University of Connecticut. The department seeks a dynamic leader with a distinguished record of creative and scholarly achievement, and a clear vision to lead the faculty in shaping the future of the unit. The new Head should be forward-looking, with a broad knowledge of emerging trends and opportunities in the visual arts, and the imagination and flexibility to respond to the changing needs of students and faculty. Candidates should have a strong record in university education and administration, and a national and international profile in research and/or creative practice deserving appointment as a full, tenured professor in the department.

The University of Connecticut (UConn) is in the midst of a transformational period of growth supported by the $1.7B Next Generation Connecticut (http://nextgenct.uconn.edu/) and the $1B Bioscience Connecticut (http://biosciencect.uchc.edu/) investments and a bold new Academic Plan: Path to Excellence (http://issuu.com/uconnprovost/docs/academic-plan-single-hi-optimized_1).  We are pleased to continue these investments by inviting applications for the Department Head of Art & Art History.

The Department of Art & Art History has over 170 undergraduate majors, 15 graduate students, and a full-time faculty of 21, along with a number of specialist adjunct faculty and a committed team of staff. The department is dedicated to the cultivation of artists and scholars with a wide-ranging understanding of the concepts, aesthetics, techniques, and social functions of contemporary art practices within broader historical and cultural contexts. It offers the degrees of BFA in Studio Art (with concentrations in graphic design, illustration/animation, painting/drawing, photography/video, printmaking, and sculpture/ceramics), BA in Art History, and a three-year MFA program in Studio Art. All programs are accredited by NASAD. The department is also committed to enriching the wider university and regional community through a range of courses for non-majors, minor programs in Studio Art and Art History, and a variety of offerings at UConn’s regional campuses across the state, as well as through major public exhibitions and thematic programming in collaboration with other departments and schools across the university. Additional information about the Department of Art & Art History can be found at: http://art.uconn.edu .

The successful candidate will demonstrate excellence in one or more of the department’s areas of specialization, which range widely across the visual arts and art history. Applications from candidates with experience of working in a program that combines studio art, design, and art history, and with a proven commitment to interdisciplinary research and practice in a Research I university, are especially welcome.

The new Head will be expected to have a strong commitment to academic excellence in a major research institution, and to fostering diversity and inclusiveness at all levels of the academic enterprise, including faculty and staff hiring and student recruitment. She or he will work collaboratively with the Dean, to whom the Head reports directly, and with other leaders within the School of Fine Arts, particularly the Heads of the other academic departments (Digital Media & Design, Dramatic Arts, and Music), and the directors of the Benton Museum of Art and of the Contemporary Art Galleries, to implement the strategic goals of the School and of UConn’s Academic Plan. The Head will oversee budget, personnel (including faculty promotion and tenure procedures governed by AAUP contract, and management of unionized staff), curriculum, and facilities, and work closely with faculty, staff, students, alumni, donors, and outside constituencies to support and promote the vision and mission of the department.

The Storrs campus is located in a beautiful area of New England, with a moderate cost of living and proximity to major cultural, recreational, and urban centers of the Northeast. The University community provides residents with a rich diversity of cultural, artistic, athletic, and historic experiences, and the surrounding area offers affordable quality housing and top schools for faculty and families.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

  • Earned terminal degree as recognized in candidate’s primary field.
  • Distinguished record of research and practice in the candidate’s primary field of expertise, commensurate with appointment as a tenured full professor at the University of Connecticut.
  • Demonstrated success in an administrative leadership role in higher education.
  • Record of successful teaching in higher education.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • At least 3-5 years of experience in an academic leadership position, such as Department Head, Associate Department Head, Associate Dean, or Center Director.
  • Leadership experience in a department or school encompassing studio art, design, and art history.
  • Record of initiative in promoting diversity among faculty, staff, and students.
  • Record of interdisciplinary collaboration in research and/or curriculum development.
  • Demonstrated success in obtaining and managing research funding from external agencies, including major grants and sponsored and entrepreneurial projects.

APPOINTMENT TERMS

This is a full-time, 10-month tenure track position with an anticipated start date of August 23, 2018. The successful candidate’s appointment will be at the Storrs campus. Salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience.

TO APPLY

Applications can be submitted through the University of Connecticut Employment Opportunities website (http://www.jobs.uconn.edu). Application packages should be submitted as a single PDF file including: (1) a cover letter; (2) a curriculum vitae; (3) a two-page statement outlining the candidate’s personal vision and goals for education and research in the visual arts, and their approach to academic leadership; and (4) names and contact information of five professional references. (Later in the search process shortlisted candidates will be asked to submit additional statements, on teaching, research, and commitment to diversity, as mandated by University policy.)

Review of applications will begin on Monday, January 8, 2018. The position is open until filled. Employment of the successful candidate will be contingent upon the successful completion of a pre-employment criminal background check. (Search #2018269)

Inquiries concerning the position should be directed to Arielle Hill-Moses, Assistant to the Dean, at arielle.hill-moses@uconn.edu, or tel. (860) 486-1593.

All employees are subject to adherence to the State Code of Ethics which may be found at http://www.ct.gov/ethics/site/default.asp .

The University of Connecticut is committed to building and supporting a multicultural and diverse community of students, faculty and staff. The diversity of students, faculty and staff continues to increase, as does the number of honors students, valedictorians and salutatorians who consistently make UConn their top choice. More than 100 research centers and institutes serve the University’s teaching, research, diversity, and outreach missions, leading to UConn’s ranking as one of the nation’s top research universities. UConn’s faculty and staff are the critical link to fostering and expanding our vibrant, multicultural and diverse University community. As an Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity employer, UConn encourages applications from women, veterans, people with disabilities and members of traditionally underrepresented populations.

4/19 Opening Reception: “Include, Exclude” by Diana Abouchacra

Join us this Wednesday April 19th, 2017 at 6:30pm for the opening reception of “Include, Exclude,” by Diana Abouchacra. This work explores Xenophobia through printmaking. A performance will take place at 7:00pm.

Reception will take place in Vais Gallery located inside the art building, RM 109 on the first floor.

The exhibit will be on view through April 22, 2017.

 

 

4/4 Visiting Artist: Joseph DeLappe

Sponsored by

Department of Art & Art History Digital Media & Design Department Digital Humanities and Media Studies Thomas J. Dodd Research Center Human Rights Institute

Artist Joseph DeLappe engages the intersections
of art, technology, social engagement/activism and interventionist strategies exploring geo-political contexts. Working with electronic and new media since 1983, his work in online gaming performance, sculpture and electromechanical installation has been shown internationally. His creative works
and actions have been featured widely in scholarly journals, books and in popular media—his most familiar work is a performative and memorializing intervention into the US Army video game recruitment website, “America’s Army.”

RESISTANCE, PLAY, AND MEMORY

When: Tuesday April 4, 2017 at 5:30 pm
Where: Konover Auditorium Thomas J. Dodd Center

Additional Artist Info: delappe.net