Arts

From 2013-2015 the BAD program provided UH art and design students with the unique opportunity to design objects/gifts for sale in the Blaffer Art Museum lobby. The grant to Museum Director Steven Matijcio and Museum Administrator Colleen Maynard revives the program so that up to 225 students enrolled in six spring 2020 courses in industrial design, graphic design, and printmaking will create prototypes of items that will be sold in the Blaffer Museum as a hybrid exhibition/boutique. This program was disrupted in spring 2020 due to COVID-19, but will continue in 2020-2021.

This collaboration between the School of Art and FotoFest, led by Delilah Montoya, imbeds students in the day-to-day operations of the internationally renowned Houston-based arts organization. Students will gain practical experience of portfolio review, grant and prize competitions, and the construction and promotion of exhibitions. Students will also submit at least one grant, prize or residency application to an external organization and create a mock exhibition based on artists in FotoFest's exhibition.

This grant to Dustin Gish (Honors College) will support student-led Art Walks. Students will develop the walk itineraries and scripts in consultation with staff from UH System Public Art and faculty from the Honors College and Department of Art History. Walks will be offered as an activity during CoogsFest at select new student orientations and continue to be offered during the fall.

The Public Art Student Ambassadors (PASA) program, established by Lauren Cross, Dr. Maria Gaztambide, Dr. Jose Luis Contreras-Vidal, Katherine Veneman, Dr. Rex Koontz, and Dr. Sandra Zalman, provides undergraduate students the opportunity to develop public art tours and incorporate “Brain on Art” research conducted by the BRAIN Center in the College of Engineering.

Led by David Politzer and Sixto Wagan SoA CAMP seeks to place UH School of Art students in assistantship positions with BIPOC Houston artists, designers and scholars. The assistantships will expand the professional horizons for students, embedding them in the daily workings of practicing artist/mentors and creating a mentored introduction into professional networks that can serve the students post-graduation. The program is designed in direct response to listening circles conducted with SoA graduates. In particular, the alumni referenced a need for more exposure to non-white frames of reference to expand aesthetic understanding and bolster the curriculum to better reflect the diversity of the student body. Alumni and graduates expressed that these efforts would lead to a stronger support structure for current BIPOC students and work towards a shift away from the white-centered culture that pervades the College of the Arts.

This project, led by Sixto Wagan and Rick Lowe, placed three students selected by College of the Arts faculty in six-week studio residencies at Project Row Houses. Project Row Houses contributed in-kind and financial support.

This grant to Texas Music Festival Director Alan Austin (Strings) and Associate Director Melissa McCrimmon will partially fund internship stipends, enable the Texas Music Festival to fund an additional internship, and cover the interns’ housing costs. Through this experience, interns gain valuable real-world job experience in the day-to-day operations and management of an arts organization.

The Undergraduate Summer Teaching Artist (STA) Fellowship program led by Evan Leslie provides a select team of McGovern College of the Arts (KGMCA) students with real-world experience teaching, leading, and performing during two intensive high school summer learning experiences: the inaugural UH High School Artist Academy and the Mexica Mariachi Festival. STAs will observe experienced educators create lesson plans and facilitate group learning activities about art, music, storytelling, wellness, and other topics. Paired with UH faculty, STAs will work collaboratively instructing high school students in music and art making.