Notice Board

With the thaw of winter came a flood of activity from all corners, exhibitions and lectures and appointments that will take our Fine Arts community to new heights.  The Spring 2016 term may be complete, but our faculty, staff, alumni, and students have just hit their stride for a hot, hot summer.

COLLABORATIVE

• U of L President Dr. Mike Mahon and Medicine Hat College President Dr. Denise Henning hosted a reception and joint art exhibit titled “Special Delivery – Media through Time and Space” celebrating the institutions’ new dual admission program on Friday, April 1 at the Penny Building Art Gallery.  On March 4, 2016, the University of Lethbridge and Medicine Hat College partnered to present a new dual admission program that now allows students enrolled at MHC to make a seamless transition to a U of L degree program and gain the benefits of being a continuing student (full details available online here).  Friday’s reception celebrated the agreement as well as a joint student art exhibit, which was also displayed at MHC earlier this year.
• Dr. Brian Black (Music) recorded The Lyric Muse in the U of L Studio 1, as part of a fundraising initiative.  The CD artwork was created by Sarah Hilliard (BA – Art ’10, Admin Support Art and Drama), and the Recording Engineer was Yangke Li (MMus ’16).  The compilation showcases the works of Schubert, Chopin, and Debussy, and will be on sale at the U of L Bookstore with proceeds going directly to support the extended Syrian refugee family that the University is assisting.

MUSIC

• Janet Youngdahl (Music), Dale Ketcheson (Music, Conservatory), and Alumni Joe Porter (BMus ’11, MMus ’13) join Calgary’s Rohub Ensemble and Mohsen Seyed-Mahmoud in a concert of Classical Persian Music in support of Syrian refugee resettlement in Lethbridge. 
• Taylor Atwood, third year percussion studio student of Adam Mason, recently took First Prize at the Alberta Solo Marimba Competition in Calgary at the Alberta PAS Day of Percussion.   
• Adam Mason (Music) has been named a Remo Artist and his first engagement for them is in Beijing, China this summer. Remo Inc. is the world's largest manufacturer of World Percussion instruments and drum heads, with groundbreaking initiatives Health & Wellness.  
• Spencer Simkin’s (BMus – Digital Audio Art major) research shows competitive swimmers swim more efficiently when they listen to music.  The rest of the story is available online here.
• Peter Visentin (violin) with Deanna Oye (piano) performed in Music at Noon, on March 29, in the Recital Hall.
• Andrea Norman (trombone) auditioned and was accepted as a member of the Denis Wick Canadian Wind Orchestra.  The ensemble is comprised of students from across Canada, and during their week together in Vancouver will develop their musical talent, technique, and skill while being immersed in peer workshops and master classes with clinicians from across North America.
• Rachel Li (trombone) and Jarett Jacobs (tuba) both auditioned and were invited to attend the Domaine Forget International Music and Dance Academy this summer.  The brass program is recognized internationally for its pedagogical excellence, with artists from North America and Europe mentoring students over two weeks of master classes, private and group classes, conferences, and concerts, all just a few steps from the St. Lawrence River in the heights of the Charlevoix region of Quebec.

DRAMA

• Nicholas Hanson (Drama) contributed a book chapter about theatre for millennial audiences to In Defence of Theatre: Aesthetic Practices and Social Interventions, a new anthology featuring works from four Governor General’s Award-winners, as well as a set of articles from respected and innovative Canadian scholars.
• Award-winning playwright Makambe K. Simamba (BFA – Dramatic Arts ’13) brought her new play A Chitenge Story to campus on April 1 in the David Spinks Theatre.  Kathyrn Smith (BFA – Dramatic Arts ’12) directed and designed the play.  Full details and synopsis of ths powerful drama are available online here.
• Greg MacArthur (MFA - Drama candidate) had a play running in Toronto until March 20.  Review from the Toronto Star available here (3 stars out of 4).  A Man Vanishes was developed with students in Gail Hanrahan’s New Play Workshop course.
• Alexandra Wylie (BFA – Dramatic Arts ’08) as part of The Flirty Boys won the Now Magazine Audience Choice Award at the 2016 Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival.  They were also selected to perform on The Best of the Fest showcase on March 13, hosted by Gavin Crawford (CBC Radio’s “Because News”). 
• The results of the photo competition were announced at the Celebrating Research reception.  Lisa Doolittle’s (Drama) work with her 2014-2015 mainstage season play “Unlimited” won in the category of Creativity & Performance.

ART

• The Art Department hosted their annual Art Open House and Awards Reception on April 15, inviting the community into the various student art studios to take in examples of the creativity that has been cultivated over the past academic year.  At the reception that evening, over a dozen awards were handed out to honor exceptional students and their efforts.  Photographs from the event are available on the FFA Facebook page here.  
• Michael Campbell’s (Art) recent photo work has been featured in a multipage spread in Border Crossings magazine, Issue no. 137.
• Art NOW and Architecture & Design NOW hosted a number of current and past faculty and alumni lecturers:  Nick Wade (Art, retired) in Art NOW, April 6; Michael Campbell (Art) & Janice Rahn (Music Ed) in Art NOW, March 7; Tanya Doody (Art - sessional) in Architecture & Design NOW, March 7; Brian D. McKenna  (BFA Multidisciplinary  ’02) in Art NOW, March 11; Glen MacKinnon  (Art) in Art NOW, March 9).
• Raising Spirit: The Opokaa’sin Digital Storytelling Project opened on March 21 at the Opokaa’sin Early Intervention Society.  The display was curated by Museum Studies interns Star Crop Eared Wolf and Amy Dalton, under the supervision of Anne Dymond (Art).  It grows out of a larger ongoing research project of Jan Newberry (Anthropology), which includes Don Gill (Art) as one of the founding members. 

NEW MEDIA

• The New Media department presented Amalgamedia (April 8-13) at the Penny Building Gallery, an exhibition showcasing projects from students in Advanced Studio, Motion Caption, Portfolio, and Internship classes. 
• The University of Lethbridge’s AGILITY Program is off and running and it now has a new champion with the appointment of Tyler Heaton (BFA ’15) as manager.  Heaton moves into the role after spending close to nine years in the University’s Teaching Centre, formerly the Curriculum Re-Development Centre. With a background that encompasses technology integration and instructional design, Heaton is enthused about taking his skills to the AGILITY platform and all the possibilities the new program provides.  “I’m really excited about the potential of this program,” says Heaton, who was raised in Magrath and completed his new media degree at the U of L while working in the Teaching Centre. “We have the opportunity here to inspire students to have new ideas and through our program, we give them the skills to follow those ideas through. I think that’s pretty powerful.”
• Leanne Elias (New Media) spoke on March 21 in Art NOW and Architecture & Design NOW.

If you know of any U of L alumni, student, staff, or faculty member with research, creative works, or achievements that deserve recognition, please forward any article or release to Katherine Wasiak at katherine.wasiak@uleth.ca