VCUarts - Virginia Commonwealth University

VCUarts
Studio
2007
Stuart Harnsberger
Chicken Suits
Nedim Sudic
Mameha (Cover photo)
Zachary Monday
Silver Song Bird and White Figure
Wearable, and Not So
Wearable Art, Take the Stage
Not long after the last issue of
Studio was printed, art students and a few professional
artists took part in the ninth
annual Wearable Arts Event to
benefit the non-profit exhibit
space, 1708 Gallery. The theme
was “Über,” which is the
German word for “over the
top.” And that it was.
Some of the items used in the
“wearable” creations included
coffee sacks, broken mirrors,
playing cards, pantyhose, trash
bags, hula hoops, beach balls,
jute and receipts.
"Best in show" and a $1,000
scholarship went to VCUarts
Sculpture and Printmaking BFA
student Diana Cavanaugh for
her dress with a high-backed
wooden lattice bustier with skirt
and bodice made of rice paper.
Photography Katy McDaniel
Colleen Judge
Über POP
Diana Cavanaugh
We Asians Love
Our Rice
Amy Williams
Über Spoon
Kendall Buster Heads East
Kendall Buster, associate professor in the Department
of Sculpture + Extended Media, has been honored with
the 2006 Kreeger Museum Artist Award. In honor of its
founders, the $10,000 prize is given to a Washington
area artist deserving of recognition.
She also held a month-long exhibit at VCU School of
the Arts in Qatar in early spring. Buster created an architectural and spatial installation by using fabric hung from
the ceiling that visitors could walk through. The
exhibition’s goal was to make it relevant to the concept
of moveable space in Islamic culture and the notions of
concealment and hiding.
The exhibition titled Subterrain (Yellow Column Field)
is one of a series of site responsive installations, which
examines how hexagonal units might be used in the
design of an architectural space. Buster's large-scale
biological architectural sculpture projects have been
exhibited in numerous venues including the Hirshhorn
Museum and the Kreeger Museum in Washington, DC,
Artist's Space in New York City, the Haggerty Museum
in Milwaukee and the Kemper Museum in Kansas City.
Photography Larry Koltys
Anderson Gallery Celebrates
Gerald Donato
The Anderson Gallery’s winter exhibition,
Gerald Donato: Reinventing the Game,
celebrated the teacher, artist, exhibitor
and friend who is a beloved fixture in the
Richmond arts scene. Donato retired
from the Department of Painting and
Printmaking in 2005, after a 38-year
teaching career.
Through his paintings, drawings and
prints, Donato brings to life his trademark
emblematic icons Mr. Man, Moon-face
and other mysterious images.
“Donato tempts us in his work through
savvy and satirical mechanisms from
familiar cartoon imagery and nonsensical
sources creating a unique pictorial language. He then pumps up the volume by
employing a sly layering device, giving the
viewer brief glimpses alluding to darker
contemporary issues as race relations,
religion, doubt and dislocation. The end
product is a familiar, yet strange,
palimpsest,” says Amy Moorefield, exhibition curator and assistant director of
VCUArts Anderson Gallery.
Moorefield, who organized the exhibition
thematically instead of chronologically,
explains, “A good retrospective, in some
ways, reflects an artist's personality. A linear progression wouldn't do that in Jerry's
case. What we're doing is very whimsical
and off-kilter to reflect Jerry's whimsical
and off-kilter personality. We wanted this
exhibition to be celebratory. We wanted it
to honor Jerry and his unique pictorial
language."
Donato was born in Chicago and received
his MFA from the University of Wisconsin
at Madison. He has had numerous solo
exhibitions in Richmond and New York
and his work was featured in Un/Common
Ground: Featuring the Work of Twelve
Virginia Artists at the Virginia Museum of
Fine Arts. He has also exhibited internationally in group shows in Belgium, Peru,
and Moscow. His work is in several private and public collections, including the
Chrysler Museum in Norfolk and the
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. He resides
in Richmond with his painter wife, Joan
Gaustad.
Photography Katy McDaniel
Photography Katrina Umber
Sculpture Grad Students Do More Than
Dress Cool
The work of a diverse group of VCUarts MFA
Sculpture + Extended Media students was
exhibited in spring at the University of Virginia's
McIntire Department of Art Off Grounds Gallery.
The Commonwealth Bricoleurs, as they call
themselves, work with new and traditional
sculptural media and are not necessarily as
focused on making objects as they are on
exploring environments. They take their name
from the French word bricoleur — meaning a
resourceful person who collects things and
information and puts them together in a way
that they were not originally designed to do.
The group, composed of Jesse Robinson,
David Grainger, Eli Kessler, James Sham, Sami
Ben Larbi and Lily Cox-Richard, critiqued the
work of UVA McIntire art students and opened
the line of communication between artists in
Charlottesville and Richmond.
Seniors’ SOCIOMETRY Comments
on Society
The Department of Dance and Choreography’s
Spring 2007 Senior performance was held in
late April at the Grace Street Theater with
empty seats few and far between.
Sociometry is defined as the measurement of
attitudes of social acceptance, or rejection,
through expressed preferences among members of society. Nine VCU Dance and
Choreography seniors explored this definition
through movement and theater and produced
nine views on their individual perceptions of
society. Some of them were storytellers; some
redefined meanings; and some simply took a
closer look at where we connect within society.
But all of them asked the audience: Where do
you connect?
The nine performances were choreographed by
students Ashley Berryman, Eliza DienerBrazelle, Cherish Thomas Horton, Niall Jones,
Criscia Richardson, Alex Kershaw, Heather
Schrock, Travis Steele Sisk and Bravita Threatt.
Photography Sarah Ferguson
Getting to Know Jamie Mahoney
Not long ago, Teresa Engle was a graphic design graduate student in Jamie Mahoney’s
class. Today, she’s the VCUarts designer charged with interviewing her colleague and
mentor, Jamie Mahoney, for this Studio interview.
Studio: Your career has taken the most fascinating path.
Mahoney: The interesting thing about what I am doing now and what I’m passionate
about, the letterpress, is where I began in the creative industry. When I was in high
school, I worked as a printer, and as a printer’s assistant. At one fork in the road, I had
to choose between being a printer in a print shop or going off to college and become a
designer. I chose the latter, and left the printing behind for the time being. But I have
always had a genuine love for printing.
Studio: How did you get from art/design school to advertising? Wasn’t it a different kind
of field where design and advertising fell under one degree program?
Mahoney: If you were an artist and you wanted to go into commercial art, you had the
choice between fashion and Visual Communications. If you went into Visual
Communications, after a year they would separate you out based on your abilities.
Illustration, design… then there were those of us who liked telling everyone what to do,
and that’s how I became an Art Director.
Studio: You spent 10, 15 years in advertising?
Mahoney: 25! In the year 2000, I was at the height of my career, and bored with what I
was doing. I needed to find something where I was the client, and I needed to see my
ideas through to completion. I went to my boss, Mike, the president of the Martin
Agency, and I said, “Mike, I’m going back to get my masters.” His jaw dropped.
Studio: At the time, you were a vice president at the Martin Agency?
Mahoney: I was one of many. I worked as a Creative Director, Art Director, and supervisor. I went back to school not to teach, honestly, but to figure out what I wanted to do
next with my life. It was a huge life change, and career change. I didn’t know where it
was going to go.
Studio: I want to talk about the shift in philosophy that you must have had, to sacrifice
things that many people may consider to be glamorous, a high-level creative position,
big clients, awards and recognition, to return to school and get another degree.
Mahoney: It’s a very difficult thing to figure out what you want to do
with your life, and one of the steps is to figure out the last time that
you were really happy. I was making prints, inking up a plate or a
press. Something about the manual process of using ink and paper…
it makes me extremely joyful. I realized that in graduate school.
Studio: What was the topic of your graduate thesis?
Mahoney: I was focused on combining computers with antiquated
printmaking processes, working with etchings. While doing this, my
mind was flowing creatively as it hadn’t in 20 years. I was so joyful. I
am at that point again with the letterpress.
Studio: What courses involve the presses?
Mahoney: I teach Print Materials, which combines letterpress and silk
screening, which is taught with Bryan Condra. We have to turn students
away because we fill to capacity. I’m going to begin offering more
advanced letterpress classes in Fall 2007. These will focus on aspects
of letterpress that are more current, such as polymer plates which combine the computer and letterpress. They can go completely from computer to letterpress, combining the machine with the hand; the virtual
with the physical.
Studio: You mentioned to me that students in other disciplines are
becoming involved.
Mahoney: Students from the Fine Art departments, Painting and
Printmaking, Ceramics, are interested in typography, and helping them
learn with a hands-on process is very effective and very concrete. They
want to learn to work with type as a fine artist would learn it, not as a
designer would learn it. I view it as a great way to teach designers and non-designers alike about this fundamental principle.
Studio: I know this is a can of worms, but do you consider printmaking and the letterpress to be a fine art?
Mahoney: When processes that are used in the commercial industry are replaced with technology, they become antiquated, and find their way into fine arts.
For example, etching, engraving, and lithography, were all commercial processes until they were replaced with modernity and modern technology.
Studio: The letterpress tool, and aesthetic, is currently pretty popular in visual culture.
Mahoney: Hatch Show Print did album covers for Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen, and a project for David Carson
(Porno for Pyros.) There’s something about working with your hands that is fulfilling in a different way than working
exclusively with the computer. Current and prospective students are gravitating to this process for these reasons. I
would say that though letterpress is still used in the commercial field, it is finding its way into fine art.
Studio: I had you as a professor and there are several things I think of when I think of you - one, your mentorship.
You stand out as being willing to go over and above to help students out by referring people to your industry connections for internships, initial contacts, and portfolio reviews.
Mahoney: If a student shows exceptional talent or ability, I am willing to help them get into the industry. I know that
students are not limited to the Richmond market, and if they desire, they can work with a Jakob Trollback or a Digital
Kitchen. With talent and ability, there is no limit to what a student can do, and I try to foster that kind of mentality so
that they don’t limit themselves. Sometimes it takes a little nudge to push them into a great firm. Having been there, I
remember that young fresh talent is what people want to hire.
Studio: In your opinion, there’s a lot of that at VCU?
Mahoney: There is a lot of that at VCU. Yes.
Studio: I know that you’ve organized field trips outside of Richmond and also brought firms
and designers here to Richmond.
Mahoney: We’re not able to tour a wide range of design shops so it’s crucial to get out into
the world to find inspiration in these areas. Jim Sherraden from Hatch Show Print came and
did a letterpress workshop; Tomato from London; Stephen Kroninger; Jakob Trollback recently came; Anteeksi did a workshop with our students. Even writers have come in - Mike Henry,
who is a producer and writer on the Family Guy, came to speak about creating a narrative.
Studio: How do students react to the guest lecturers?
Mahoney: I think it’s enlightening for students to hear firsthand from the people who create
this inspiring work, and to have workshops with them. Tomato visits large cities and charges
professionals thousands of dollars to do workshops at corporations, but they were willing to
come here and work with our students.
I also started a blog with graduate students, re:design. I got in touch with designers like Ellen
Lupton, Michael Beirut, Armin Vit who started Speak Up, R. Roger Remington, and Rick
Poynor, and these designers responded to our students’ published essays online. I think it’s
invaluable that young upcoming graphic designers be introduced to the established generation of designers. That combination is critical for both groups.
Studio: Who are your favorite designers and artists?
Mahoney: (laughs) Hendrik Werkman! Hendrik Werkman, Hendrik
Werkman. I love him. He was a young pressman. I guess I identify
with him. All he wanted to do was put ink on paper. He was an
amazing artist who worked in the 1940’s in the Netherlands.
Studio: Who were your mentors?
Mahoney: Teachers. Teachers are pretty amazing people. When I
came here to graduate school, people who helped me develop my
direction were Sandy Wheeler, Rob Carter and John Malinoski.
Brilliant educators.
Studio: If you couldn’t do art or design as a career, if it were illegal,
what kind of field would you be interested in?
Mahoney: I would have to die. But if I had to choose, I would love to
be a waitress. I’m a waitress wannabe. I love the idea of taking
orders and bringing food, but I don’t want to be a waitress in a really
upscale restaurant. I want to be in one of the diners where you wear
the apron, and you flip out the pad. I want to write everything down
and say, “whaddaya want?” and “move! It’s hot!” while delivering
(Photography Tim Chumley)
food to the table.
Sera Tabb, Communication Arts
Jon Headlee, Philosophy and Psychology
Awarded $5,000 to produce a documentary about individuals in the urban environment who choose to make
radical changes in their personal representation. The
goal is for the viewers to form a better understanding of
the impact of urbanization on identity formation.
Michael Garrett and Eric Wolinsky, Graphic Design
Clint Titsworth, Electrical & Computer Engineering
Awarded $3,250 to create a web site that will provide free space for upcoming and
professional artists to display their work and facilitate interaction between artists.
Undergraduate Research Grants In the fall of 2006, VCUarts initiated this grant program which helped fund nine student projects, with
Photography Katy McDaniel
Genevieve Kammel, Religious Studies Program, Cecelia Dailey, Photography & Film and Philosophy, Sharon Moon, Sculpture + Extended Media,
Ashley Pridmore, Sculpture + Extended Media, Kevin Blow, Fashion Design & Merchandising,
Awarded $2,500 to make five short films which will utilize “mad libs,” where selected words are replaced with others as their point of departure. Each person will contribute different
segments of an art piece in two additional films.
Macon Reed, Sculpture + Extended Media
Awarded $3,050 to solicit artistic proposals
from an eclectic group of participants which
are then anonymously swapped and the new
owner is charged with fulfilling the creative
vision of a stranger.
Michael Birch-Pierce, Fashion Design & Merchandising
Andrea Harriman, Craft/Material Studies
Awarded $2,000 to create a collection of women’s apparel and fashion jewelry inspired
by Art Nouveau and technology.
Douglas Colie, Painting & Printmaking
Awarded $900 to examine the notion that
an identity or community is the belief that
something or someone lies outside of it,
and that the construction of self is inherently “othering.”
a total of $25,000. The proposals were intriguing, and we expect no less of the outcomes. To apply for a grant, visit www.vcu.edu/arts/grants/.
Leila Prasertwaitaya, Art History
Awarded $1,200 to catalog an account
of the Islamic architectural elements in
Richmond’s Monroe Park District.
Courtney Cooke, Dance & Choreography
Awarded $2,100 for a multimedia investigation of technology’s effects on performance.
Gabriel Williams, Kinetic Imaging
Awer Bul, Kinetic Imaging and Painting & Printmaking
Awarded $5,000 to produce a video documentary about the African Refugee Art Club
in a Kenyan refugee camp.
Photography David Leong
For Africa
A benefit performance and
celebration for the children of
Ghana will be held at the Grace
Street Theatre, 934 W. Grace St.
November 1-3, 2007.
www.forafricabenefit.org
Rivers of Paradise
Smokey Joe’s Café Director Speaks to Studio
Patti D’Beck has performed in, choreographed and
directed dozens of award-winning Broadway
plays. Her latest venture was directing VCUarts
Department of Theatre’s production of Smokey
Joe’s Café.
Less than a week before opening night, VCUarts’
Kate Peters spoke with Director Patti D’Beck to
discuss the musical revue.
Studio: Tell me about Smokey Joe’s. The buzz has
been phenomenal.
D’Beck: Leiber and Stoller wrote the show. It’s
essentially a revue. It’s 50s and 60s music like Jail
House Rock, Hound Dog, Stand By Me, Poison
Ivy. They’re songs that are going to be familiar to
almost everyone and if not, they’re fun songs!
Leiber and Stoller wrote what they called
playlettes, each song is a little story, a little journey.
Studio: Are you able to find enough vocal talent to
sustain such a show?
D’Beck: I knew about a lot of vocal talent here, but
found so much more that I did not know about,
which has been exciting. There are two gentlemen
in our du-wop group that are outside of the theatre
department. One is a trombonist from the Music
Department and the other is a business major who
sings in his church choir. They are amazing.
It’s true that musical theatre is very demanding:
these kids are dancing, singing, acting, doing a lot!
Studio: Are you able to enjoy interaction with other
departments within the School of the Arts or do
you feel immersed in Theatre?
D’Beck: At this moment I feel immersed in Theatre!
Each year I’ve done a show, been involved in a
production or two, and I’ve also done work outside. This fall I will take a student, Katie Bradley,
and we will be working together on a revised version of an old 1951 musical called Paint Your
Wagon. They hope to take it to Broadway.
Studio: Do the songs strung together make a story
as well?
Studio: What a great opportunity for your students!
D’Beck: Yes. And I have rearranged some of the
songs to make the storyline stronger, trying to set
up relationships between characters. Usually
there’s one song in a musical that tells you what
the whole show is about. For me, it’s Stand By
Me, because this show is about connecting to
people.
D’Beck: It’s true that every time we go out and
work, we bring so much back to share. Also, I try
to keep a diary up for students while I’m away
working so they can read about the day-to-day.
Studio: I know you’ve had a career on Broadway
for many years. How did you end up at VCU?
Studio: Tell me about the students you have been
working with.
D’Beck: I met David Leong on the auditions for
Miracle Worker. Then in the summer of 2003, I got
a call from him to be a guest artist here. I’d really
D’Beck: Oh, the students! Not only are they
never thought of teaching, but I was looking for
terrific, they are people that I love spending the
something else to do with my life because I’d
evening with. Plus, they work hard. They’re
been in New York so long. David said, “Hey, have
professional. I’ve done this show at a regional the- you ever thought about teaching? Would you be
atre with equity professional actors and I am giving interested in coming here?” I love working with the
my students harder things to do and more detail
students. I’ve learned so much from them and
work than I gave them.
from being here.
John Guthmiller, chair of the Department of Music, will conduct the choral tribute at the 2008
Beijing Olympics. VCU Commonwealth Singers will lead and host the choir in Beijing and
Shanghai, China on May 27 - June 5, 2008. A chorus of 200-300 singers from mid-Atlantic
states and China will perform at the Forbidden City Concert Hall under Dr. Guthmiller's direction on Saturday, May 31. VCU faculty, students and alumni are welcome to join Dr. Guthmiller
and the Commonwealth Singers on this historic tour (at their own expense). [email protected]
Virginia Commonwealth
University & VCU School of the
Arts in Qatar announce the
Hamad bin Khalifa Second
Biennial Symposium on Islamic
Art. Rivers of Paradise will be
held November 4-6, 2007 in
Doha, Qatar.
www.islamicartdoha.org
Command Print
The 2008 Southern Graphics
Council Conference, Command
Print, hosted by VCUarts
Department of Painting and
Printmaking and the Center for
Digital Media, will run March
26-29, 2008.
www.sgc.vcu.edu
Friends of the Anderson Gallery Mourn the
Loss of Two Former Directors
Bruce M. Koplin, 67, passed away Jan. 27,
2007 after a long illness. Mr. Koplin led a distinguished career as a professor of Art History in
VCUarts, including serving as chair of the
Department of Art History for twelve years prior
to his retirement in 2002. Mr. Koplin is also
remembered for serving as the director of the
Anderson Gallery, and as being central to both
the Art Foundation and Museum Studies
Programs.
The Bruce Koplin Scholarship Fund c/o Virginia
Commonwealth University, School of the Arts,
325 N. Harrison St., Richmond, VA 23284-2519.
Ted Potter died at his home in Richmond,
Virginia on November 2, 2006, after a year-long
battle with pancreatic cancer.
Potter was associate professor of art at VCU and
Director of the VCUarts Anderson Gallery.
Throughout his life he maintained a career as a
fine artist.
He served as director of many arts centers in
California, Louisiana, Florida, and was known by
the grants he garnered for his institutions. He
held a number of important positions in arts
administration in the Southeast, including
Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art
(SECCA), where he was director for 24 years.
A Small Sample of What Our Students Have Been Up To
The Pollak Society at VCUarts
Senior Communication Arts student, Chris White, has won the top
prize of a one-week Illustrator Academy Scholarship from the
Illustration Society for his work entitled Victory March. Six works
by four students in the department were selected for inclusion in
this prestigious exhibition.
The Pollak Society is the premier philanthropic group that supports VCUarts operations on an annual basis.
Named in memory of Theresa Pollak, founder of the School, the Society reflects her support of advocacy for
the arts, education, and philanthropy.
Amy Chan, MFA Painting and Printmaking, was part of a group
show at Hudson Franklin in New York.
A film by Photography and Film MFA student Dan Currier won
first prize in the Anchorage International Film Festival and was
screened in the Student Short Film Festival in Ontario Canada. He
also had photographs selected for the 2006 “Colors of Life”
International Photo Contest and the British Journal of Photography
web site.
Kathryn Helms, Master of Art Education student, is Editorial
Assistant for Art Education: The Journal of the National Art
Education Association.
Taylor Baldwin, Sculpture + Extended Media MFA, has been
honored with the Outstanding Student Achievement Award from
the International Sculpture Center.
Photography and Film MFA Vanessa Fassie performed at Dixon
Place in New York City. Her films were screened in NY festivals.
An installation by Photography and Film MFA Nellie Appleby was
part of a group show in Williamsburg, New York City and her films
were screened in Miami during Art Basel.
Tim Rusterholz, BFA Sculpture + Extended Media, won first place
in the North Carolina/Virginia Regional competition of The National
Society of Arts and Letters for water-based media on paper.
Hyun Kyung Yoon, MFA Craft/Material Studies, Ceramics, has
been invited to be an artist for the 2007 Cheongju International
Craft Biennale in Korea.
Tina Boy, BFA Craft/Material Studies, received a full scholarship
to Haystack Mountain School of Crafts to study with Jocelyn
Prince this summer. Tina Boy and Kari Scott were 2 of 15 recipients of the 2007 NICHE student awards.
Marcus Tenney, a Jazz major in Music, placed third in the 2007
National Trumpet Competition's Jazz Division.
The Fashion Group International, Inc. has awarded Fashion Design
student Sarah Kelley the first place scholarship prize in the
menswear category.
Department of Theatre students took home 8 of 15 awards at the
2007 Southeastern Theatre Conference's 58th Annual
Convention's Design Competition in Atlanta:
Brian Kalin, Third Place, Undergrad Set Design
Justin King, First Place, Undergrad Light Design
Brittany Diliberto, Third Place, Undergrad Light Design
Mauren Periera, First Place, Undergrad Costume Design
McKinsey Bamber, Second Place, Undergrad Costume Design
Erin Crettier, Honorable Mention, Undergrad Costume Design
Chris Mueller, Third Place, Grad Costume Design
Record Numbers All Around
VCUarts application numbers are breaking records this year,
with three-quarters of our students applying online. Most
impressively, we’re enjoying a record 77% increase in out-ofstate applications, which has helped contribute to our 40%
increase in overall freshman applications.
A strong talent pool, as well as a higher percentage of students accepting the offer of admission to attend VCUarts
(what we university folks call “yield”) means a large freshman
class – more than 700 students. This year, the School of the
Arts represents 20% of VCU’s freshman class.
Impressively, the Department of Music received more than
double the number of applications as any previous year. This
is part of a trend within the School, but also a result of
increased outreach to high school string players.
Highlights from 2006-07 include a private gathering with acclaimed artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude and the
Spring Celebration featuring the work of VCUarts award-winning students.
Members have unique opportunities to pursue their interests in visual, design, and performing arts. Special
events are designed to provide exciting and informative ways to connect with art and its influence in our lives.
For more information about how to join the Pollak Society, contact Jayne Shaw, Chief Development Officer
and Associate Dean, at 804.828.0129. Jayne was previously Executive Director of Development at Hollins
University, and we're very pleased to have her here.
2006-07 Pollak Society
VCUarts gratefully acknowledges its many generous donors during the 2006-07 year. Below is a list of donors
making gifts of $1,000 or more from July 1, 2006 through June 8, 2007. Every attempt has been made to
ensure the list’s accuracy. Please contact us if you have been omitted or added in error.
Annual Gifts
Anonymous (2)
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph L. Antrim III
Dr. Virginia A. Arnold
Mr. and Mrs. Reid Ashe
Mr. and Mrs. V. Max Beard
Dr. and Mrs. John H. Borgard
Ms. Jane Brooke
Mr. and Mrs. J. Stewart Bryan III
Mr. and Mrs. Rudolph H. Bunzl
Dr. Sonya Y. S. Clark
Mr. and Mrs. Walter M.Dotts III
Ms. JoAnne W. Draucker
Mr. and Mrs. Jack M. Enoch, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Graham L. Evans
Mr. and Mrs. Willard A. Foster, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Richard W. Fowlkes II
Mr. and Mrs. Justin French
Mrs. Sara P. Gallant
Ms. Joan Loren Gaustad and
Mr. Gerald M. Donato
Mr. and Mrs. Floyd D. Gottwald, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. John D. Gottwald
Mr. and Ms. James T. Gottwald
Mr. and Mrs. Leslie Grandis
Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence L. Gray
Ms. Suellen Gregory
Dr. and Mrs. John Guthmiller
Mr. and Mrs. Elliott M. Harrigan
Mr. and Mrs. H. Hiter Harris III
Dr. and Mrs. Louis S. Harris
Mr. and Mrs. J. Cameron Hoggan, Jr.
Mr. and Ms. Walter L. Hooker
Mr. and Mrs. W. O. Jones III
Ms. Emily P. Kinnier *
Ms. Deb Mihaloff and
Mr. Alan I. Kirshner
Mr. and Mrs. Heyn Kjerulf
Mr. and Mrs. Stuart F. Lee
Pollak Society Associates
Camp-Younts Foundation
Capital One Financial Corporation
E. Rhodes & Leona B. Carpenter Foundation
Center for Palladian Studies in America
Chasen's Business Interiors
Dance USA-NCCI
Kip Kephart Foundation
The Sydney & Frances Lewis Foundation
Markel Corporation
Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation
Ms. Nancy Brennan Lund
Mr. and Mrs. Burton G. MacArthur, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Steven A. Markel
Mr. and Mrs. E. Morgan Massey
Mrs.Frederick W. Melin
Ms. Nancy C. Millett
Dr. and Mrs. Richard G. Mitchell
Drs. Sara G. and Paul S. Monroe
Mr. Gerald Morgan, Jr.
Dr. Jason G. Noble
Mr. and Mrs. Neilson November
Mrs. Joan O. Oates
Mr. John T. Patykula
Ms. Sharon Larkins-Pederson and
Mr. Edson Pederson
Mr. and Mrs. Hunter R. Pettus, Jr.
Ms. Gay Pirozzi
Mr. and Mrs. James C. Roberts
Mr. and Mrs. Frederick A. Roos
Mr. and Mrs. Richard Roth
Mr. and Mrs. Charles C. Satterfield
Drs. Patricia E. Bell and Jeffery L. Schul
Mr. and Mrs. Joseph H. Seipel
Mr. and Mrs. Frederick N. Showker
Dr. Dmitri Shteinberg
Ms. Kathryn A. Smiley
The Honorable and Mrs. John W. Snow
Ms. Annabelle J. Taylor
Mr. and Mrs. Charles G. Thalhimer, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Richard G. Tilghman
Ms. Sharon Walker and Dr. Richard Toscan
Mr. and Mrs. Scott Ukrop
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas B. Valentine
Mr. and Mrs. John T. Warner
Mr. Jerome L. Williams and Mr. R. Mark Reed
Mrs. Otti Y. Windmueller *
(Dr. and Mrs. Steven Windmueller)
Mr. and Mrs. John J. Zeugner IV
NAMSB Foundation Inc.
Reynolds Gallery
Rhona Hoffman Gallery LTD.
Roebling Hall LLC
The State Fair of Virginia
The Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation, Inc.
Virginia Commission for the Arts
Wachovia Matching Gifts Program
Westminster Canterbury Corporation
Windgate Charitable Foundation
Capital and Endowed Gifts
These are gifts to endowment and buildings, gifts of property, and planned gifts that will provide for the
School’s future. We are pleased to recognize those below making capital gifts of $1,000 or more this past year.
Mr. and Mrs. Mitchel August
Mr. and Mrs. Ronnie J. Bell
Dr. John R. Cook and Dr. Waverly M. Cole
Mr. and Mrs. Charles W. Culkin, Jr.
Dr. Marilyn T. Erickson
Mrs. Nettie M. Gordon
Mr. and Mrs. Bill Gunter
Mr. William F. Harmon
Dr. Fredrika and Mr. Paul Jacobs
Mr. William O. Jones
Mrs. Barbara H. Kamps
Mr. Gordon Keller
Mr. Donald Mela
Mr. John F. Ohly
Mr. Robert W. Ohly, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Arthur E. Powers
Mr. and Mrs. Andy D. Smull
SMV Technologies, Inc.
Mr. Jerome L. Williams and
Mr. R. Mark Reed
VCUarts Heritage Society
Membership in the VCUarts Heritage Society recognizes those who are providing for the School through
bequests, trusts, annuities, and other planned giving instruments.
* deceased
Photography Bruce Berryhill
The new dean for the VCU School of the
Arts in Qatar, Allyson Vanstone, gets to know
VCU president, Eugene Trani (left), on her
recent visit to Doha.
James Frazier Heads VCU Dance
“I am excited about this appointment
to the position of chair of Dance and
Choreography, as it represents the
accomplishment of a major professional goal,” Frazier said. “VCU Dance is a
vibrant community of artists, committed to the performance, creation, and
presentation of dance that reflects a
wide range of aesthetics. For this reason, I feel all the more fortunate to
have gotten this opportunity here. I
look forward to further cultivating a
national reputation of excellence that
befits the quality of the work that is
being done by our students, faculty
and guest artists in collaboration.”
Frazier’s degrees include a Doctorate
of Education in Dance from Temple
University, an MFA in Dance and a BS
in Marketing from Florida State
University. He is a former Associate
Director of the Dance Institute of
Washington (DC), Publicity Coordinator
or the Urban Bush Women/FSU
Summer Dance Institute, and for the
FSU Department of Dance, where he
later served as visiting professor.
In 2003 Frazier was the recipient of
the Virginia Commission for the Arts
Choreographic Fellowship, and in 2006
he was honored by the Council of
Dance Administrators. Also in 2006,
his dance Suspect Seven was chosen
as an alternate for the national gala
performance of the American College
Dance Festival, representing the southeast region of the United States.
New Cinema Program Taps Rob
Tregenza
The fall of 2007 welcomes the first
Cinema Program class, where 40 students will work towards a BA degree.
Until now, VCUarts has offered a BFA
in Photography and Film as well as
Kinetic Imaging for those interested in
documentary or experimental film.
Cinema Bachelor of Arts students can
graduate in three years due to credits
earned in summer sessions, and students are encouraged to earn a second
major in a non-arts field. The program
will focus on narrative and short films
and offer international opportunities
including the Cannes Film Festival.
Rob Tregenza will head the program.
He has written, photographed and
directed three award-winning independent feature films screened at the
Cannes Film Festival. Perhaps
Tregenza’s greatest recognition has
been the attention of one of the finest
European directors of the 20th century,
Jean-Luc Godard. Godard selected
Tregenza’s Talking to Strangers to
screen again at the 1996 Toronto Film
Festival. He describes passages in
Tregenza’s films as, “remarkable and at
times astonishing, that is, softly imbued
with the marvelous.”
The graduating class of 2006 was the fifth
to earn a degree from VCU School of the
Arts in Qatar. Looks to us like they’re happy
about it.
Christina Lindholm,outgoing dean of the
School, poses with former Secretary of State,
Colin Powell during his recent visit.
What’s a Charette?
In the first of what will be an annual event, VCUarts in Richmond and VCU School of the Arts
in Qatar, traded faculty from Graphic, Fashion, and Interior Design as well as Kinetic Imaging
to present an intensive 3-day design workshop to the students on the other campus. Onehundred-twenty students participated and exhibited work at the Anderson Gallery and the
VCUarts-Qatar Atrium.
Photography Larry Koltys
David Suzuki, Tasmeem Keynote
Luminaries Made Lasting Impressions at Tasmeem Doha 2007 Annual Design Conference
VCU School of the Arts in Qatar presented the Tasmeem Doha 2007 Annual Design Conference and brought international design gurus and
sustainability experts, students, and graphic, fashion and interior designers together to share ideas. This year’s theme, "Sometimes, You
Just Have To Do It Yourself," underscores the link between personal responsibility and sustainability.
The speakers included David Suzuki, geneticist; Gijs Baker, Droog Design; Sheila de Bretteville, Yale University School of Art; Cameron
Sinclair, Architecture for Humanity; and Susan Szenasy, Metropolis Magazine. Since the first conference in 2005, Tasmeem Doha has
gained international attention as a forum for cutting edge ideas and reactions to global issues. The conference is held on the campus of
VCUarts-Qatar and encourages a dialogue of problem seeking and design solutions through the interaction of students, instructors and
guest speakers.
Interior Design Grad Students Direct Tollbooth
Prototype Project
Sophomores in the Department of Interior Design
were given a most interesting challenge by graduate
students Anisa Mohammed and Julie Wolfe.
"As designers, you are all charged with not just making
beautiful objects, but with improving society in some
way with your creations. A tollbooth is the interface
between a source and a destination. Imagine the convergence of traffic, the congestion, the opportunity to
people-watch, the experience of going thru a tollbooth;
the scent of emissions; the view of a bridge standing
before you or a horizontal sliver of it in your rearview
mirror. I hope you all have a lot of quarters on hand as
you get started.”
A select group of students successfully presented their
research and design solutions at the International
Bridge and Tunnel Conference in Spring 2007.
Fashion Student Competes Internationally
Fashion Design student, Soo Hyun Kim, was one of
three American winners of the Remix 2007 IFTF
International Fur Design Competition for a fox fur swing
coat with cape collar she designed. In March, Soo
competed internationally in Milan, Italy. Entries for the
IFTF Design Competition included designs from nearly
40 member countries.
Sculptor’s Work
Documented
Photography, left, M.P. Prucha
The enormous statue of
Neptune that welcomes
tourists to the Virginia
Beach oceanfront at 31st
street was sculpted by Paul
DiPasquale, Sculpture MFA
‘77. A documentary about
his recent work, King
Neptune: The Making of the
Myth, is making headlines
and winning awards.
Opera Theatre VCU
Worked its Magic
Opera Theatre VCU
presented The Magic Flute,
in English, with lush costumes, stunning sets and
accompaniment by VCU
Symphony Orchestra.
Juried Fine Art Exhibition
The Juried Fine Arts
Exhibition was held in April
at the Anderson Gallery.
Work of 183 undergraduate
students was judged by
New York fine art dealer,
Eric Heist.
VCUarts
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Richmond, Virginia
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www.vcu.edu/arts
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Virginia Commonwealth University is an equal opportunity / affirmative action institution providing access to education and employment without regard to age, race, color, national origin, gender, religion, sexual orientation, veteran’s status, political affiliation, or disability.
Congratulations
2007 VCUarts
graduates!