- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

Warrick creates public sculptures for Arkansas, Texas

Ajani Oyindamola — Wed, 21 Aug 2019 12:50:33 +0000

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock art professor used his summer break wisely to create two public works of art for a university in Arkansas and a community in Texas. In Arkansas, Michael Warrick, professor of sculpture, created a bronze sculpture portraying the benefits of meditation for the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith. The sculpture, “Vision,” will encompass a four-foot-tall, 3D-printed portrait cast in bronze and mounted on a three-foot steel base. “The sculpture represents a man in meditation, and the back side of the sculpture is an exact negative of the front of the sculpture made in golf leaf,” Warrick said. “There are many metaphors at work in this piece. Gold is one of the most precious metals on Earth, and its inclusion symbolizes that the mind is one of the most precious gifts a person has. There are also illusions to the negative and positive. The sculpture shows how people may be calm on the outside while a storm is brewing on the inside.” The piece is a part of a series of sculptures Warrick created called “Portraits of Peace.” Utilizing contemporary 3D scanning and scaling technology, Warrick produced monumentally scaled portraits reflecting the benefits of meditation and spiritual centeredness. The project was partially funded through a $2,480 Summer Research Fellowship Grant Warrick received from the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences in 2018.

Michael Warrick’s model of “Vision.”

Along with his sculpture, the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith will hold an exhibit featuring Warrick’s work. “Perspectives on Darkness and Light” will be on display through Sept. 30.�� The exhibit displays a range of Warrick’s sculptures from the past decade as well as 20 sketchbook drawings from the last 20 years. The work includes figurative and portrait motifs as a means of expression. Warrick will give a special lecture, “Portrait of Peace Project: Creating Vision,” at ��Vlog��ýFS at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, in the Fine Art Theater Room 107. He will discuss the sculpture’s inspiration, creating the 3-D printed model, 3-D printing on a monumental scale, casting the bronze portrait in 12 pieces, failures and lessons from the casting process, and the fabrication process for the unusually shaped base. Following the lecture, “Vision” will be installed near the south entrance of the Windgate Art and Design building as an addition to the ��Vlog��ýFS permanent collection of art. In his second public art project of the summer, Warrick created an 18-foot-tall stainless steel sculpture, “The Mockingbird Tree,” for the community of Southlake, Texas. The Southlake Arts Council selected Warrick’s design from 18 proposals. The piece celebrates the mockingbird tree as one of the state’s natural resources and represents the medical, retail, and residential developments surrounding the roundabout where the sculpture will be placed at Zena Rucker Road and Tower Boulevard. The sculpture also incorporates three mockingbirds, the state bird of Texas, and is another symbol of how the roundabout connects the three neighborhoods for the public good.�� “The sculpture is inspired by a drawing by my daughter, Annika, when she was a child,” Warrick said. “She has served as an inspiration for many of my pieces over the years. Sometimes, the ideas of children are some of the best. I want people to take away a little bit of whimsy and beauty and simplicity from this sculpture.” Warrick is also receiving some local help to complete the interstate project. GC Evans Sales and Manufacturing Company in Little Rock has donated space in its warehouse for Warrick to work on the sculpture over the summer.

Michael’s Warrick’s rendering of “The Mockingbird Tree.”

Livaudais’ photography exhibit on display at North Little Rock library

Ajani Oyindamola — Thu, 16 May 2019 17:40:21 +0000

Joli Livaudais, assistant professor of photography, will hold a photography exhibit at the Argenta Branch of the from May 17 to June 15.�� The library is located at 420 Main St., North Little Rock, and is open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Friday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. The exhibit, “And Then I Will See,” will feature a series of images printed using an historical printing process, gum bichromate, which involves hand coating watercolor paper with a light-sensitive emulsion combined with watercolor pigments in multiple layers to achieve a print. “This highly involved process yields images that are softly focused, surreal in color, and are reminiscent of a constructed memory,” she said. This series is inspired by her father’s search to uncover patterns in the universe that would allow him to win the lottery and achieve financial security for his family. “My mother’s last battle with cancer financially devastated my parents. When she died, my father fixated on his solution to the crisis. He decided he would win the lottery,” Livaudais said. “My father believed there are patterns in the universe and that by studying nature they could be discerned. Things we believe to be random can actually be predicted, if we could account for all of the variables that go into this pattern. He spent the next several years working on uncovering this great truth.” Livaudais’ father analyzed thousands of samples of random numbers. He tracked the astronomical objects and weather patterns. He would buy a single lottery ticket every week, but never won the lottery, concluding that there were “just too many variables to account for.” “When he died, and I sat with the boxes of pages of gridded numbers, I recognized much of myself in the pages – the study of nature in search of something deeper, the same desire for meaning and order,” she said. “In these photographs, I study nature, beauty, and the minutia of my own life and relationships in the context of my father’s data, with all the emotion and ambiguous connections that such a study implies.” The images were captured on black and white film with a lensless pinhole camera and layered with photographs of her father’s numbers.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock honors employees, departments making a difference in students’ lives

Ajani Oyindamola — Thu, 17 May 2018 13:09:47 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock recognized 57 faculty and staff members as well as 24 departments and programs who have made an impact in the lives of graduating students.�� The Division of Student Affairs hosted the Student Advocate Awards Ceremony on April 27. Through a survey, graduating seniors identified ��Vlog��ý Little Rock employees and departments instrumental in their success. The faculty and staff members honored include:

Charles Anderson, Rhetoric and Writing
Neveen Amin, Sociology and Anthropology
Aresh Assadi, Counseling Services
Thomas Barrett, Education
William Baltosser, Biology
Emily Bell, Study Abroad
David Briscoe, Anthropology and Sociology
John Bush, Biology
Cai Carvalhaes, Counseling Services
Kelly Chaney, Biology
April Chatham-Carpenter, Applied Communication
Catherine Crisp, School of Social Work
Jane Evans, Nursing
Erin Finzer, Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost
Mark Funk, Accounting
Marc Glidden, Criminal Justice/Campus Living
Camille Guess-Mitchell, Financial Aid
Shannon Gwinn, Business
George Jensen, Rhetoric and Writing
Amar Kanekar,��Counseling, Human Performance, and Rehabilitation
Tara Kittrell, Counseling Services
Cheryl Kleeman, Military Student Success
Gaurav Kumar, Accounting
Jason Kushner, Counseling, Human Performance, and Rehabilitation
Katina Leland, Education
James Levernier, English
Ann Marie Lott, Disability Resource Center
Kristin Mann, History
Bradley Minnick, English
Steven Minsker, Computer Science
Robert Mitchell, Business Information Systems
La’Donnia Mothershed, TRIO Student Support Services
Charles Molsbee, Nursing
David Montague, eLearning
Ibrahim Nisanci, Systems Engineering
Yvette Palmer, Undergraduate Academic Advising
Mary Parker, Criminal Justice
Sonya Premeaux, Business
Bennie Prince, Counseling, Human Performance, and Rehabilitation
Ann Robinson, Jodie Mahony Center for Gifted Education
Jessica Scott, Donaghey Scholars Program
Sherry Rankins-Robertson, Rhetoric and Writing
René Shroat-Lewis, Earth Sciences
Amber Smith, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs
Bruce Smith, Education
Janea Snyder,��Counseling, Human Performance & Rehabilitation
Nick Steele, Concurrent Enrollment
John Talburt, Information Science
Cynthia Taylor, Accounting
Rachel Tennial, Psychology
Rikki Turner, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs
Hyginus Ukadike, Counseling Services
David Weekley, Mass Communication
Jim Winter, Arkansas STRIVE Program
Karen Wisdom, Criminal Justice
Paul Yoder, English

The departments and programs honored include:

African American Female Initiative
Accounting
Anthropology
Applied Communication
Art and Design
Business Information Systems
Chancellor’s Leadership Corps
Counseling Services
Charles W. Donaldson Scholars Academy
Donaghey Scholars Program
Early Childhood Education
English
Greek Life
Nursing
Philosophy
Psychology
Rehabilitation Program
Rhetoric and Writing
Science Scholars Program
School of Social Work
Theatre Arts and Dance
TRIO McNair Scholars
TRIO Support Services
��Vlog��ýLR Teach

College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences honors top students, scholarship recipients

Ajani Oyindamola — Tue, 15 May 2018 16:21:31 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences recognized its top students and scholarship recipients during the college’s awards ceremony on May 1.�� The college’s departments include art and design, biology, chemistry, English, history, mathematics and statistics, music, philosophy and interdisciplinary studies, physics and astronomy, theatre arts and dance, and world languages.

College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences

Stephen L. Mourning Science Scholarship – Erica Olson Mexican Studies Endowed Scholarship – Catherine McGibbony Science and Mathematics Leadership Endowed Scholarship – Carol Bowerman, Chandrasimha Reddy Penthala, Kenneth Burnett, Thuy Thanh Le, Carson Smith, and Amber Hill

Department of Art and Design

Charles D. Massey Scholarship – Chassidy Siratt and Brandy Thrower Cindy Conger Endowed Visual Art Awards – Carley Brown Dorothy Gillespie Foundation Scholarship – Mary Bowling Friends of The Arts Scholarship – Christina Osorio Jerry E. Arrowood Memorial Scholarship – Sandi Harvell and Kennedy Butler Joan R. Taylor Scholarship – Madeline Hutson, Monica Penny, Carley Brown, Olivia Blair, Austin Bowers, and Alexis Stiles Lewis and Debbie May Scholarship – Mary Bowling Nabholz Endowed Scholarship for Art and Design – Wendell Martin Judith A. Wrappe Scholarship – Brady Jackson, Henry Thomas, Jennifer Bell, Robert Berry, and Brandy Thrower Windgate Foundation Scholarship – Rachel Struthers, Lilliana Reinoso, Joshua Goff, Savana Holland, Kiersin Webb-Carrington, Erin Vaughn, Jennie Vaughn, Lauren Fuller, Tatiana Correa, Annika Shunn, Candace McJunkin, Briana Hardin, Marcus Crutchfield, and Lauren Johnson Lori Grimes Memorial Scholarship – Chassidy Siratt

Department of Biology

James H. Fribourgh Endowed Biology Scholarship – Abdallah Abou-Diab Tom and Debbie Lynch Biology Scholarship – Humam Shahare Martha Couch Givens Memorial Award – Samantha Gray Thomas Hogue Memorial Award – Grace Rutter John D. Rickett Outstanding Graduate Student Award – Lisa Williams and Richard Connor Clarance B. Sinclair Memorial Scholarship – Alaa Shahare

Department of Chemistry

AIC Outstanding Graduating Senior – James Sellers and Rebecca Moreira ACS Outstanding Graduating Senior – Samantha Macchi and Marina Avram Outstanding Graduating Master’s Student – Raymond Patey Outstanding Graduating Ph.D. Student – Sreevishnu Cheerla Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant Award – Mavis Forson Frank Lamar Setliff Endowed Scholarship – Caroline Kornelsen and Robert Hill Darryl K. Reach Endowed Scholarship – Carol Bowerman and Thuy Thanh Le ACS Book Scholarship – Kendall Riley Wood

Department of English

Cooper Success Scholarships – Brooke Turner, TiLena Camp, and Heidi Clement Ruth Lovett Booker Scholarship – Frankie Alford Marilynn Keys Endowed Scholarship – Caleb Alexander-McKinzie Eleanor Orts Francis English Scholarship – Kimberly Mauer Roslyn L. Knutson English Award – Kyrsten Younge Alma K. Dougherty Award – Frankie Alford Martha Sawrie Stephenson Endowed Scholarship – TiLena Camp Gladys K. Brown Award – Joy Reinbold Kathryn Ramsey Award – Joy Reinbold Richard Stanley Cooper Literary Award – Caleb Alexander-McKinzie

Department of History

Richard B. Dixon Scholarship – Tyrene Jones, Crystal Shurley, Devin Sorrows, Kyna Stys, and Ellis (Gene) Thompson Dr. Edward Madden and Lucy Dorothy Anson III Award – Morgan Guzman and Jade Kitchel Craig Powell Memorial Scholarship – Ian Gaebel Martha Sawrie Stephenson Endowed Scholarship – Amy King Jack Freshour Scholarship – Nancy Tell-Hall Fred Williams Scholarship in Public History – Rachel Walters

Department of Mathematics and Statistics

Jerry and Sherry Damerow Endowed Math and Statistics Scholarship – Hayden Hensen, Tanaya Williams, Michael McKenzie, David Johnson, and Susanna More Dewoody and Emily Fleming Dickinson Math Scholarship – Shazeena Ashraf and Susanna More David A. Schonert Endowed Scholarship – Tristan Gregory Linda and Tom Mcmillan Mathematics Scholarship – Joseph Sorensen Ma Endowed Family Scholarship – Carrie Callo Barraza Ann Jameson Wilson Mathematics Scholarship – Richard Inakpenu and Grizel Macias Outstanding Senior Awards – Mason Cox and Jamie Burrows Award for Outstanding Achievement By an Undergraduate Student – Scott Wolf and ��Hayden Hensen Award for Outstanding Teaching By a Graduate Student – Joshua Hairston Award for Outstanding Achievement By a Graduate Student – Chary Akmyradov Outstanding Tutor Award – Allen Lunnie and Ha Trinh Friends of The Department – James Hollander, Sam Lawhorn, and Jerry and Sherry Damerow

Department of Music

Edith Willis Woodall Scholarship – Karah Poole Eleanor Orts Francis Scholarship – Isaac Helgestad, Dakota Jackson, and Earnie Williams Homer and Betty Jones Opera Endowment – Elizabeth Wheeler Joan R. Taylor Scholarship – Jillian Armstrong, Sarah Hylton, Benjamin Moore, Alexander Rupert, Kyndriatta Sears, and Maria Zarate Stella Boyle Smith Award – Alyssa Anwar, Hannah Blacklaw, David Burkhalter, Lucas Bush, Michael Caysido, Brandon Dorris, Andrew Gerstenberger, Reagan Gray, Kyra Hatley, Melissa Legendre, Dante Leon, Eri Okawa, Samuel Schalchlin, and Ryan Wilder.

Department of Philosophy and Interdisciplinary Studies

Socratic Award for Most Outstanding Students in Philosophy – Ra’phael Davis and Melissa Vachon Richard Frothingham Achievement Award for Excellence in Philosophy and Religious Studies – Audrey Driskill Lee Asbill Johnson Scholarship – Sydney Brazil Brent Knutson Memorial Award for Excellence in Religious Studies – Jessica Chavez and Sandi Harvell Outstanding Interdisciplinary Studies Student Award – Taylor Travis and Rachel Mulligan Annie L. Harrison Scholarships – Erin Beeman and Michelle Burton

Department of Physics and Astronomy

Paul Engle Scholarship – David Cline Coleman Scholarship – Alex Kingston Outstanding Graduating Senior – Marvin Bonney Outstanding Teaching Assistant – Rauf Hussein Outstanding Graduate Research Award – Nawzat Saadi

Department of Theatre Arts and Dance

Performing Arts Award, Dance – Ronesha Butler, Travis Clark, Perin Creek, Erin Fallis, Victoria Fender, Carmen Gutierrez, Hadley Hume, Brandy Mimms, Emily Moore, Lauren Pafford, Madison Price, Jessica Regalado, Shelby Robertson, Emily Shellabarger, Rebecca Shunn, Paige Tarrow, and Mario Valdez Joel Ruminer Scholarship Award, Dance – Alysa Anderson and LaVentry Easter Performing Arts Award, Theatre – Maggie Donald, Elizabeth McKee, and Kaitlynn Mitchell Eleanor Orts Francis Scholarship, Theatre – Sabrina Hatchett, Emorie Mansur, and Gage Pipkin Ike Murry Scholarship, Theatre – Alex Calhoun and Kat Hall Friends of the Arts Scholarship – Taylor Jaggers Joan Taylor Scholarship, Theatre – Travis Clark, Char Dupins, Leah Gelé, Mykenzie Gordon, Taylor Green, Kat Hall, Keith Harper, Andrew Jaramillo, Jessica Ley, Blake Morris, Tre’Vaughn Whitley

Department of World Languages

Emile B. de Sauzé Award for Outstanding Graduate in French – Emily Summers Cervantes Award for Outstanding Graduate in Spanish – Rebecca Moreira Award for Excellence in French – Andrea Elias Vance C. Ogden Memorial Scholarship – Jennifer Harrison and Emily Mendiola Sharon Sellars Award for Outstanding Language Resource Center Tutor – Jessica Tate

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Annual Student Competitive on display March 26 to April 15

Ajani Oyindamola — Tue, 20 Mar 2018 16:08:37 +0000

University of Arkansas at Little Rock art and design students will show off the best of their work during the Annual Student Competitive art show on display in the Brad Cushman Gallery in the Windgate Center of Art + Design from March 26 to April 15.�� The winners of the competition will be announced during an awards reception at 12:15 p.m. Tuesday, March 27, at the Windgate Center of Art + Design lobby. Joshua Brinlee, assistant professor of art at the University of Mississippi, will serve as the competition’s juror. The exhibition includes drawing, paintings, prints, graphic design, photography, illustrations, textiles, metals, sculptures, ceramics, and furniture. The ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Art Gallery, which is free and open to the public, is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays, and 1-5 p.m. on Sundays. For more information, contact Gallery Director Brad Bushman at becushman@ualr.edu or 501-916-5103. In the upper right photo, Alecia Walls-Barton, a fall 2017 graduate of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, shows off her art pieces on display.��

‘Masculine Projections’ on display at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock March 29

Ajani Oyindamola — Mon, 19 Mar 2018 13:56:47 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock will host an exhibition featuring artist Joshua Brinlee’s photographic self-portraits, which explore societal expectations of masculinity.�� The exhibition, “Masculine Projections,” will be on display in the Small Gallery, located on level one in the Windgate Center of Art + Design from March 29 to April 27. Brinlee, assistant professor of art at the University of Mississippi, will discuss his work at 2 p.m. Thursday, April 12, in the Windgate Center Room 101. The exhibit features photographic self-portraits created with digital imaging, which mimic the traditional portraiture and painting tradition. Stereotypical archetypes of men appropriated from Tumblr are projected onto the artist, which Brinlee photographed. “Societal expectations dictate that men should be stoic and dominant projections of virility, especially in the South,” ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Gallery Director Brad Cushman said. “If you fail to meet these expectations of masculinity, you are characterized as weak, unmanly, and effeminate. Brinlee explores the absurdity of these expectations in his current series, ‘Masculine Projections.’” Brinlee received a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Master of Fine Arts from the Memphis College of Art and Design. He also participated in the New York Studio Residency Program, which is a project that stems from the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. Brinlee will be on campus over spring break to jury the Student Competitive art show. This exhibition will feature work created by students taking art classes at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. The exhibition will run March 26 to April 15 on level two in the Brad Cushman Gallery in the Windgate Center of Art + Design. The ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Art Gallery, which is free and open to the public, is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays, and 1-5 p.m. on Sundays. For more information, contact Gallery Director Brad Bushman at becushman@ualr.edu or 501-916-5103. In the upper right photo is��Joshua Brinlee’s 2017 digital print, “Self-Portrait as Provider.”��

New ��Vlog��ý Little Rock photography club holds first exhibit

Ajani Oyindamola — Thu, 10 Aug 2017 18:06:16 +0000

University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduates and students have started a new photography club and are displaying their skills at the club’s first photo exhibit at the.�� The exhibit, will run Aug. 11 until Oct. 8. A reception for the artists will be held during the Second Friday Art Walk from 5-8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 11, at Historic Arkansas Museum, 200 E. Third St. in Little Rock. Participating artists include Benjamin Deaton, Megan Douglas, Jessica Frazier, Robert Harpool, Trinity Kai, Rayna Mackey, Adrian Quintanar, Nathaniel Roe, Alecia Walls-Barton, Craig Wynn, and Dylan Yarbrough. Rayna Mackey, a 2017 ��Vlog��ý Little Rock graduate and photographer, said alumni and students were inspired to form the club to share their love of fine arts photography. “The name ‘No-Type’ came about because, as a group, no one specific type of photography is used with mediums ranging from digital to analog to alternative process photography,” Mackey said. In the exhibit, No-Type members portray the theme of identity through their own definitions and artistic photography styles. “Identity is conceived from personal circumstances and conditions a person is born into,” Mackey said. “These factors can shape how an individual aligns themselves with reality. Throughout life, experiences can morph an individual’s beliefs and the perceptions of an individual, including how others perceive them.” ��

��Vlog��ý Little Rock to host ACANSA Arts Festival events

Ajani Oyindamola — Wed, 09 Aug 2017 13:53:19 +0000

The has teamed up with the University of Arkansas at Little Rock to bring a three-day celebration of the arts to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Sept. 22-24 as part of the annual festival.�� “We are very excited to partner with ��Vlog��ý Little Rock this year, especially since the university is building a new fine arts center and putting a new focus on that aspect of education,” said Dillon Hupp, executive director of the ACANSA Arts Festival.�� This year’s festival will feature a Sept. 23 performance by New York-based, which is known for its groundbreaking mix of methods, styles, and cultures. “They are one of the most sought after dance performance groups in the country, and we are thrilled to bring them to central Arkansas,” Hupp said. The festival will also feature a free performance by, a trio that combines the virtuosity of classical music with the immediacy of jazz and folk music. Additional events include three art exhibitions, artist talks, and workshops. ��Vlog��ý Little Rock ACANSA activities will kick off with an artist lecture by Peri Schwartz at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 22, in Room 161 of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Fine Arts Building. Schwartz will also lead a two-day workshop on printing, “Discovering Mylar,” Sept. 23-24 in Fine Arts Building Room 232. Those interested in attending should email artworks@ualr.edu. As part of the celebration, the artwork of Schwartz, Heidi Hogan, and Layet Johnson will be on display in the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Art Gallery located in the Fine Arts Building. The Art Gallery will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sept. 23 with a 5 p.m. reception for the artists in Gallery 1, sponsored by Irene and George Davis and Kay and Bill Patton. A complete schedule of events and ticket information can be found at . Festival highlights at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock include:

9 Horses Concert: 6 p.m. Sept. 23, Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall in the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Fine Arts Building. Free admission.
Photo Booth run by ��Vlog��ý Little Rock art students: 6 p.m. Sept. 23, ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Alumni Plaza in front of Ottenheimer Library.
Complexions Contemporary Ballet: 8 p.m. Sept. 23, University Theater in the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Center for Performing Arts. Before the performance, enjoy coffee, cake, and piano music performed by Michael Heavner in the University Theatre lobby. General admission tickets are $35, while tickets are $15 for students and military personnel.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock to host photo shoot for dogs April 1

Ajani Oyindamola — Wed, 15 Mar 2017 13:42:36 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock will hold a photo shoot for man’s best friend on Saturday, April 1.�� During the “Puppy Mugs” event, student and faculty photographers from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock will take portraits of dogs to raise money for programs in the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Department of Art and Design. The pet portrait fundraiser will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Fine Arts Building Room FA267. The photographers will use classic solid backdrops and fashion lighting to make each four-legged friend look his or her best. The cost is $25 for two 5×7 pictures or one 8×10 picture or a digital file of the photo. For more information, contact Carey Roberson at cwroberson@ualr.edu or Joli Livaudais at jklivaudais@ualr.edu or 501.569.3182. ��

Donors pledge nearly $500k for art and design scholarships

Ajani Oyindamola — Thu, 23 Feb 2017 19:41:14 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has raised nearly $500,000 for endowed scholarship funds for art and design students.�� Tom Clifton, dean of the College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences, announced the scholarship campaign progress during a Feb. 23 topping out ceremony at the site of the future Windgate Center of Art + Design, located on the northeast corner of campus off 28th Street near Fair Park and Boulevard. “The Windgate Center is the culmination of a 22-year relationship with the Windgate Foundation,” Clifton said. “As our commitment, the university has promised to raise $3 million in scholarships for students attending this art school.” Construction is 25 percent complete on the new state-of-the-art educational facility scheduled to be completed in November and open Jan. 8, 2018. The new center is funded by a $20.3 million gift from the Windgate Charitable Foundation. After the new building was announced, the university launched a $3 million endowed scholarship campaign to make art and design education more affordable to students. During the ceremony, Nabholz construction officials raised a 400-pound beam — signed by Robyn Horn of the Windgate Charitable Foundation, Chancellor Andrew Rogerson and his wife, Janessa, as well as donors and art faculty — to the top floor of the Windgate Center. The American and Arkansas flags as well as a ceremonial tree lie on top of the beam.

Nabholz construction officials raise a 400-pound beam to the top floor of the Windgate Center on Feb. 23. Photo by Lonnie Timmons III/��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.

The Windgate Center shows the university’s commitment to providing a high-quality and affordable educational experience for art and design students in central Arkansas. “Current studies are showing that creative industries account for about one in six jobs,” Rogerson said. “It’s imperative that we include liberal arts as an equally valuable education component. Today, employers are seeking students with an arts and design background. They have the skills for a creative workforce, and employers value abilities in communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and problem solving.” In addition to educational programs in art and design, the Windgate Center will provide non-credit classes open to the community as well as art exhibitions, workshops, and lectures. The Windgate Center will become a premier gathering place for the arts in Little Rock. The ceremony was broadcast live on Facebook and a replay can be viewed at . Contact the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Office of Alumni and Development at 501-569-8326 or visit to support art and design scholarship at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. In the upper right photo, donors, art faculty, and administrators sign the beam that marks the highest point of the Windgate Center of Art + Design at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Pictured, from left to right, are Win Bruhl, Deborah Baldwin, Belinda Schultz, Janessa Rogerson, and Anne Mourning. Photo by Lonnie Timmons III/��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.��

- University News Archive - ����Vlog��ý Little Rock

Warrick creates public sculptures for Arkansas, Texas

Livaudais’ photography exhibit on display at North Little Rock library

����Vlog��ý Little Rock honors employees, departments making a difference in students’ lives

College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences honors top students, scholarship recipients

����Vlog��ý Little Rock Annual Student Competitive on display March 26 to April 15

‘Masculine Projections’ on display at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock March 29

New ����Vlog��ý Little Rock photography club holds first exhibit

����Vlog��ý Little Rock to host ACANSA Arts Festival events

����Vlog��ý Little Rock to host photo shoot for dogs April 1