Alumni Activities
Ariel René Jackson and Michael J. Love awarded $15,000 Tito’s Prize
Sight Lines
Ariel René Jackson (M.F.A., Studio Art, 2019) and Michael J. Love (M.F.A., Theatre, 2020) were awarded the 2021 $15,000 Tito’s Prize. The award, sponsored by Tito’s Homemade Vodka and organized by non-profit Big Medium, was presented to these Autin-based artists for their project “Descendance.” The film features a performance by Love and an original score by jazz musician Joseph C. Dyson Jr.
Jonas Criscoe featured in new art exhibition
Columbia University
Jonas Criscoe (B.F.A., Studio Art, 2006) has work featured in Art in Isolation, an exhibition hosted by The Macy Art Gallery at Columbia University.
riel Sturchio shortlisted in 2020 ICP/GOST First Photo Book Award
Department of Art & Art History
riel Sturchio (M.F.A., Studio Art, 2018) was shortlisted for the 2020 ICP / GOST First Photo Book Award, alongside their sibling Bianca. The ICP / GOST First Photo Book Award was created to promote and support the work of unpublished photographers through the production of a first photo book by the ICP / GOST imprint. Sturchio's photo book, Chasing Light, is part of a project between Sturchio and their twin sibling, Bianca, where they utilize photography to delve into complications of their non-normative identities and health-related challenges.
Gay Gaddis to host virtual event on arts and culture
Texas Cultural Trust
Gay Gaddis (B.F.A., Studio Art, 1977) will be featured at a free upcoming virtual art event addressing the impact arts and culture make on the overall business world. Texas Cultural Trust will host The Art of Business and Business of the Arts: A Conversation with Gay Gaddis on Wednesday, April 14 at 11 a.m.
Deanna Miesch opens fine art gallery
Lydia Street Gallery
Deanna Miesch (B.F.A., Studio Art, 1991) recently opened Lydia Street Gallery, a contemporary fine art gallery located in the East End IBIZ District in Austin. Miesch brings her unique understanding and appreciation of art and artists from her decades of work in the field of Art Therapy and her own art practices to the exhibition’s focus on mid- and late-career artists from Austin and afar. Lydia Street will focus on artists currently living in Austin or who have lived in Austin and have strong ties to the community. Image courtesy of Deanna Miesch
Ariel Lee named in Forbes List of founders
Forbes
Ariel Lee (B.A., Studio Art, 2020) has been named in the Forbes Next 1000 List in the first cohort of 250 founders. This list showcases the ambitious sole proprietors, self-funded shops and pre-revenue startups in every region of the country. Her company Remane offers a platform to identify hair needs for each individual’s hair type to recommend a customizable hair regimen. Photo courtesy of Ariel Lee
Tamara Johnson organizes education-based exhibition program
Sweet Pass
Tamara Johnson (B.F.A., Studio Art, 2007) has organized Sweet Pass Sculpture Park’s new education-based exhibition program, Sweet Pass Sculpture School. The program consists of a two-week intensive in Dallas, a year-long remote mentorship for research and project development and a concluding exhibition centered at Sweet Pass Sculpture Park. Artists invited to participate will engage in site visits, lectures, screenings, readings and dinners and will meet with local cultural producers, thinkers and experts to collectively explore the city of Dallas and the surrounding region.
Laura August becomes 2021 Mellon Arts + Practitioner Fellow
Yale RITM
Laura August (Ph.D., Art History, 2012) is a 2021 inaugural Mellon Arts + Practitioner Fellow at Yale's Center for the Study of Race, Indigeneity and Transnational Migration. She will be developing new writing that expands upon one of the exhibitions she curated in 2020. The work, To Weave Blue: poema al tejido, on view from January to April in the Fogelman Galleries of The University of Memphis, was the first exhibition in the United States to center contemporary Maya art and philosophy.
Carlos Rosales-Silva featured in first solo exhibition
Ruiz-Healy Art
Carlos Rosales-Silva (B.F.A., Studio Art, 2017) will be featured in his first New York City solo exhibition at Ruiz Healy Art in Manhattan. The exhibition, Sunland Park, uses landscape and architecture to express changes in artistic and cultural histories throughout time along the border of Texas, Mexico and El Paso.
Emily Edwards promoted at Dallas Contemporary
Dallas Contemporary
Emily Edwards (B.F.A., Art History, 2015) has been promoted to assistant curator at the Dallas Contemporary. Her latest curatorial project opens in late January alongside a video, titled Doubt & Imagination, created by alumna Ariel Rene Jackson (M.F.A., Studo Art, 2019). Photo by Ariel Rene Jackson