Faculty and students at the Department of Art and Art History are not the only ones changing the world with the work they do. The department’s staff is equally active in the arts, both locally and nationally. Here is a sampling of some of their most recent work and acclaim:
Amber Shields, Photography Lab manager, has been named one of the 2017 recipients of the Michael P. Smith Fund for Documentary Photography Award for her work, Visions of Johanne. “Visions of Johanne is a meditation on mortality told through photographing the aging process of my grandmother over the last 15 years of her life,” writes Shields. “I documented the fear and isolation of aging along with the love and familial connection of a life well lived.” The MPS Fund awards cash prizes and exhibition opportunities to Gulf Coast photographers whose work combines artistic excellence and a sustained commitment to a cultural documentary project.
By day, kt shorb is the department’s Graduate Coordinator for Art Education and Studio Art, but also by day (and night) they create work that enriches the life of theater in Austin with their collaborators at Generic Ensemble Company. Their most recent show, Scheherazade delves into Islamophobia and detention, and will run from June 2-17, 2017 at The Vortex theater. KUT’s Arts Eclectic program produced a feature on the work and the Austin American-Statesman has called it “a timely, necessary piece of political theater.”
Come fall, students and the Austin community will have the opportunity to see the work of Fabrication Lab manager and Studio Art Lecturer Eric McMaster in the 2017 TEMPO public art program. TEMPO is a part of the City of Austin’s public art repertoire, allowing artists to explore a range of themes suitable for the outdoor environment and providing the opportunity to create innovative, thought-provoking artworks that impact the way people experience their environment. District ten will host an exhibition of all TEMPO works during November’s East Austin Studio Tour.