See who won the Graduate Exhibition awards
The annual exhibition by UC Davis arts and humanities graduate students announced its award-winning entries last week. And you can view them now through Sept. 6, but do it now. There are two awards plus an honorable mention.
The exhibition showcases works across the disciplines of art, design, music, creative writing, Native American studies, English, Spanish and French. The exhibition is hosted by the Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art and can be viewed on the museum’s website.
Genevra Daley (UC Davis M.F.A. 2021) was awarded the Keister & Allen Art Purchase Prize at the Arts & Humanities 2021 Graduate Exhibition opening celebration on June 10. Her installation, “Entryway,” enlists discarded garments and accessories to create forms that reflect the tacit relationship between Genevra’s body and material.
In awarding the art purchase prize, the judges noted that it “exceeded all expectations in creating a powerful sensory experience for viewers. … We are so impressed by the sculptural language Genevra has developed.”
This award is made possible by the generosity of Vice Chancellor of the Office of Development and Alumni Relations Shaun Keister, and his husband, Walter Allen, of Information & Education Technology at UC Davis. The funds go toward the acquisition of an M.F.A. student’s artwork for the university’s Fine Arts Collection.
Kaylani Juanita McCard is the winner of the Savageau Award, which recognizes and celebrates the contributions of a UC Davis Master of Fine Arts graduate in the discipline of design, for her illustrated picture book, “My Brother has Thorns.”
“Kaylani’s thesis demonstrates excellence in research and execution, integrating Critical Race Theory, counter-storytelling, and strong illustration,” the committee said. “It tackles timely and complex issues around race, disability, mental illness and demilitarization with extraordinary sensitivity.”
The Savageau Award is made possible by the generosity of Ann Savageau, professor emerita of design, and Mike Savageau, distinguished research professor in Biomedical Engineering, and Microbiology & Molecular Genetics.
This year, there was also a Savageau Award Honorable Mention. It goes to Dan Tran to recognize his in-depth, interdisciplinary exploration of biogenic cement materials and their integration with rapid prototyping technologies.
See the Hyperallergic story about the event.
[re: CLICK] app-based interactive performance on view this month
A 2020 performance has new life now with a new platform.
In fall 2020, theatre programs at UC Davis and Northwestern University joined forces to devise and generate a new form of virtual performance. Led by UC Davis professor Margaret Laurena Kemp and Northwestern University Professor Roger Ellis, and featuring a cast from both universities, the show explored the characters and themes of Jacqueline Goldfinger’s play CLICK and the resulting performance evolved into [re: CLICK]. Now, after six months of development with American Music Theatre Project (AMTP), Northwestern’s incubator of new work, [re: CLICK] returns on a new reimagined platform.
The performance will be available for the month of June and accessible through AMTP’s website.
Ellis commented on this new era of performance and presentation.
“Welcome to The Platform – part time capsule, part art installation, part speculative fiction, [re: CLICK] is an experiment in form and collaboration. During this era of raised global consciousness, we complicate the temporal and spatial stability of traditional theatre practice. Our process transposes embodied explorations of Goldfinger’s text into an app-based immersive experience. Thespis steps back into the chorus as each contributing artist amplifies each other’s voices through their contributions to the work. The experience is one of dialogue across difference.”
The website experience is designed by Northwestern MFA graduate Jackie Fox, and the performance features students from UC Davis and Northwestern University and sound scores by four unique composers – Richard Chowenhill (B.A., music, ’10), Kory Reeder, Bahar Royee, and Ramteen Sazegari (B.A., music and English literature, ’07).
Please note that the performance contains strong language and emotionally charged material around the topics of sexual assault, sexual violence and suicidal ideation. The experience is free and open to all, though donations to WOAR – Philadelphia Center Against Sexual Violence are highly encouraged.
[re: CLICK] was originally presented by the UC Davis Department of Theatre and Dance and AMTP at Northwestern University in December 2020. Goldfinger was the fall 2020 Granada Artist-in-Residence at the time of the production.
Read more about this performance here.
Ongoing Exhibitions
'Feathered Relations' at C. N. Gorman
Marwin Begaye’s exhibit, Feathered Relations, explores sacred Indigenous beliefs around birds and their link to nature. His prints and paintings place a variety of birds in the foreground, depicting them naturally, but also existing on a higher plane. This online exhibition is based on his show that was at the C.N. Gorman Museum when the pandemic forced its closure.
In the solo exhibition, Marwin Begaye (Diné) includes prints, wood blocks, and multi-media works to create a conceptual homage to birds. For the artist, birds are about our relationships – to nature, to one another, to culture.
Read more about the exhibition here.
Print above: Waiting for Spring, 2018. Monotype on paper, 30 x 22 in
UC Davis Art Returning Live
The Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art reopened June 3 with a diverse roster of new exhibitions that will be on view through Nov. 12, 2021. Gallery capacity is limited to keep visitors and staff safe. Visit manettishrem.org to reserve free timed tickets and learn more about the new season.
Art. In. Action at the Barn Gallery
The current exhibition Art. In. Action at the Barn Gallery in Woodland features Project: Hope and Black Lives Matter, two books compiled in a collaboration of 43 UC Davis students in Design 15: Form and Color.
Art. In. Action honors Black women heroes, civil rights leaders, and women who have been killed by police. Presented in the form of two books Project: Hope, and Black Lives Matter, give insight as to how students can take action through art. They visually communicate their hopes for the future and amplify Black stories as well as bring the Black Lives Matter movement to the forefront.
The exhibition of both UC Davis-created books is on view through June 19, closing with a Juneteenth freedom celebration that day from 12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Read more about this project in the Arts Blog here.
Juneteenth celebration Saturday
YoloArts, in collaboration with Women in Leadership, Davis (WiLD), will host a Celebration of Freedom and closing reception of the Art. In. Action exhibit on Saturday, June 19, 12:30-3:30 p.m. at the Gibson House grounds in Woodland. (See sidebar)
The family-friendly event will feature music by DJ Vallas, light refreshments, and art activities including Juneteenth sidewalk chalk drawing and collage creations for all ages. The outdoor gathering will also include a short program with WiLD co-founder Dzokerayi Minya, Sarah Zimmerman, WiLD member, and spoken word presentations by WiLD members and mentees.
The Saturday afternoon happening offers the last chance to view the powerful exhibit honoring African American women heroes, civil rights leaders, and victims of police brutality through the art work of Hisani Stenson, Stephanie Thayer, Kate Mellon Anibaba, Seana Burke, Danielle Fodor, Sasha Santer Hill, Nelson Loskamp, Anya McCann, Aislinn Murray, Jennifer Nachmanoff, Gilda Posada, Ruth Santer, and Eden Sunday.
The Art. In. Action exhibition artwork can also be viewed online here.
Read more about the exhibition here.
Learn more about WiLD here.
Coming up
Senior soprano recital livestreamed next Friday
UC Davis Music student Huiyin Lei will give her senior recital on Friday, June 25 at 8 p.m. The soprano performance will be live streamed via YouTube.
Click here to watch the recital live.
Davis jazz night
Join the New Harmony Jazz Band on Friday, June 25 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. for a night of live jazz amongst the wonderful art at John Natsoulas Gallery. Admission is free.
Find more details here.
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Art Social Media of the Week
See this tweet about Crocker's Tiffany exhibit.
