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Arts News

December 12, 2023
Art and History of Consciousness Professor Sir Isaac Julien honored in 2023 ArtReview’s Power 100 list
ArtReview, one of the world’s leading contemporary art magazines, has named University of California, Santa Cruz Arts and Humanities Professor Sir Isaac Julien as the fifth most influential artist in its ArtReview Power 100 list, and prominently mentioned UCSC Anthropology Professor Anna Tsing and Professor Emerita in the History of consciousness and Feminist Studies departments Donna Haraway.
November 29, 2023
Funding opportunities to develop UC Santa Cruz innovations
The Innovation & Business Engagement Hub is now accepting applications for two funding opportunities to advance innovations being developed at UC Santa Cruz.
November 20, 2023
Life Beyond the Redwoods: Maxwell Ward follows his dreams one year after UCSC graduation
One year after graduating from UCSC, Maxwell Ward (Cowell ’22, history of art and visual culture and anthropology) is pursuing a Ph.D. in anthropology with a focus on archaeology from McGill University in Quebec and is an editor at Collective Research in Anthropology Journal.
November 09, 2023
Giving Day 2023 breaks records
Giving Day, UC Santa Cruz’s biggest fundraising event of the year, wraps up on a high note.
November 07, 2023
UC Santa Cruz students win three categories at Orange County Sustainability Decathlon
An interdisciplinary team of UC Santa Cruz students, many from the Rachel Carson College Sustainability Minor program, designed and built EcoHus, an innovative, affordable, net-zero house. The EcoHus team was selected to receive a $100,000 grant to participate in the 2023 Orange County Sustainability Decathlon (OCSD) held on Oct. 5-15, where they won first place in three categories, and secured second and third place in other categories.
November 01, 2023
Emeritus Rex: Tackling the role of King Lear by Professor Emeritus Paul Whitworth
Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Theatre, Paul Whitworth discusses Shakespeare’s ‘retirement’ play, King Lear. Whitworth asks: what happens when you decide to step down and face the last years of your life?
November 01, 2023
Seeing “One Too Many Racist Musicals” is What Led Preston Choi to be a Playwright
Rebecca Wear, professor of Performance, Play and Design, will direct the student production of "You'll Get Used to It" at UC Santa Cruz on Nov. 3-12, 2023.
November 01, 2023
Irene Lusztig’s Film Richland Explores a Town Grappling with its Ties to the Atomic Bomb
Irene Lusztig's latest film, Richland, tells the story of the town of the same name. The film opened at Tribeca and at the prestigious International Documentary Festival Amsterdam, it was selected to be part of the program "Signed."
October 31, 2023
Slug Gaming looks to level up presence on campus
Slug Gaming, a student group for casual and competitive esports players, want to increase campus support for their players and foster a strong sense of community for gamers at UCSC.
October 30, 2023
Dean Celine Parreñas Shimizu Inducted into Stanford University Hall of Fame
Celine Parreñas Shimizu, Dean of the Arts and Distinguished Professor of Film and Digital Media was inducted into the Stanford University Multicultural Hall of Fame on October 20, 2023.
October 24, 2023
Sara Ruhl’s Eurydice is the perfect play for a college campus
In Sarah Ruhl’s play, Eurydice, coming to the UC Santa Cruz on November 10, the story is about the title character.
October 23, 2023
Creative Technologies, new online major in Arts Division, first of its kind on any UC campus
The Arts Division’s new Creative Technologies online major is the first of its kind on any UC campus.
October 06, 2023
Visualizing Abolition Studies certificate program launches this spring at UCSC
UCSC is set to launch its Visualizing Abolition Studies (VAST) certificate program this spring, helping undergraduates examine and question how society understands and responds to mass incarceration, detention, and policing in the United States and abroad.
September 29, 2023
Free Arivu concert, Festival of Monsters, and special exhibitions: celebrating National Arts & Humanities Month at UCSC
UCSC will celebrate National Arts & Humanities Month in October with an array of cultural and artistic happenings, including a free open-air concert by the massively popular Indian rapper Arivu on October 7. Another highlight will be the annual Festival of Monsters, which starts on Friday the 13th.
September 26, 2023
UC Santa Cruz welcomes new faculty to campus
UC Santa Cruz welcomes 54 new faculty members to campus who bring a wide array of expertise in research and creative scholarship that will open new areas of investigation and expression and expand existing areas of work.
September 18, 2023
UC Santa Cruz Computer Game Design program ranked top five in the nation by U.S. News and World Report
The Computer Game Design program at the University of California, Santa Cruz, was listed in the top five best game/simulation development programs in the nation according to rankings released today by U.S. News and World Report.
September 07, 2023
Student mural at Porter envisions a future without police
A mural by Irene Juarez-O’Connell, addressing community safety and policing, is now on display at the Porter Study Center at Porter College.
September 01, 2023
In Memoriam: Linda Burman-Hall (1947-2023)
The UC Santa Cruz Arts Division community was deeply saddened to hear that Professor Emerita Linda Burman-Hall, recently passed away very suddenly while travelling in Malaysia. She joined the UC Santa Cruz Music Department as a Lecturer in 1976, and has been a vital part of the community for the past 47 years.
August 31, 2023
Five UC Santa Cruz projects win California Climate Action Grant funding
Millions of dollars in new funding will support UC Santa Cruz and partners in tackling some of California's toughest climate change challenges through innovative research and community engagement.
August 15, 2023
UC Santa Cruz’s Institute of the Arts and Sciences presents West Coast Premiere of Maria Gaspar: Compositions
UC Santa Cruz’s Institute of the Arts and Sciences, is opening a new exhibition beginning on September 26, 2023 that goes through March 3, 2024. Entitled Maria Gaspar: Compositions, it is the first West Coast solo exhibition by the Chicago-based, Guggenheim-winning artist.
August 08, 2023
UC Santa Cruz welcomes vibrant and talented incoming class
The University of California, Santa Cruz is preparing to welcome more than 5,500 new Banana Slugs to campus this fall, reflecting its commitment to providing equitable access and a transformational experience.
July 25, 2023
Excellence in Teaching Awards announced
The Academic Senate’s Committee on Teaching in collaboration with Chancellor Larive and CP/EVC Kletzer celebrated UC Santa Cruz’s innovative and dedicated teachers with a gathering at the Cowell Provost House in early June.
June 28, 2023
UCSC’s Center for Coastal Climate Resilience awards over $4.6 million to support California coastal projects
The UCSC Center for Coastal Climate Resilience has awarded over $4.6 million in funding to 23 UC Santa Cruz research groups for pilot projects and implementation projects supporting efforts to fight climate change in coastal communities across California and beyond. Funds for these grant programs came from the California State Budget Act of 2022-23.
June 27, 2023
Q&A with John MacMillan, vice chancellor for research
After nearly two years as the interim Vice Chancellor for Research (VCR) for UC Santa Cruz, John MacMillan was appointed to the permanent VCR role on June 1, 2023, after a nationwide search. Here he discusses his vision for UC Santa Cruz and its research enterprise.
June 06, 2023
New exhibitions at the Institute of the Arts and Sciences bring innovative, socially engaged art to the Central Coast
Carolina Caycedo and David de Rozas: The Blessings of the Mystery and Sadie Barnette: Family Business, a multi-sited exhibition with the San José Museum of Art, will be on view at the Institute of the Arts and Sciences April 28 - September 3, 2023.
June 02, 2023
UC Santa Cruz announces recipients of Chancellor’s Innovation Impact Awards
The Chancellor’s Innovation Impact Awards celebrate the university’s talented faculty, researchers, staff, students, and community partners for their outstanding contributions to innovation and creativity.
May 17, 2023
Salmon documentary produced by UCSC team to air on KQED
‘Southern Range’ was directed by Soc Doc alumnus Kyle Baker and produced by the Seymour Center and the Fisheries Collaborative Program at UCSC.
May 16, 2023
Excellence in Action: Celebrating UCSC’s 2023 Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award Recipients
Now in its seventh year, the Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award welcomes its 2023 cohort.
May 11, 2023
Dickson Emeriti Professorships awarded to faculty in music, theater arts, and biology
Three UCSC faculty members—Kathy Foley, Edward Houghton, and Susan Strome—have been honored with Edward A. Dickson Emeritus Professorship Awards for the 2023–24 academic year.
April 18, 2023
Indirect cost recovery changes for fiscal year 2024
Attention Principal Investigators: UC Santa Cruz recently updated its federal Facilities and Administration (F&A) agreement approving indirect cost recovery rates for sponsored contracts and grants.
April 18, 2023
Two film and digital media faculty receive 2023 Guggenheim Fellowship Awards
Sharon Daniel and Anna Friz were among 171 artists, scholars, scientists and writers selected from nearly 2,500 applicants for the award.
April 04, 2023
April in Santa Cruz Music Festival goes beyond the norm
This year's April in Santa Cruz Contemporary Music Festival takes up forces of dedication and imagination featuring wide-ranging musicians. The festival opens on Thursday, April 13, 2023 and continues with performances on April 14, 17, 21 in the UC Santa Cruz Music Center Recital Hall, and closes on April 30th at The Lab in San Francisco. All live, in-person performances are free and open to the public.
April 03, 2023
Big Questions: Astronomer Father and Artist Daughter
An astrophysicist, musician, mentor, and inspiration, Bill Mathews died in September 2021. His daughter, Amey Mathews, began drawing portraits of him in his memory.
February 13, 2023
Arts Division to break ground on new state-of-the-art Social Documentation Lab
UC Santa Cruz’s Division of the Arts will soon begin construction of a world-class production and post-production facility in support of its Social Documentation (SocDoc) MFA program.
February 09, 2023
Bots and Broadway: Technology and theater go hand-in-hand for UCSC professor
Using AI-generated text to produce dialogue during a live performance may seem like a wild idea to some, but not to performance and new media professor Marianne Weems. Weems, co-founder and artistic director of New York-based multi-dimensional theater company The Builders Association, is used to pushing the envelope with her ground-breaking work at the intersection of technology, media, and theater arts.
February 03, 2023
Funding opportunity to develop university innovations
The Innovation & Business Engagement Hub is now accepting applications for its new Innovation Catalyst Grant; a proof-of-concept program focused on providing targeted gap funding, training, mentorship, and support to UC Santa Cruz researchers in order to help de-risk and/or validate the implementation and adoption potential of early-stage technology innovations.
February 03, 2023
UCSC receives NEH awards that will further research in anthropology and musicology
On January 10, the NEH announced $28.1 million in grants toward 204 humanities projects nationwide. Two of this year’s recipients are part of the Slug family themselves, and their new grants will help to further their research in both anthropology and musicology at UC Santa Cruz.
January 30, 2023
Disclosing foreign collaborations in research projects
In order to comply with evolving federal regulations related to disclosing foreign collaborations and other support, the Office of Research has updated Cayuse to include screening questions. These questions are meant to trigger information that needs to be disclosed on all applications and progress reports for projects with federal funding.
January 17, 2023
UC Santa Cruz’s Institute of the Arts and Sciences to open new, off campus galleries
The state-of-the-art facility will showcase the Institute of the Arts and Sciences’ groundbreaking exhibitions and programs, highlighting the work of major national and international artists working to address the most pressing issues of our day at the intersection of the arts and social justice.
January 12, 2023
Sensorium, a new project of UC Santa Cruz’s Center for the Study of the Force Majeure, to be an unprecedented experience of the world ocean
A new project in development by UC Santa Cruz’s Center for the Study of the Force Majeure will give the public a transformative opportunity to interact with the world’s ocean ecosystem in a fully immersive work of environmental art entitled Sensorium.