a2ru Congratulates the 2016 Emerging Creatives Student Challenge Grant Winners!

July 18, 2018

The following student project teams, having participated in and presented their project ideas at the a2ru 2016 Emerging Creatives Conference, RISE: Forging Resilient Communities, applied for and were awarded follow-up funding through the a2ru Student Challenge Grant Program. A description of each project is as follows:

What is Happening

• Kellie Walters, Sophomore, Industrial Design, Iowa State University
• Tiana Raimist-Carter, Sophomore, Public Relations, University of Alabama
• Brian Garcia, Senior Performance Art, University of Michigan,
• Sarah Braver, Sophomore, Art History, Johns Hopkins University
• Monika Borkovik, Sophomore, Creative Writing, Johns Hopkins University

What is Happening? serves as a platform for facilitating relevant conversation through community-driven place-based acts of art. Happenings will serve to connect individuals of diverse backgrounds and disciplines, unified by a purpose and a focused passion on each of our campuses.

In the mid 20th century United States, artists such as Allan Kaprow, Claes Oldenburg and Jim Dine wanted to transcend the restrictions of an artist’s canvas instead find art in everyday life. Happenings broke down the barriers put up by high art and professional artists and allowed the spectator to become an artist. Because of the communal spirit created by the early Happenings of the 1950’s, this style of art in the perfect platform to address issues that affect our communities today. Our Happenings will serve as social commentary on pressing problems and will inspire change around an issue relevant to that community on our campuses and beyond.

“Arts &” Initiative: Interdisciplinary Salons on a2ru Partner Campuses

• Anastasia Kopteva, Junior, Marketing/Dance/Creative Work, University of Houston
• Bailey Barrow, Junior, Studio Art/Graphic Design, University of Alabama Birmingham
• Willie Caldwell, MA, Arts Leadership, Virginia Tech
• Matthew DePaula, Senior, Music Composition/Digital Media, Louisiana State University
• Cima Khademi, Senior, Studio Art, University of Alabama Birmingham
• Tetyana Pyatovolenko, MFA Art, Pennsylvania State University

The real world is transdisciplinary. Current educational systems generally streamline education to where the arts are often neglected. As a team, we believe that not only are the arts important, but they are integral in solving the problems we face in society. The “Arts &” Initiative will be composed of several smaller initiatives, with the goal of creating lasting solutions to problems faced in our communities through transdisciplinary collaboration.

Community gatherings, termed “salons”, exploring identified themes (such as Arts & Medicine, Arts & Poverty, Arts & Education), and centering on arts integration will be created. These events are meant to elicit discussion of transdisciplinary fusion between members of the university and community through discussion, music, and other demonstrations. Through these dialogues, the “salon” will aid in generating teams of students and mentors to identify problems and opportunities specific to their communities. These teams can then implement “The Process”: a protocol where students will be put receive mentorship to create deliverables (such as tech apps, publications or medical devices) and programming at the collegiate level – providing students with access to networking opportunities and the idea of arts integration. Each group member will lead the initiatives at their respective schools.

Maps to Nowhere: Exploring PTSD in Performance

• Ligia Batista, Clinical Research Coordinator, Neuroscience Institute at Children’s Hospital, Colorado and MA Theatre,  University of Colorado Boulder
• Alia Goldfarb, MFA Theatre, University of Colorado Boulder
• Niki Tulk, PhD Theatre, University of Colorado Boulder

What is it like for a person living with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? This is the question being addressed by our project members, Based on autobiographical stories on non-combat related PTSD, Maps to Nowhere will use theatrical exploration to make scientific findings more accessible while also honoring and sharing the stories of people living with PTSD.

PTSD affects nearly 8% of people in the U.S.; the incidence of which is double the rate in women as compared to men. Maps to Nowhere is an exploration of what PTSD is and what it feels like, through the multiple lenses of women living with PTSD, researchers and medical providers. Developing the script through interviews, workshops, rehearsals, feedback and presentation over the next year, the preliminary theatrical work will be presented first to the community stakeholders and presented to the public in Spring 2017. There will also be a presentation of the developing work at the a2ru annual conference, ArtsRx, at the University of Colorado, Denver November 3-5, 2016.