muse magazine A Message from the Dean is produced by the Office of the Dean he College of Fine Arts celebrates its role as a vital part College of Fine Arts Tof the University of Florida, the foundation for The Gator University of Florida Nation. In the pages ahead you will appreciate the internation- editor al scope of the fine arts faculty and students who extend the Sarah McNeill boundaries of visual and performing arts beyond our state, region and nation. The College of Fine Arts aims to change design the world, one student at a time. University of Florida University Relations As our economic and political systems become increasingly global, we realize that under- standing the soul of other cultures is as important as understanding their customs, politics designers and economy. The arts help us recognize the value of those whose worldviews are different Sharon LaFragola Eyman Myda Iamiceli than our own. This past summer audiences in Singapore, Austria and Russia applauded UF Nancy Schreck student performers, and faculty members have expanded their studios, classrooms and re- Paul Messal search to Italy, France, Greece, Japan, China, Germany, Korea, Senegal, Kenya and Tanzania. photography The arts play a key role in finding new ways to solve complex problems as well as enhance Ray Carson and Kristen Bartlett, cultural understanding. Through our centers and institutes, we collaborate with faculty in UF News Bureau medicine, engineering, urban design and planning, and link with colleagues around the world. David Johnston, Interdisciplinary centers in World Arts, Digital Worlds, Arts in Healthcare Research and Educa- Johnston Photography tion, and Arts in Public Policy ensure that our students have opportunities to gain experience Price Johnston using their art as a force for change. The College News section features projects developed contributing writers through productive partnerships and collaborations. Michael Blachly This fall we celebrate our largest class of Ph.D. students in Music and in Art History. We also Rocco Castoro Sunni Witmer have welcomed new and returning UF undergraduate students to one of the largest classes Victoria Rovine in UF history. We have reached out to comfort and embrace fine arts students from the Gulf Coast who are rebuilding their lives and continuing their studies after the disaster of printing Hurricane Katrina. Storter-Childs Printing Company Associate Professor Robert Mueller, who led a study abroad trip to Skopelos, Greece this College of Fine Arts summer, challenged participants with a quote, “A vision without action is a dream. An action 101 Fine Arts Building A without vision is merely passing the time. But vision with action will change the world.” PO Box 115800 Gainesville, FL 32611-5800 The College of Fine Arts educates young people to use their creativity to change the world. Tel: (352) 392-0207 We hope you will join us in turning our vision into reality. Fax: (352) 392-3802 www.arts.ufl.edu Barbara O. Korner Interim Dean about the cover College of Fine Arts This artwork titled “Across the Corpus University of Florida Callosum” by Sergio Vega, associate pro- fessor in the School of Art and Art History, is currently exhibited at the 51st Venice Biennale. The artist says: “It is the duality between the mastery of language (left side of the brain) and the representa- tion of color (right side of the brain)--the synchronic manifestation of language and visuality--what makes the parrot an allegory of the cerebral cortex ‘across the corpus callosum’.” + + + + + + contents Stringing Worlds Together 4 Bringing African Art History 6 6 to the Present Making of a Dream 8 Jacaré Brazil 10 UFPA Brings the World 12 6 to Gainesville College News 14 Faculty News 16 Spring Commencement 22 Alumni News 24 Development 26 Honor Roll 28 Events Calendar 30 12 8 24 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + Nuevo Mundo String Quartet Nuevo Mundo String Quartet tringing Worlds Together ith only four bows, two violins, a viola “The idea is to get kids to learn music so Wand a cello, UF’s Nuevo Mundo String they can have a career in music,” Diaz says. Quartet resonates with the rich culture and “Through music – they improve the social character of Latin America. environment of the community.” The quartet is comprised of cellist Circe While many countries have youth orches- Diaz, violist Bosco Cãrdenas, violinist Luiz tras, Latin America takes special pride in its Fernandez and violinist Orlando Gomez. The orchestral programs. It is a path to education four graduate students in the School of Music and opportunity that many in the region would have come to UF to share and refine their otherwise not have. craft. Cãrdenas attended college in Georgia “I joined the National Youth Orchestra when for his undergraduate studies in music. The I was 15,” Gomez says. “I was making more other three members were recruited from the money than my family.” New World School of the Arts (NWSA), where they completed undergraduate studies. NWSA Janna Lower, associate professor of violin, en- is a Miami-based conservatory for visual and visions the group as a vehicle for the School performing arts made possible through the of Music to field the best talent from around collaboration of UF, Miami-Dade County Public the globe. She coaches the quartet’s violinists Schools and Miami Dade College. Reaching and is delighted to have committed students out to the international community is key to representing UF. “The best ambassadors are developing a culturally diverse and worldly performing musicians who represent us,” student body. “Music is a form of communica- Lower says. tion,” Fernandez says. “I think that the most Kenneth Martinson, assistant professor important thing in life is communication.” of viola, will also be closely coaching the The School of Music selected these students quartet. Although the students will play a wide for their remarkable talent, dedication and repertoire of composers, they will focus on cultural heritage. The members of the quartet Latin American classical music. have all participated in the National Youth “Here in the United States we have to play Orchestra for their respective countries. Diaz, with a lot of flash to get our audiences S Fernandez and Gomez hail from Venezuela excited,” Martinson says. “The audience situ- while Cãrdenas is originally from Chile. They ation is somewhat similar in South America. said they wish to use their experiences play- The string playing there is very fiery.” ing classical music in a developing nation to reach out to others in similar situations. Aside from their quartet duties, the string The Nuevo Mundo String Quartet poses for their Nuevo Mundo String Quartet first publicity photograph at the University of Florida. tringing Worlds Together players are active in the University Symphony Orchestra, other outside functions and are responsible for a recital at the end of their graduate studies. “Our life is based on music,” Fernandez says. “Rehearsing orchestra every day for three or four hours, concerts, sometimes you have to teach — it is a complete life.” The faculty at the School of Music hopes to maximize the quartet’s exposure and build an international community of musicians with dif- ferent styles and abilities. John Duff, director of the School of Music, says that over the last several years there has been an increased interest in establishing closer ties between the College of Fine Arts and NWSA. He added that Donald McGlothlin, former dean of fine arts, was instrumental in building the close ties between NWSA and UF. “Regardless of where we are recruiting and for what programs we are recruiting, we are trying to increase our diversity,” Duff says. “The University of Florida is an international campus and we want the School of Music to reflect that internationality and diversity.” The Nuevo Mundo String Quartet is one of the first steps by the School of Music to trans- form the music program into a microcosm of the entire UF student body. If the talent and diligence offered by this quartet is an indication of what’s to come, the rewards will continue for many years. — R. Castoro Ray Carson, UF News Bureau + + + + + + + Bringing African Art History frica — a hotbed of creativity — is famous for the energy and Adiversity of its visual arts. From masks and sculpture to photog- raphy, dance and video, the continent draws increased attention in the international art world. The College of Fine Arts reflects Africa’s centrality to the study of world art in the many opportunities for students interested in Africa and its cultures. A proverb from the Igbo culture of Nigeria says, “You can’t watch a masquer- ade while standing still.” Students and faculty at the College of Fine Arts, by viewing Africa and its diverse arts from many angles, have created a vibrant program that shows no signs of standing still. From its base in the School of Art and Art History, African art history draws on and contributes to resources throughout the college and beyond. Stu- dents of African art history participate in the courses and activities of the Center for African Studies and the Center for World Arts. These students are also active in programs at the Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, where both Director Rebecca Nagy and Susan Cooksey, associate curator of African art (who earned her bachelor’s and master’s from UF’s School of Art and Art History) are African art historians. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++