School of Fine Arts

Music professor inducted into the National Band Association Hall of Fame

Robert Foster, professor of music and assistant chair of the department of music and dance in KU’s School of Fine Arts, will be inducted into the National Band Association (NBA) Hall of Fame Feb. 4 at Troy State University in Troy, Ala.  

Foster, a graduate of the University of Texas, taught at O. Henry Jr. High School in Austin and at Lamar Senior High School in Houston following graduation. He then joined the University of Florida as an assistant band director and trumpet teacher before coming to KU in 1971 as director of bands.  At KU, Foster has served on KU’s faculty for 35 years. He was director of bands for 31 years, conducting the KU Symphonic Band/Wind Ensemble and the KU Marching Band.  In 1971 he established the first KU Jazz Ensemble and served as its first director.

Foster is vice president of the John Philip Sousa Foundation and is the former president of the National Band Association, the Southwest Division of the College Band Directors National Association and the Big 12 Conference Band Directors Association. He served as chairman of the North American Band Directors Coordinating Committee and is also the conductor and director of the Lawrence City Band. Foster also stays busy as an active guest conductor and adjudicator in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Japan, Singapore and locations in Europe.

“I am most appreciative of this incredible honor,” said Professor Foster. “While this is very humbling personally, I believe that it is also recognition of outstanding accomplishments of the many students and others associated with the band program at the University of Kansas. I have been very fortunate and blessed to be surrounded by so many people whose good work and support have been such an important part of my life.”

To be nominated for induction into the hall, directors must be at least 65 years old and must have created a national reputation for themselves as a band conductor.  Nominees must have also made a national impact on the American band movement.  The Board of Electors of the National Band Association makes the final selection.

Past inductees into the Hall of Fame Distinguished Conductors include John Philip Sousa, the world-famous bandmaster; Edwin Franko Goldman, conductor of the Goldman Band in New York City; Frank Simon, famous cornet virtuoso, conductor and soloist; Henry Fillmore, famous band leader/composer; Merle Evans, conductor of the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus Band; Col. Arnald Gabriel, ret. Conductor, U.S. Air Force Band; Col. John R. Bourgeois, ret. U. S. Marine Band; and many more. 

For more information about the induction of Professor Foster into the National Band Association Hall of Fame, please contact the KU Department of Music and Dance in the School of Fine Arts at 785-864-3436.

KU professor participates in techno-science art exhibit

The Salina Art Center will feature Elissa Armstrong, KU assistant professor of ceramics, in “Crossing Over: Contemporary Ceramic Sculpture and Techno-Science,” an exhibition that examines techno-science themes through ceramic sculpture. The exhibition runs from Feb. 18 to May 14. 

The exhibit, curated by Glen Brown, associate professor of art history at Kansas State University, will begin with an opening reception 5:30-7:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 17. At 6 p.m., Brown and several participating artists, including Armstrong, will briefly discuss the works in the exhibit. In addition, the group will discuss relationships among art, science and philosophy in a ceramics symposium from 10 a.m. to noon, Saturday, Feb. 18,   

The “Crossing Over” exhibit gives visitors the ability to view more than 20 works by nine artists who will explore such subjects as genetics, 3-D modeling and artificial intelligence. The participating artists include Armstrong; University of Missouri Professor David East; Canadian artist Neil Forrest; Cranbook Academy of Art ceramics instructor Tony Hepburn; Michigan artist Sadashi Inuzuka; Judy Moonelis; Adelaide Paul; a Chicago Art Institute ceramics instructor, Katherine Ross; and Ross’s colleague, Xavier Toubes. 

“Nine contemporary artists will use ceramic sculpture to cross boundaries between art, science and technology,” said Armstrong.  “Describing both a process in genetics and the exhibit’s theme, ‘Crossing Over’ investigates current techno-science topics ranging from genetic engineering and hybrids to mapping of personalities in the structure of DNA.”

All events take place at the Salina Art Center, 242 S. Santa Fe in Salina, Kan., and all are free and open to the public.  Admission to the gallery is also free; gallery hours are noon-5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, and 1-5 p.m Sunday. 

For more information about Professor Armstrong’s participation in “Crossing Over,” please contact the School of Fine Arts’ department of design at 785-864-4401.

KU School of Fine Arts MFA Thesis
Exhibition Schedule for 2006

KU Art and Design Gallery
Gallery Hours:
Sunday, 1-4:30 p.m.
Monday-Wednesday, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Thursday, 8:30 a.m.-9 p.m.
Friday, 8:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
Closed: Friday afternoons, Saturdays, holidays and summers

Visit the School of Fine Arts website for more information.