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School of Fine Arts News

Provost's office features faculty art
Department of Art professor awarded fabulous fellowship
Art alumna named Outstanding Teacher of the Year

Provost's office features faculty art

Those who visit KU's Office of the Provost in room 250 of Strong Hall will be treated to a dynamic display of art by faculty in the KU department of art.

When Richard Lariviere, KU executive vice chancellor and provost, and Liliana Merubia, senior assistant to the provost, came to Lawrence from the University of Texas at Austin, they continued their Texas tradition of including art in Lariviere's office. Merubia attended the department of art faculty exhibit at the KU Art and Design Gallery in February and contacted faculty participating in the show. Merubia also visited faculty studios and worked closely with Dawn Marie Guernsey, department chair, to secure works for the office.

Professor Guernsey is especially grateful to Merubia for her efforts in pulling the exhibit together.

"Our new provost is a great supporter of visual art, and this exhibition is an indication of Lariviere's confidence in KU's excellent art program." Guernsey said, "The newly renovated provost's office is heavily visited, and artwork shown there will find a wide audience. This is an opportunity for our artists to have their work seen, and an opportunity for the KU administration to showcase the exceptional work of its nationally recognized art faculty." Read more.

Department of Art professor awarded fabulous fellowship

Northwood University in Midland, Mich., awarded a KU professor with a coveted Alden B. Dow Creativity Fellowship.

Matthew Burke, KU assistant professor of art (sculpture), will be among the chosen fellows who will focus on their own creative projects at this working retreat. Burke's residency will take place June 11 through Aug. 17, where he will work on his project Armature Sculpture, In Defense of the Body.

"During my residency I will continue to construct laminated wood domes and shields that offer a sense of permanence while at the same time remaining light and delicate," Burke said. "The inconsistency between these two concepts is central to my work and for me it speaks to the complexity that is the human experience."

Alden B. Dow Creativity Fellowships at Northwood are named for the late Midland architect Alden B. Dow, who was Michigan's architect laureate and a key figure in the founding of Northwood. This year marks the 29th class of fellows to the Midland campus.

Art alumna named Outstanding Teacher of the Year

The University of Mississippi recently recognized KU art graduate Sheri Fleck Rieth, f'70, with the Liberal Arts Outstanding Teacher of the Year Award.

Nominations for the award were accepted from students, faculty, staff and alumni and criteria included excellence of class instruction, intellectual stimulation of students and concern for students' welfare.

Rieth has worked at the University of Mississippi since 1999. She is currently an associate professor of art, where she teaches printmaking, bookmaking and drawing. Rieth has received a visual arts fellowship from the Mississippi Arts Commission and was named chairperson of the art department's gallery program. She is also adviser for the Student Art Association.

Rieth, a Kansas native, earned a bachelor's in drawing and painting from KU and master's in studio art from the Memphis College of Art. Her work includes a wide variety of printmaking techniques, drawing, painting and bookmaking. She has shown her work in local, national and international exhibitions.

Rieth is a member of the Southern Graphic Council, Southeastern College Art Conference and College Art Association. She has also served on the State Board of the Tennessee Association of Crafts Artists.

Visit the School of Fine Arts Web site for more information.

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