Student recipients of $5,000 in arts grants from Student Council continue to work on a handful of art projects which are slated for completion by the end of the academic year.
The projects represent a diverse cross-section of the arts, according to Student Arts Committee Chair Rebecca Menges.
The committee, created in 1999 by Council to facilitate artistic endeavors, initiated the painting of murals on red construction walls around Grounds and coordinated an arts reception for prospective students during Days on the Lawn in the spring.
The six projects receiving funding last semester were chosen from 18 proposals that had to meet certain requirements, such as being extracurricular in nature and unaffiliated with other student groups or organizations.
Those projects approved by the committee include a 20-minute black-and-white film, the installation of steel work tables in the courtyard of Campbell Hall, a multimedia sculpture, a public art display and the production of a Tennessee Williams play that was completed in December.
The accepted proposals intentionally were varied in scope and cost, Menges said.
"It was a struggle between funding a greater number of projects or fewer projects with greater complexity," she said.
The Independent Student Arts Project Fund was started last year with a seed grant from Vice President for Student Affairs Pat Lampkin. Though funding has not yet been located for the current semester, the committee is looking to secure Student Council as an annual source of grant money, Menges said.
Many of the applicants would have been unable to accomplish their designs had the fund not existed.
Fourth-year College student Jarrett Lee Conaway is a media studies major whose proposal for a film about the Albemarle/Charlottesville rescue squad was funded by the committee.
Though other sources of funding exist for independent films and other artistic projects, Conaway said they can be hard to find, contain numerous restrictions and can be prohibitively competitive.
"There's always money out there if you really want to look for it," he said, "though I wouldn't have been able to do this otherwise."
Conaway said the $1,500 from the committee will supplement $500 from other sources and enable him to produce a film that eventually students will be able to view at Newcomb Theatre. Though he initially applied for twice the amount he was given, Conaway received the most money for any individual submission. As a result, he said he hopes to create a successful project in order to demonstrate the benefit of having such resources available for future students.
"A lot hinges on this project," Conaway said.
Read More
Will Ryan’s resignation impact the University’s reaccreditation?
By Leigh Bailey | YesterdayDr. Janea Johnson, public relations and data specialist at SACSCOC, said in a written statement to The Cavalier Daily July 28 that “a change in leadership does not automatically become a compliance concern.”
United Healthcare takes over as student health insurance provider
By Lauren Seeliger | 2 days agoAll University students are required to be medically insured, but the University student plan is only required for students who do not have other, valid health insurance.
University community leaders gather at the Rotunda to speak about interim President Mahoney
By Xander Tilock | 2 days agoEach speaker addressed concerns over a lack of input from students, faculty, staff and community members in the circumstances which led to former University President Jim Ryan’s resignation and the decision-making process since then.
