The UConn Department of Digital Media & Design is thrilled to announce that its 2020 Senior Exhibitions will open online on Monday, April 27, 2020. These virtual group exhibitions feature the work of senior BFA students from the Storrs campus and senior BFA and select BA students from the Stamford campus. These online exhibitions replace the previously scheduled exhibitions in the Jorgensen Gallery of theJorgensen Center for the Performing Artsand theUConn Stamford Art Gallerywhich were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
These exciting exhibitions feature a wide variety of digital projects created by seniors graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, and a few select Bachelor of Arts, in Digital Media & Design. Artworks range from 2D and 3D animations to interactive web and game projects that tell unique stories that explore many themes. To view the galleries, visit:http://dmd.uconn.edu/bfashow.
In addition, the public is invited to watch the completed films and animations in an online screening Premiere via YouTube at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 8th, which will also serve as a celebration and virtual reception.http://youtube.com/uconndmd.
Exhibiting artists, Storrs campus:Shay Albert (Woodstock, Conn.),Sign, Hand-drawn 2D animation; Owen Boyle (Branford, Conn.),Out of Left Field, 3D animation; Emily Cesarini (Greenwich, Conn.),Guidance,3D game; Shawn Chen (Litchfield, Conn.), Internship video; Emma Rose Cooper (Waterbury, Conn.),Home, Interactive 3D environment; Jeffrey Dobbs (New Haven, Conn.),Synth-Sense, 3D animation; Eric Fritz (Millersville, Md.),Stop Talking To Me, Hand-drawn 2D animation; Allie Marsh (Old Lyme, Conn.),Why We Fly, Film; Tal Modiano (Woodbridge, Conn.),Wade/Cull Music Video, 2D animation; Cynthia Reinert (Berlin, Conn.),Wonder, Interactive web art; Morgan Rossi (Glastonbury, Conn.),Waddle We Do?, Installation with 3D animation; Courtney Senior (New Milford, Conn.) & Emily Touch (Cromwell, Conn.),Staraway,Game; Sarah Shattuck (Stamford, Conn.),MIACRO, 2D animation; Sheryl Wang (Ellington, Conn.),A Little Too Real,Animated web comic; Justin Woods (Thornwood, N.Y.),Perfect Fit, 3D Animation
Exhibiting artists, Stamford campus:James Campbell-Gibson (Capetown, South Africa),One a Day,Website and animation; Anthony Cavuoto (New Milford, Conn.),The New Nintendo, Video and brand book; Nolan Didio (Monroe, Conn.),Stranded, 3D animation; Jeremy Gonzalez (Stamford, Conn.),Conflict Within, 2D animation; Julian Kinney (New Rochelle, N.Y.),Full Metal Cactus, 2D animation; Tyrrell Serrano (Bridgeport, Conn.),Desert Dash and Tilt:Maze, Mobile games; Ryan Story (Stamford, Conn.),Untitled, 2D and 3D animation; Linh Tran (Bridgeport, Conn.), “Breaking the Glass Ceiling: How the Mad Women Changed the Face of the Ad Industry,” Poster; Andrew Zhou (Trumbull, Conn.),Umbra, Interactive narrative; James Zilvitis Jr. (Winsted, Conn.),HMS Triton Six Gun Frigate, 3D model
The University of Connecticut’s Department of Digital Media & Designprovides an innovative and transformative experience to educate students in animation, gaming, web and interactive media design, digital media business strategies, film/video production, and the digital humanities.
The University of Connecticut’s School of Fine Artsbalances artistic and cultural legacies with the innovative approaches and techniques of contemporary art. In so doing, the School of Fine Arts serves students at the University of Connecticut in both their educational and their professional development. The outstanding faculty from the four academic departments are committed to providing rigorous professional education and all offer undergraduate and graduate degrees. Our academic programs are supported by specialized and uniquely focused showcases, stages, exhibition space and forums which include the Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts, William Benton Museum of Art, Contemporary Art Galleries, Connecticut Repertory Theatre and von der Mehden Recital Hall.
Photographer Elizabeth Ellenwood was working at a photo lab in Boston making prints when she decided it was time to further explore her own artistic endeavors.
“I also had an interest in teaching. I wanted to find a place that would give me the opportunity to try out teaching and see if that’s something that I wanted to continue working on,” she says about enrolling in the MFA program in Studio Art three years ago. “While I enjoyed being in the dark room, I was making prints for other people. I just really wanted more time to focus on my own artwork.”
Ellenwood’s exploration of her own photography and art can be seen inthe unique 2020 edition of the annual Master of Fine Arts Thesis Exhibition at The William Benton Museum of Art, which is posted on the museum’s website due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The online exhibition in Studio Art is titled “Tideland” and in addition to Ellenwood includes the works of painter and sculptor Olivia Baldwin, multimedia artist Shadia Heenan Nilforoush, and artist and printmaker Chad Uehlein. The Digital Media & Design online exhibit is titled “Square One” and includes the works of Jonathan Ampiaw, Karin Ching, Stefan Lopuszanski, Laurel Pehmoeller, and Jasmine Rajavadee.
Faculty in the University of Connecticut’s Digital Media and Design program have come together to collaborate on the Digital Experience (DX) Lab.
The DX Lab is led by Joel Salisbury, director of research and user experience design, Michael Vertefeuille, director of operations and emerging technology and Brian Daley, director of infrastructure and app development.
The lab’s work covers a wide range of projects involving digital experiences and interaction, Vertefeuille explained.
“Quite simply, we love to build really cool stuff. Our projects have run the gamut. We work with electronics, connecting it to interesting digital experiences, large-scale databases that serve the non-profit sector, and sometimes we just build things to see if they’ll work,” Vertefeuille said.
UConn Gaming Club (UCGC) manages to stay connected with its 1,200 members and host online events despite students remaining at home for the rest of the semester.
According to UCGC president, Digital Media & Design major Devyn Lowry (BA ’20), the club has hosted online community nights in an effort to keep members active and connected with each other. In the past two weeks, Lowry has hosted movie nights over the live streaming software Kast and plans to have a game night where members play various Jackbox party games.