Department of Art + Design and Department of Theatre and Dance

Liz Staruch, Associate Professor in West Chester University’s Department of Theatre and Dance, leaps into a new role at WCU this month when “A Thing Is Determined by Its Nature” opens in Knauer Gallery, Swope Music Building and Performing Arts Center at 817 South High Street. The exhibit runs until March 1.

Staruch’s “A Thing Is Determined by Its Nature” is a multi-sensory, collaborative work that blends dance for camera and art installation. The exhibit draws upon the artistic theories and practices of the Bauhaus, a German art school operational from 1919-1933, made famous for its approach to design. The work’s title comes from a quote from Walter Gropius, an architect and founder of the Bauhaus.

“The Bauhaus was founded on the principal that all arts – architecture, dance, music, theatre, visual – would eventually be brought together, the very definition of interdisciplinary as we now call it,” said Staruch. “This exhibit was inspired, in part, to honor the 100th anniversary of the Bauhaus, which we will celebrate this year.”

Department of Art + Design

The 2018-19 season continues with the opening of “Inside the Bug Jar” in the E.O. Bull Center’s Baker Gallery at 2 East Rosedale Avenue. The work will be on display until Feb. 22. The event is free and open to the public during gallery hours: Monday to Friday from 9 AM-4 PM and Saturday from 12-4 PM.

An artist and press reception will be held on Thursday, Feb. 7 from 4-7 PM.

“Inside the Bug Jar” is an exhibition that features the work of a diverse collection of West Chester’s Studio Art Alumni. Paintings, ceramics, porcelain work, and photography are all on display. It is inspired by the poem of the same title, written by Nicholas Burns ‘15, a co-curator and participating artist.

Daria Nikitina and Heather Wholey

National Geographic is funding two WCU faculty members who are studying the impact of sea levels rising in the Delaware Bay. Geologist Daria Nikitina and anthropologist/archeologist Heather Wholey are studying what the area can tell us about prehistoric peoples and climate change, and their research has been augmented with a two-year, $30,000 National Geographic Explorers Grant.

Nikitina and Wholey took students to Delaware’s Milford Neck Wildlife Area last year to assess the archeological and ecological impacts of rising sea levels. Under the National Geographic grant, they will be able to explore additional sites.

[uam_ad id=”80503″]

.

[uam_ad id=”80502″]