Experiences
Accounts from and about Linehan Artist Scholars Summer Research and Study Award (SRSA) Activities
Each year, a select group of Artist Scholars receives Linehan support for in-depth professional study anywhere in the world. Scholars can receive up to $3000. Here’s a short overview of various research and study projects:
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Byanca Morales Cabrera – Visual Arts, print media, LAS’24
This summer, I had the opportunity of attending 3 workshop intensives at the Women’s Studio Workshop in Rosendale, New York, from July 18th – August 5th. My workshops ranged from Non-Toxic Electro Etching, Silk Screen printing, and bookmaking to Relief printing. I looked forward to learning a relatively new printmaking discipline like non-toxic electro etching, different to that of the traditional form of etching in printmaking, relying on toxic chemicals. In taking the workshop, a new aspect of accessible printmaking was presented to me, learning that I could prep my own etching plates without the need for facilities with specific air ventilation systems quite literally blew my mind. All my classes exposed me to new techniques and approaches I had never thought of exploring. I hadn’t thought I’d fall in love with Printed Artist books and all its intensive process, but now I look forward to every opportunity to put those skills into use. With these classes, I sought to combine both my Graphic Design and Print Media disciplines with what was taught and can say I was pleasantly surprised by how that improved and expanded my knowledge along with the bodies of work I produced through these workshops. I return from this summer study experience with a continued appreciation for educators/artist educators, and how much of an impact an educator can have on a person or group. Even within a class full of active artists an artist educator’s impact does not decrease. In the mission of sharing printmaking and design to students especially within the public education system, I plan to earn my Master of Arts in Teaching right after undergrad. I hope to not only be an artist in practice but an educator as well, just as I have been exposed to amazing educators that have taught me new skills. I hope to do so as well, whether it be in secondary or higher education.
Niya John – Theatre, design & production, LAS’24
Attending World Stage Design (WSD) 2022 in Calgary was an enthralling experience. Ten days surrounded by designers and technicians from all over the world was more educational and inspiring than one can imagine. For the first three days of the conference, I attended a workshop titled Training The Eye: Colour Palettes For Diverse Skin Colours. It was one of the things I was looking forward to the most. The entire idea of it was to show lighting designers how to use light to work with several different skin tones at once. It was done in collaboration with makeup artists and a costume designer. I found it very interesting not only for the content that was learned but also to see the makeup artist and costume designer work in real time. Usually, in theatre, most costume work is done before rehearsal, before tech, and the people that everyone is always waiting on are the lighting and sound designers. To see these other areas do live work the lighting designers usually do was super interesting. I also attended many panels on topics ranging from diversity in design, to ecologically sustainable theatre, to youth theatre to disability-friendly theatre.
There were also multiple performances held throughout the conference. One of my favorites was on the first night. It was called Formations and told the stories of important women in the world of geology and scenography. Besides being incredibly well-written and informational, it was lovely to watch. There was a specific scene where one actress’s dress lit up and changed colors as she spun around the stage. And at another point, a video was projected onto a piece of cloth that two actresses were moving around with. The occurrence of WSD coincided with CITT so I was able to attend events from that as well. One designer that I had been planning to meet was Dinesh Yadav, a lighting designer from India. Not only did we meet and talk, but we have had ongoing emails since the conference. He is also the President of the OISTAT (The International Organisation of Scenographers, Theatre Architects and Technicians) Lighting sub-division, which I hope to get more involved with. This experience was absolutely life-changing. Between the people I met, the things that I learned, and the opportunities that will come from it, I could not thank UMBC and the Linehan Artist Scholar Program more.