Noelle Barrus, Author at BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications

3 AdLab Projects Win National and International Awards from Three Major Organizations

Noelle Barrus — Tue, 15 Jun 2021 22:01:06 +0000

Students and mentors from BYU’s AdLab won awards from the international ANDYS and Clios and national ADDYs This year, students from the BYU AdLab won dozens of awards from three prestigious award organizations — the ANDYs, the Clios and the ADDYs. “Considering the difficult and unique year we have all experienced with COVID-19 and the associated challenges of producing great advertising, we have had a remarkable showing in awards competitions,” professor Jeff Sheets said. “The judges commented how the student work was exceptional. They said they have never seen such great thinking and powerful executions from student categories in other judging they have done.” 2021 ANDYS Awards Winners The North Face – Return CocaCola – Infinity Bose – Dreams Sparknotes- Summarized Verizon – We All Call Home 16 Shortlisted Entries 2020-2021 Clios Awards 7 top winners: Gold Student Film – LA Times Silver Student Innovation – Handimojis Bronze Student Film Craft Copywriting – NIVEA Bronze Student Film Craft Editing – LA Times Bronze Student Film Craft Editing – EJI Bronze Student Digital/Mobile – Handimojis Bronze Student Social Media – Devacurl Clios 2020 Shortlist (2 years of work, announced in 2021) AAF ADDY Awards The American Advertising Federation (AAF) ADDYs are the largest national competition with over 30,000 entries. It is a three-stage competition, with a Utah set of winners, a regional/district set of winners and a national competition. 2021 AAF District Best of Show L’Oreal – Made of Gold Gold District Winners: American Girl – More Than a Doll L’Oreal – Made of Gold L’Oreal – Made of Gold Silver District Winners: Roomba – Less Dirt, More Zen American Girl – More Than a Doll Soundcloud – Create Puma – Stand BYU Track & Field L’Oreal – Made of Gold AAF Utah Best of Show: Ralph Lauren – Made To Be Loved Gold Heinz – Makes the Meal London Underground – Bridge the Gap Sparknotes – Summarized Medela – Modern-day Madonna BYU Track & Field Barnes and Noble – Browse On Hidden Valley Ranch – Hits the Spot Barnes and Noble – Browse On Banza – Same But Different Ralph Lauren – Made To Be Loved Silver Roomba – Less Dirt, More Zen Teen Vogue – Hey Sis Sparknotes – Lord of the Flies Sparknotes – Summarized La Croix – Performance Art Happy Socks – Get With Your Feet American Girl – More Than a Doll Adidas – Hope Continues Black Diamond – I Am This Mountain L’Oreal – Made of Gold WHO – 20 seconds Banza – Same But Different Simply Almond Milk – Happy Tears L’Oreal – Made of Gold American Girl – More Than a Doll Puma – Stand Lactaid – Feast Fearlessly L’Oreal – Made of Gold See Us Soundcloud – Create Ralph Lauren – Made To Be Loved Little Caesars – Hot ‘n Thready Black Diamond – I Am This Mountain The North Face – Return Google Nest – Project Euphonia American Girl – More Than a Doll Puma – Stand Ralph Lauren – Made To Be Loved

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Art Department Awards Night Presents Dozens of Awards to Exceptional Students

Noelle Barrus — Fri, 30 Apr 2021 15:42:26 +0000

The BYU Art Department announced student recipients of scholarships and awards on April 8 During the annual art awards night this Winter Semester 2021, students received recognition for their hard work from the year. Lauren Allen, a junior in the BA arts administration track, received one of the Talent Award scholarships as well as an Olena and George K Lewis scholarship. “Studying in the art department has been amazing. The teachers genuinely care for each student and want us to succeed,” said Allen. “I’ve truly loved every minute of studying here, and I’m so excited to continue to learn and grow.” Award-winning student artwork can be viewed online. ART SCHOLARSHIP AND AWARDS Talent Award Scholarships Oleanne Aanderud – Lauren Allen – Samantha Atzbach – Micalea Barlow Nicole Brooks – Tess Cowley – Katelyn Field – Madison Gallini – Samira Herber Boman Johnson – Kathy Johnson – Carolyn Koo – Hannah Landeen – Eleanor Larson Aïsha Lehmann – Hannah Mason – Caroline McCann – Faith Merrill – Ally Ordyna Soren Patchell – Kayleigh Ross – Winter Starr – Sarah Stoddard – Sage Stoker Grace White – Amber Wilkin – Rocio Vasquez – Malachi Wilson Roman Andrus Printmaking Endowed Scholarship Nicole Brooks Cory Nathan Belleau Endowed Scholarship Carolyn Koo – Aïsha Lehmann – Grace White Betty M. & Paul J. Boshard Fine Arts Scholarship Katelyn Field – Samira Herber – Carolyn Koo – Rocio Vasquez Martha F. Jensen Endowed Visual Arts Talent Scholarship Isabelle Ashton – Micaela Barlow – Megan Gee – Harper Graham – Boman Johnson Ally Ordyna – Esther Sanford – Ella Saxton – Hannah Smith – Asia Whitaker Lavieve Huish Earl Scholarship Samira Herber Demery Creative Arts Award Rocio Vasquez Olena K. Lewis & George K. Lewis Endowed Scholarship Lauren Allen – Isabelle Ashton – Samantha Atzbach – Ashley Combs – Tess Cowley Katelyn Field – Madison Gallini – Megan Gee – Eleanor Larson – Hannah Mason Faith Merrill – Soren Patchell – Kayleigh Ross – Ella Saxton – Hannah Smith Winter Starr – Sarah Stoddard – Amber Wilkin – Malachi Wilson Ruth Knudson Endowed Scholarship Sage Stoker George & Geraldine Swenson Watkins Scholarship Lucy Castro – Taliloa Fano – Kyeisha Selway – Audrey Yuen Will Ward Art Scholarship Harper Graham – Sage Stoker Mary Lois Sharp Wheatley Scholarship Oleanne Aanderud – Talulla Barney – Kathy Johnson – Caroline McCann Max Dixon & Ruth Kimbal Weaver Ceramics and Crafts Scholarship Samira Herber ART EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIPS AND AWARDS Talent Award Scholarship Emma Bennion – Anna Brown – Kaleb Farar – Travis Fehlberg – Brianna Hinton Marin Larsen – Abbigael McConnell – Hannah Morrison – Rylee Nelson Art Department Endowment Scholarship Anna Brown – Hannah Morrison Cory Nathan Belleau Endowed Scholarship Kaleb Farar – Marin Larsen Ruth Knudson Endowed Scholarship Hannah Morrison Olena K. Lewis & George K. Lewis Endowed Scholarship Emma Bennion – Brianna Hinton – Abbigael McConnell – Rylee Nelson Art Fund Scholarship Hannah Morrison – Travis Fehlberg 2021 AWARDS ANNUAL STUDENT EXHIBITION JURORS Madeline Rupard, Visiting Instructor Tiana Birrell, Visiting Instructor Juror’s Prizes Grace White Not Really, 3D print, acrylic, astroturf 7″x3.5″ , 2021 Elizabeth Windsor One Size Fits All, Quilt, 65″x76″ , 2021 Samira Herber Topographics, Inkjet print, clay, mixed media, 1’x7’x6’, 2020 Katelyn Field Kitchen Movement, Video, 2:53, 2021 Erica Nelson Eve as a Vessel, Terracotta clay, 14″x8.5″x9″, 2021 Jeff Hampshire Landlocked, MDF and aerosol paint, 22″x 30″x 2″, 2021 Rocio Vasquez Hecho Por Mamá, Felt, embroidery and knitting, 3’x1’x1’, 2020 Samantha Atzbach Dead Apparitions, Installation, dimensions variable, 2021 Sara Lindsay Pressed Flower #1, Satin, flowers, gelatin, glass, wood, 40″x40″, 2021 Hannah Landeen My Brother’s Keeper (Series), Graphite & photography, 2021 Best of Show Aïsha Lehmann Would you swim in an integrated pool? Linoleum print, 18″x20″, 2020

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Class of 2021 Celebrated in College of Fine Arts and Communications Virtual Convocation

Noelle Barrus — Fri, 23 Apr 2021 22:40:52 +0000

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MFA Art Student Uses Homemade Dresses and Campus Flowers in Her Art

Noelle Barrus — Fri, 16 Apr 2021 14:56:20 +0000

Sara Lynne Lindsay’s dresses represent themes of mothers and history as she connects generations through her art In room 3125 of the Jesse Knight Building, homemade dresses hang on every wall. A shelf holds jars of flowers and a green rocking chair sits in one corner — “My daughter’s chair,” said Master of Fine Arts student Sara Lynne Lindsay. As a wife and mother of six children, the green chair is just one of the room’s symbols of how much her family intersects with Lindsay’s work as an artist. “When my husband and I were both working towards our undergraduate art degrees at Utah State University, there were often days when we had to take our first-born baby to class. My husband would be rocking our son with his foot while using his hands on a project,” said Lindsay. Mother and Daughter Themes The dresses Lindsay makes are often a reflection of the relationships between mothers and daughters. Several of her dresses were recently displayed at Granary Arts in Ephraim. “Eventually the daughter grows to be a mother and there’s this long chain of history of our mothers passing down things like the creation power. There is something really powerful about the sacrifice and nurturing of mothers,” said Lindsay. One of Lindsay’s recent passion projects has been taking journal entries from her own ancestors and writing the words out onto her dresses. “I have an entire journal from one ancestor and I feel like I understand her. My great-grandmother I don’t know as well — but she has shaped who I am through her choices just as much as someone I know more about,” she said. “Her experiences, though many of them are lost, are still a part of me.” All of the dresses are dyed different colors using unusual materials like Kool-Aid, wax, rust and even hibiscus flowers. “Like the dyed dresses, experiences change you and you can never go back, but sometimes they make you stronger,” Lindsay said.“A really difficult experience can be really beautiful in the end.” Sara Lindsay’s “Tied” is a symbol of connecting generations Beauty and Pain Through Art Lindsay is planning a performance piece utilizing one of her dresses for an upcoming show in New York. “Taken Away” is a project of Art in Odd Places 2021: NORMAL curated by Furusho Von Puttkammer, with curatorial assistants Yasmeen Abdallah, Lorelle Pais and Natalie Ortiz. The dress Lindsay will be using for the show is inscribed with the names of Spanish Flu victims from the Manhattan neighborhoods surrounding the gallery space. These names are written in wax and will be revealed by Lindsay’s methodical staining of the fabric around them. She plans to carry the dress through the streets, laying it down and “dyeing” the fabric with leaves and dirt from Manhattan’s green spaces. “It will look like a cross-section of a tree with the names and voices of those who died in the last pandemic. We haven’t talked about how many people were lost during the 1918 flu, but it was tragic and the pain they went through is similar to what we are seeing right now,” said Lindsay. “There is a lot of hope but there needs to be some mourning offered to those that died.” Besides her performance in New York and the show in Granary Arts, Lindsay has also interviewed for the magazine Exponent II, had her video work exhibited as a part of the College Art Association’s annual conference, and participated in an exhibition at the College of Sequoias in California. According to Lindsay, art can truly transform the world. “We might walk away with a different interpretation than the artist was intending or even than the person next to us, but there is something beautiful about how art speaks to everyone personally,” said Lindsay. “You may not like what it says, but if you spend time with art, you can find some communication that can touch you in a way that words can’t.” A Family Effort Before moving to Provo to work on her MFA, Lindsay and her family of eight lived in Texas where her husband taught art at Texas Tech University. Lindsay has always considered herself a “full-time mom and a part-time artist,” but now that she is back in school, it’s a full family effort. “I have always had a hard time with school. I discovered this year that I’m dyslexic,” she said. “So I find that I have to read assignments to my husband to talk about and better understand them. My daughter edits my papers and I have children who come with me to collect flowers. It’s so great that my family has been here to support me. It’s like we are in school together.” Lindsay will finish her Master of Fine Arts program at BYU this spring 2021, and she is grateful for the time and space the program has offered her to expand her art. “I don’t usually want to show people my work. I like making it, but being in the program at BYU has put me in a situation to be vulnerable and to receive criticism and help. It has helped me to mature as an artist.” View more of Lindsay’s work at saralynnelindsay.com.

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Music Building Updates: Enhanced Acoustics and Practice Spaces

Noelle Barrus — Thu, 15 Apr 2021 14:31:28 +0000

Associate Dean Rory Scanlon provided additional information on the acoustics of the new building Even amidst Utah’s drastic shifts in weather, construction workers on the east side of BYU campus are continuing their work on the new School of Music building. This new building will come with special acoustic features. “The Concert Hall will be a very unique performance space because it is built to amplify the sound out into the audience. We do not have to use microphones to carry the sound artificially around the auditorium,” said Associate Dean Rory Scanlon. “Our audiences will be thrilled to find the acoustic range built into all the music spaces for performances.” The construction workers attending to the building are using a unique cement pouring technique and hollow wall systems to prevent sound transference between rooms. “While we have had to rely frequently on amplified sound within our current performance halls, this new building is being built to support sound naturally so the audience can hear the music as originally performed,” said Scanlon. In addition to the improved acoustics, plans for the music building include a large lobby with seating for students to lounge in, as well as a small stage for ‘music at midday,’ a tradition in the HFAC. “There will be more access to musical instruments overall to enhance music students’ education,” said Scanlon. View the progress of the building’s construction through live footage.

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Comms Major Olivia Morrow on True Crime, Covid Memes and Research

Noelle Barrus — Fri, 09 Apr 2021 18:50:22 +0000

Morrow — a native to Farmington, New Mexico — will graduate with a BA in communications this April. Attending Brigham Young University was always Olivia Morrow’s dream. She grew up hearing stories about the school from her parents — stories about personable professors and outstanding sporting events. While hearing these stories, Morrow set an expectation for herself to attend BYU.

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Art Major Gwen Davis-Barrios on Art, Education and Utah’s Spiral Jetty

Noelle Barrus — Fri, 09 Apr 2021 18:37:29 +0000

Davis-Barrios — a native of Provo, Utah — graduated with a BA in art in December 2020. As a recent BYU graduate from the Department of Art, Gwen Davis-Barrios doesn’t remember a time when art wasn’t a part of her life. “Art has been a guiding hand ever since I can remember,” she said. “I think it’s a good companion to help me process the world, life and relationships.”

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Art Major Fiona Barney on Perspective, Teaching and Travel

Noelle Barrus — Fri, 09 Apr 2021 18:30:33 +0000

Barney — a native of Provo, Utah — will graduate with a BA in art in April. During her experiences studying at BYU, senior art student Fiona Barney has had several opportunities to step out of her comfort zone. From traveling to Scotland to teaching high schoolers, Barney’s education has truly followed the BYU motto “The world is our campus.”

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Iranian-born Artist Shares How Failure and a Beginner’s Mindset Shaped Her Career

Noelle Barrus — Thu, 08 Apr 2021 14:45:04 +0000

On March 18, Shirin Neshat shared her life experiences and the background of her latest exhibit, ‘Land of Dreams’ Internationally renowned artist Shirin Neshat visited students from the College of Fine Arts and Communications during a virtual Listen Up! Series event on March 18. The Department of Art and the BRAVO! Series hosted the event while professor Collin Bradford and visiting instructor Tianna Birrell acted as moderators. Neshat is a contemporary artist known for her photography, video and film work. She was born in Iran and moved to the United States to finish high school. She was encouraged to stay in the US because of the Iranian Revolution, so she enrolled at the University of California at Berkely. She now lives and works in New York, and has been featured at art exhibitions in Chicago, London, Seoul, Mexico City and numerous other cities across the world. Her work has received recognition and awards including the Silver Lion Award from the Venice Film Festival, the Golden Lion Award at the Venice Biennial, The Davos World Economic Forum’s Crystal Award and the Praemium Imperiale award from the Japan Art Association. Neshat’s artistic endeavors started with photography before she expanded on her work to include film installations. She has directed two feature-length films and one opera, and she is currently in the post-production stage of a third feature film. “I am a nomadic artist. I am not loyal to one specific form,” said Neshat. “Regardless of what subject I’m embracing, whether it’s photography or film or video, my art is always about things I’m facing as a human being. I became an artist as a way of creating a visual vocabulary to face existential issues in life, anxiety and separation from my country.” During the lecture, Neshat explained how her life and experiences have impacted the themes of her art. “I’ve come to understand that the way my thinking process works is always some form of opposites. Partially because I feel like I’m always conflicted between the different characteristics I have within myself,” she said. “I’m in the U.S., but not quite feeling at home here or in my home in Iran. Duality is central to the core of my work, and that continues to this day.” History, poetry and politics have also all played a major role in influencing Neshat’s artistic endeavors. “My life is defined by political reality. The revolution separated me and my family for good. Currently, I’m in exile. I cannot and do not have the luxury to distance myself from the political reality,” said Neshat. “In our society, being involved in political issues is not a choice.” Neshat shared with students the background and meaning of her most recent exhibit, “Land of Dreams” which is her first exhibit to incorporate all the mediums she uses — photography, film and video. The exhibit shares photographed portraits of over 100 people living in New Mexico, a land that closely resembles Iran but is also the site of US nuclear war development. The exhibit also features a 20-minute film featuring an Iranian woman who interviews people about their dreams. “This exhibit is what America looks like with all its diversity in culture, background, religion, races, gender, ages and colors,” said Neshat. “I’d never dared to make a project about America before this. But I felt it was time for immigrant artists to take responsibility and share how they feel about America and what they cherish about this country as well as what they are critical of.” During the discussion with Tiana Birrell and Collin Bradford, Neshat expressed her belief in art not giving the answers to moral challenges but asking the questions. “There is no way I can control what people take away from my work — a lot of people take away what they want from it according to who they are. But I can leave it where everyone can enter.” When Birrell asked Neshat what advice she would give to young artists, Neshat invited students to embrace failure. “I’m not afraid to fail,” said Neshat. “When I was in school, I barely got accepted to graduate because I was one of the weakest students. For 10 years I didn’t make any art. But I came back to art and came 100%. Going after things you’ve never done is scary. But the reason I am successful is because I’m not afraid of failure. I have made some bad and mediocre work, but it has kept me on the edge to continue to challenge myself and be a beginner and learn new languages of artistic nature. Failure is something to embrace and not be ashamed of.” As her final departing message, Neshat invited students and artists to pick themselves up when they feel they’ve fallen. “Being an artist takes a lot of character. I’ve fallen many times, and I’ve learned to pick myself back up. My skin is tough. My philosophy is that if you fall, pick yourself back up.”

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CFAC Faculty and Staff Unite in You Belong Here. You Matter Here. Initiative

Noelle Barrus — Fri, 02 Apr 2021 16:47:32 +0000

The College launches an initiative to remind students that “You Belong Here. You Matter Here.” From April 5 until April 9, the College’s Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Committee (DIA) is launching a special “You Belong Here, You Matter Here” initiative to help students feel welcomed and valued in the college — particularly during finals, a stressful time for students. Here’s a quick take on the initiative from two faculty from the DIA Committee: Keely Song (KS) from the Department of Dance and Kris Peterson (KP) from the Department of Theatre and Media Arts. What is “You Belong Here. You Matter Here.”? KS: It is a six-word reminder of why we are here and who we do this for. KP: “You Belong Here and You Matter Here” is a way for us to communicate to the students in our college and our individual departments. It is a way to recognize students and the challenges they are going through; not only in the global pandemic, but in general. It is our message as a college to students, but also a message we hope to spread through social media to a larger audience. Where does this phrase come from and why was it chosen? KS: I believe the theme was inspired by the BYU Race, Equity, and Belonging Committee. Many of us loved how they included “Belonging” in the title and so “You Belong Here” was then paired with “You Matter Here” to show not only do you belong but your voice (art, movement, music, creativity, innovation) matters within our creative spaces too. KP: We had discussions in our committee meeting about what we wanted our students to know in the wake of some of the social justice movements going on. We wanted to create a message that showed how much we value students as artists and people. “You Belong Here” speaks to how they matter to our college as artists and as creators, and “You Matter” shows that we value them as human beings in their uniqueness and creativity. What are the goals of the initiative? KS: This is an invitation and a reminder to reach out beyond ourselves and invite others into our spaces. I believe it is a practice on intentionality, especially during this stressful time as things are wrapping up at the end of the semester. It can become so easy to be caught up in the business of college life that we forget the details of human connection. “You Belong Here” and “You Matter Here” nudges us back to relationships. As a parent, one of the most endearing things is to hear my boys yell, “Mom, look at me! Take a picture!” and “Mom, watch this, Mom, are you watching? Really watch me!” Kids know the difference if we are really watching and fully invested in them, and so do adults. Thus, the goal or personal commitment I have for myself is to be more committed in seeing others and my students’ unique attributes and talents. KP: Our goal initially was to create something immediate to quickly communicate to students while we work on other initiatives. We have ongoing initiatives we are working on, but this is one we felt could and should go out straight away. What are some ways faculty and staff are participating in this campaign? KS: Some faculty are submitting videos, other faculty are posting these phrases in their Zoom meetings, some are emailing students directly, and then others including myself are repeating them as daily mantras. I have repeated these phrases over the last several months in hopes that when I talk to students, they feel my commitment to them and my genuine sincerity in my compliments and encouragement to them. KP: Last semester, we had a toolkit provided by the College that helped us create Zoom backgrounds and visuals. And for a week, we publicized the campaign for the faculty. This semester, we are looking at making it more personal with faculty videos of personal messages to give a voice directly to the students. Why is this important to the DIA committee? KS: It has been almost a year since I began serving on the DIA committee. I am a junior faculty who is very new to the academic scene. There are a lot of things I don’t know and many mistakes and course corrections I have had to make. However, one thing I know for certain is that my colleagues from all the departments across the college and those in the dance department deeply love the students. There are developments and initiatives we are discussing in the DIA committee that are taking time, but I promise we are working hard. In the meantime, we wanted to do something more immediate and express our commitment to our students and the love we (faculty and staff) have for them. KP: Some of our initiatives take time, but we love our students. We love what they create; we love their good hearts. This is something we wanted to make sure that no matter what happens, the students come first for us. We are committed to doing this work. The people on the committee are aware and are committed to doing the work alongside the students and faculty. Students can view the “You Belong Here. You Matter Here.” videos from faculty and staff via social media on the BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications accounts.

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