Visual & Performing Arts

Arts & Culture

The Latest

UC San Diego Artist Set to ‘Fascinate’ Downtown San Diego

The University of California San Diego’s fine arts programs are ranked among the top in the nation. Department of Visual Arts lecturer Huai Li is among the many talented teachers who enhance that reputation and influence aspiring artists at the university. With a goal of engaging the greater San Diego community in her work—not unlike the university’s own efforts to reach beyond campus—Li is opening a solo exhibition titled “You Fascinate Me” March 11 at the Sparks Gallery in the Gaslamp Quarter in Downtown San Diego.

Martha Longenecker Roth’s Legacy Lives on at UC San Diego

They live on the property of Geisel House, the chancellor’s residence at the University of California San Diego. Beautifully crafted, nearly life-size terra cotta horses majestically overlook the Pacific Ocean as a reminder of the immense vision and passion that Martha W. Longenecker Roth had for “mingei”—the art of the people.

UC San Diego Visual Arts Graduate Students Showcase their Talents

In the largest display of scholarship and creativity in visual arts at the university, UC San Diego Department of Visual Arts graduate students have organized two full days of programs designed to welcome the campus and community. The annual events known as the “Ph.D. Symposium” and the “Open Studios” highlight graduate student achievements. The programs take place Friday, March 3, 3:30 – 9 p.m. and Saturday, March 4, 9 a.m. – 7 p.m. in three campus locations: the University Art Gallery, the Structural and Materials Engineering Building and the Visual Arts Facility.

A Seat at the Table

“Classifications and distinctions based on race or color have no moral or legal validity in our society; they are contrary to our constitution and laws.” Such is the message on the doors to Thurgood Marshall College’s newly renovated Ocean View dining hall. Spoken by the college’s namesake, the first African-American Supreme Court Justice, the words highlight the principles of diversity and equality central to the new campus eatery.

A Pendant Fit for a King

The jewel—a jade pendant worn on a king’s chest during key religious ceremonies—was first unearthed in 2015. It is now housed at the Central Bank of Belize, along with other national treasures. Braswell recently published a paper in the Cambridge University journal Ancient Mesoamerica detailing the jewel’s significance. A second paper, in the Journal of Field Archaeology, describes the excavations.

UC San Diego Artists, Sci-Fi Author Unveil Video Installation for Robot Exhibition in Germany

Arthur C. Clarke Center for Human Imagination showcases new video installation for an exhibition in Germany that opened on Feb. 11. Sci-fi author Bruce Sterling, who is affiliated with the Clarke Center, gave the opening talk at the “Hello, Robot” exhibition, and Clarke Center director Sheldon Brown led the team (including Sterling) that created the video installation “My Elegant Robot Freedom” on display in the new exhibition.