Connecting the arts and sciences
Exploring the big questions and critical issues of our time has always been the goal of the arts at UC Santa Cruz. Launched as part of the campaign, the Institute of the Arts and Sciences, (IAS) was created to produce innovative exhibitions, support unique academic projects, and offer public events connecting the arts with the sciences, social sciences, humanities, and technology. The amazing Crochet Coral Reef project embodied these principles brilliantly, with over 200 student participants in and out of the classroom and at least another 200 community members involved. Artist-in-residence Russell Crotty‘s work Look Back in Time: Russell Crotty and Lick Observatory at the San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art, received national attention and press. The Collective Museum exhibition across campus provides a rich history of the campus, told by current and former students, faculty, and staff. The IAS has been instrumental in advancing arts faculty projects, including helping bring Chinese documentary filmmaker Wu Wenguang for a residency and supporting Extraction, an investigation of the multi-faceted implications of resource mining. Made possible with donor support, these and other high-pro le curated programs and collaborations speak to a deep commitment to the spirit of exploration in the arts and sciences.
Key support provided by Nion McEvoy (Porter ’74, literature), Patricia Rebele (Porter ’88, art history), Rowland Rebele, Jock Reynolds (Stephenson ’69, psychology), Elliot Fruchtman, and Pamela Pierson (Cowell ’69, sociology).