Commencement Apr. 27 at 4 p.m. in the Marriott Center Convocation for the Department of Dance, Department of Music, Music Dance Theatre and Department of Theatre and Music Arts Apr. 28 at 8 a.m. in the deJong Concert Hall Convocation for the School of Communications Apr. 28 at 11 a.m. in the deJong Concert Hall Convocation for the Department of Art & Department of Design Apr. 28 at 2 p.m. in the deJong Concert Hall Elder Bradley D. Foster, General Authority Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is scheduled to be the presiding authority and speaker during the Commencement Exercises on Thursday, Apr. 27, at 4 p.m., in the Marriott Center. Commencement exercises will be broadcast live on BYU TV, BYU Radio, Classical 89 KBYU-FM and byutv.org. Each college holds a convocation the day after commencement. Each graduate is recognized by name and walks across the stage to receive their diploma cover. The college dean presides at convocation, and the ceremony lasts approximately two hours. Students who graduate in December are invited to attend the next April graduation ceremonies and those who graduate in June are invited to attend the August graduation ceremonies. All College of Fine Arts and Communications convocations will take place in the deJong Concert Hall of the Harris Fine Arts Center (HFAC) on Friday, Apr. 28. Graduates are required to meet 45 minutes prior to their scheduled convocation in the HFAC tunnel, located on the 2nd floor in the north end of the of the building. CFAC convocations usually last about a hour. Each convocation will present student speakers from the respective school or department. Kelli Briggs will be the Department of Dance student speaker and Malori Bigler will represent the Department of Theatre and Music Arts. The School of Communications convocation will present Kayci Kirkham Treu and Catharine Delong as student speakers. Emily Holt and Jane Christensen will speak on behalf of the Department of Art and Jordan Layton and Ashley Smith will speak as Department of Design students. Click here to the view the graduation live stream.

Ashley Smith graduates this April with her BFA in illustration and will speak in the Department of Design convocation. During her time at BYU, Smith set herself apart by taking initiative to be involved. Recently she completed an internship in Salt Lake City with sculptor, Ryan Peterson. Peterson specializes in sculpting life-size Marvel characters, and has worked on numerous other projects in the entertainment industry. As part of this internship, Smith received a generous donation through the Mary Lois Wheatley Scholarship. This money funded her internship and allowed her to pursue sculpture as she otherwise would not have been able to do. After her internship, Smith was able to join professor Bethanne Andersen’s class for a character maquette assignment. She was able to share basic sculpting techniques that she learned during her internship. “After completing my internship, I was able to return to BYU and help other students, which I will always remember as a highlight of my university experience,” Smith said. Aside from her internship, while at BYU, Smith also won several local art contests including one held at The Wall, and another held by BYU Women’s Services. Smith is a native of Germany and lived in japan so she is currently applying for jobs in Japan and Europe. Her current dream job is to design book covers or work in children’s publishing. “For my BFA show I focused on children’s book illustrations,” Smith said. “They were all based on my life experiences, so the project was especially personal to me.” Smith’s convocation message centers on the concept of endings as a type of beginning and the importance of lifelong learning. “When you graduate college, you may feel like it’s the end of something and you could feel the urge to throw away any big dreams you had for yourself that you didn’t accomplish,” Smith said. “We can still accomplish those things. You don’t have to abandon your dreams just because they don’t fit right now.” Smith wishes to thank the many community members who frequently came out to support BYU students. She will miss spending time with her classmates and professors. Click here to the view the graduation live stream.

International performers Interact with Students as Part of BYU'S OFF THE MAP

Eric Gillett, chair of the BYU Department of Design, explained how basic principles of design combined with gospel thinking help solve some of life's 'wicked' problems at this week's BYU Devotional. 'Contrary to what you might expect, a ‘wicked’ problem does not refer to something evil or sinister,' Gillett said, 'but instead describes something so 'tricky' and complicated that it seems to defy solution. With wicked problems the situation is dynamic and often involves multiple variables.' Read More...

With her new exhibit, on display at the library through April 27, a BYU student living with dwarfism invites viewers to see the world through her eyes.
 

Jennifer Amott, LDS Philanthropies donor liaison for the College of Fine Arts and Communications, has been reassigned to manage the President’s Leadership Council and to fundraise for the Harold B. Lee Library. “Jenn has worked diligently for our college and has been a real blessing,” dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communications Ed Adams said. “Her natural ability to cultivate and build relationships is a gift. She has raised significant dollars for the college, but more importantly she has built friendships.” In a message to the college faculty Amott said, “I feel privileged to have partnered with you in promoting, the good, the true and the beautiful in a world that is in need of light. It is a thrill to see the progress that has been made and the world of possibilities ahead.” Damien Bard will take Amott’s position as LDSP donor liaison. Bard joined LDS Philanthropies in February 2014 and has worked in assignments at BYU Athletics and BYU Broadcasting. Bard has helped organize annual Broadcast Leadership Council meetings and facilitate donor cultivation opportunities. This transition officially occurs this month.

BYU professor Robert Barrett has been selected by the Portrait Society of America to receive Signature Status with the Portrait Society of America. Signature Status is meant to recognize artists who are dedicated to the educational mission and high aesthetic standards of the Portrait Society of America. Barrett has been a professor at BYU for more than 31 years and served as an Associate Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communications. Along with Barrett’s recognition, the Portrait Society of America has awarded three BYU students scholarships to attend the group’s annual conference held in Atlanta, Georgia. Ashley Glazier, Hillary Laurent and Peter Beck have been selected as three of only twenty winners selected nationally. The students submitted their work to a jury of professionals in order to receive the scholarship. All three students have taken or are currently taking Barrett’s Head Painting class. The purpose of the Portrait Society of America is to foster and enhance an understanding of the practice, techniques and applications of traditional art portraiture and figurative works. The society was founded in 1998.

The BYU School of Communications will host Scott Church, assistant professor in the School of Communications, in conjunction with the Raymond E. and Ida Lee Beckham Lecture in Communications Series March 16 at 11:00 a.m. in 321 of the Maeser building. Church will present his lecture, “The Art of Mass Communication: The Sublime, Ineffable, and Spiritual Elements of Memes.” Popular viral content, like memes, are taking over the Internet. The presentation will address how memes strategically use art, symbolism and spirituality to attract attention and to help the audience feel emotion. Church has taught courses in popular culture, business communication, public speaking, public discourse, music and media studies. His research primarily uses critical theory, aesthetics and media ecology as analytic lenses for social media and mediated popular texts. The lectures were established in 1995 in honor of Ray Beckham’s late wife, Ida Lee. Raymond E. Beckham was a leader in education at BYU for 42 years. He was the driving force behind the BYU Evening school program, the BYU Travel Studies program, Aspen Grove, and founded the New York Internship program for Communications majors. INFORMATION Dates: Thursday March 16 Times: 11:00 a.m. Location: 321 Karl G. Maeser Building Admission: Free, no registration required

Former BYU Performing Arts artist manager, Troy Streeter, has accepted the position of Audio-Visual Operations Manager for BYU Arts Production. Karson Denney, an adjunct faculty member in the BYU Department of Dance, has been selected as his replacement. “Troy comes with excellent experience and expertise in all the areas he now supervises,” said Russell Richins, director and production manager of BYU Arts Production. “He will be a great asset to Arts Production, but especially to each of the departments we typically serve. We welcome Troy aboard.” Streeter graduated from BYU in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in theatre arts studies and a minor in electronics engineering, after which he completed an MBA. While working as an artist manager, he managed the BYU Synthesis tour to Brazil in 2013. “I’m excited to continue learning and growing alongside the students and faculty in the college,” Streeter said. Denney expressed equal excitement for his new position. “When the position was offered to me there was no hesitation and I was elated to accept the job,” said Denney. “I hope to help BYU performing groups find opportunities to uplift audiences and make a difference in other people’s lives through service.” Denney graduated from BYU in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in geography. In 2011 he completed his master’s degree in mass communications. He brings with him 24 years of performing experience including recognition as 2-time United States Dance and Rhythm Champion and as well as the United States American Smooth Champion. As a student, Denny toured with BYU’s Ballroom team to Blackpool, England and won the British Latin Formation Championship.

As part of the 2016-2017 BRAVO! season, BYU Arts will be hosting the Limón Dance Company. The group will perform Feb. 10 at 7:30 p.m. in the Pardoe Theatre of the Harris Fine Arts Center. The program will feature a special guest performance by BYU Contemporary Dance Theatre. Producer and Presenter of Performing Arts at BYU, Jeffrey Martin, said BYU is thrilled to bring fine dancers and “time-honored choreography” to campus for students and the community to experience in a live performance. Limón Dance Company is known as one of the legendary companies associated with modern dance in the United States. Founded in 1946 by José Limón and Doris Humphrey, the Limón Dance Company has lead American modern dance since its inception and is considered one of the world’s greatest ensembles. The company’s performances include classic works as well as new commissions from contemporary choreographers. “We seek to expose our students to the foundational movements of all dance styles during their time studying dance at BYU,” Martin said. “When we have the opportunity to showcase world-class dancers practicing the principles and techniques our students learn in the classroom and dance studio, we are able to give our students a tremendous advantage in their own training and development.” Under the direction of assistant professor Nathan Balser, CDT will collaborate with Limón Dance Company on this program. BYU’s dancers will perform an excerpt of Jose Limon’s piece, “A Choreographic Offering,” during the performance. “The Limón dancers are some of the finest in the country, bringing with them myriad expertise and excellence in training and performance,” Balser said. “For our students to rub shoulders with these dancers is not only uncommon, but of great worth and value to their own emergence as dance artists.” Balser said the CDT dancers have spent more than 50 hours learning and perfecting the Limón piece in preparation for the performance. One of these dancers is Adam Schraedel. He said the group is excited to dance with one of the most famous modern companies in the world. “We practiced for four weeks with an alumnus member of the company to learn and perfect our piece, ‘A Choreographic Offering,’” Schraedel said. “It’s a challenging style that many of us have little experience with, but it’s a very beautiful piece and I think we have learned a lot.” Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at the BYU Ticket Office in the Harris Fine Arts Center or Marriott Center, by phone at 801-422-2981 or online at byuarts.com. Tickets and Show Details Performance Dates and Times: Feb. 10, 7:30 p.m. Location: Pardoe Theatre, Harris Fine Arts Center, BYU Price: $35, BYU Alumni/Senior Citizen $32, BYU ID/Student ID $25 Tickets: Available in person at the BYU Ticket Office in the Harris Fine Arts Center or Marriott Center, by phone at 801-422- 2981 or online at byuarts.com

The first BYU Museum of Art Art After Dark of the winter semester is the exhibition opening for the new exhibition 'Embracing Diverse Voices: A Century of African American Art.' The night features performances by Debra Bonner Unity Gospel Choir at 7:30 pm and 8:30 pm. The public is invited to wander the galleries, bring friends, and enjoy the evening at the BYU Museum of Art! See the Facebook event.