Kofi Aidoo started college as a food science major with big plans of becoming a dentist and high expectations about BYU. Now he’s a senior and an advertising major — and his plans and expectations have changed. Aidoo was born in Modesto, California, where his parents, who were originally from Ghana, converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when Aidoo was 2 years old. Aidoo said the Latter-day Saint community where he lived had him convinced that BYU was the perfect school. “It’s what we all aspire to. You’re bound to be successful if you go to BYU, you know?” Aidoo said. He said his time at school has actually been very different than what he originally imagined. He said he appreciates BYU and loves his program but has noticed a huge difference between his experience as a student of color and the experiences of many of his peers. This difference has led Aidoo to become an active advocate for anti-racism in Provo. Though he isn’t associated with the official Black Lives Matter organization, he said that he tries to be a part of the movement. Aidoo helped organize a march against racism that took place on June 13 in Provo, and he’s been vocal on social media about recent events and protests related to racial injustice. Read the rest of the article written by Emily Andersen at universe.byu.edu.

After Randy Boothe dedicated decades to the Young Ambassadors, he is now passing on the leadership to Nathan Balser

Due to the global pandemic, this year’s annual student art show is being displayed online Every winter semester, students from the BYU Department of Art have the opportunity to display artwork in a special gallery exhibition in the Harris Fine Arts Center. This year, faculty and staff adapted to the social distancing requirements due to the pandemic and displayed the artwork online. “The day the university decided to vacate the campus and move to remote learning was the day before the gallery was set to accept submissions for what would have been this year's physical student show,” said gallery director Eric Edvalson. “Unfortunately, we had to cancel the physical show, but we still wanted to give the students an opportunity to show their work.The online exhibition displays over 50 pieces of art from the students. Although seniors have opportunities throughout the year to display their work at their final BFA exhibitions, the annual student show is a valuable opportunity for the wider student body of the Department of Art to display their work and to possibly win awards. This year, guest juror Madeline Rupard selected the award-winning artwork for the online exhibition. Rupard is a recent graduate of Pratt Institute with an MFA in painting, and she is an alumni of the BYU Department of Art.Tess Cowley won first place for her piece “Untitled - Ceramic” while Carrie Jube Everett took second with “Figment” and Elisabeth Baird took third with her piece “Bread.” Honorable Mentions included: Stephen Clawson, “The Regular Price;” Jeffrey Hampshire, “Google Earth Series;” Carolyn Koo, “A Picnic Feeling;” Hannah Landeen, “Travis’ Hoodie;” and Ricey Wright, “See You At the Top.”“Without a doubt, we would love to be viewing this art in person if we could,” Edvalson said. “Still, the diversity of work really shines in a digital environment, both individually and collectively.”To view the exhibition visit 2020 Annual Student Exhibition.

Ostraff views his art as a catalyst for personal change and a celebration of relationships On July 1, Joe Ostraff replaced Gary Barton as chair of the Department of Art. Ostraff received an MFA from the University of Washington and taught high school art for seven years before joining the art faculty at BYU in 1993. At the time, he was one of the more contemporary-minded professors working in the department, making experimental art. Now, contemporary ways of working have become a critical component of a BYU art education. Projects and Awards During his time at BYU, Ostraff has primarily taught painting, drawing and advanced studio courses. He has directed or co-directed numerous collaborative projects involving his students and peer institutions, including the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA), Wirral Met College in England, Limerick School of Art and Design in Ireland and Te Whare Wananga o Awanuiarangi in New Zealand. These partnerships have involved hundreds of artists and resulted in more than 30 international, national and regional exhibitions. Ostraff is also the only one of nearly 70 fellows to be awarded the prestigious Visual Arts Fellowship by the Utah Division of Arts & Museums three times (in 1993, 1998 and 2010). Together with his wife, Melinda — an ethnobotanist, faculty member in the College of Life Sciences and repeat collaborator with her husband — Ostraff has received roughly half a million dollars in grants over the years. He estimates that 60 to 70 percent of that grant money has helped fund dynamic art opportunities with other artists, including fellow faculty members and students. These grant funds often go toward covering travel costs for his students to collaborate with artists in other locations, or to bring students from other universities to BYU. Read the full article written by Abby Weidmer at art.byu.edu.

School of Communications

School of Music

Department of Dance

BYU provides pianists a rare opportunity to train in ballet accompaniment

Four journalism students created a documentary explaining their adjustment to working remotely during a pandemic

Performing student

Four professionals answered questions about experiences with diversity and inclusiveness in the workplace during a panel discussion

Two animated projects from BYU professor Brent Barson were recently accepted into the Communication Arts 2020 Design Annual, a prestigious graphic design journal. Out of the 2,900 total entries, just 126 were accepted. “It is a gratifying validation of all the hard work we pour into our projects,” Barson said in response to his projects’ acceptance into the journal. With art direction and illustration by Linda Reynolds, another BYU professor, and animation by Barson, the two designed and created one of the accepted projects, a short film titled “The Get.” The project was commissioned by KUER’s RadioWest Films in Salt Lake City, which presents unique stories with a focus on Utah. “There is so much satisfaction that comes from having others love a project you feel so passionately about,” Reynolds said. Read the full article at news.byu.edu.