College

Six faculty and staff members from the College of Fine Arts and Communications to retire this year

Amy Jensen discusses the relationship between human bodies and social media.

The university forum will feature Professor Amy Petersen Jensen

Art student Madyson Ysasaga has had an unconventional road to graduation, but she wouldn’t have it any other way

New leadership will oversee the School of Communications and the Department of Theatre and Media Arts

Cash prizes will be awarded to students who submit works that showcase successful experiential or remote learning

Dan Bradshaw’s appointment follows the six-year tenure of previous executive director Ethan Wickman

The lecture will take place on November 5 at 11 a.m. in the Madsen Recital Hall and will be streamed online

Seven faculty members won prestigious awards at the Annual University Conference; three faculty members were recognized during the college meeting

In place of an in-person orientation, new students explored the College of Fine Arts and Communications from their couches and kitchen tables

After teaching and performing in Utah, Bronwen Merrill is pursuing her dance career in France Bronwen Merrill knew she wanted to dance for Disney Entertainment from the time she was 14 years old. “I had the next 10 years of my life planned out before I could even drive a car,” she said. But the BYU alum’s journey to her dream job turned out a lot different than she expected. Merrill grew up in Provo, raised by parents who taught her to appreciate the arts. She briefly took dance lessons at a young age, but it wasn’t until her mother took adult ballet classes and brought a 10-year-old Merrill along that she really fell in love with the art form. “I was totally hooked,” said Merrill. “I knew I wanted to study dance. I said to myself, after graduation I'm going to move to either Anaheim or Orlando, and I'm going to audition and get into Disney Entertainment.” When she met and married her husband at BYU, however, Merrill knew she had to reevaluate her post-grad plans. After graduating in 2017 with a Bachelor of Arts in dance, she moved to China with her husband, Jordan, to teach English for four months. Three days after their return, she joined BYU’s Department of Dance, teaching beginning ballet classes as adjunct faculty. “Teaching was something I never thought I would do, but it was a great way to build up my resume, stay close to the dance community and support my little family of two while Jordan finished school,” she said. Merrill also used this time to gain more experience onstage. She performed in Hale Center Theatre’s production of “An American in Paris,” as well as “Beauty and the Beast” at the SCERA Shell Outdoor Theatre. While her time at BYU helped her strengthen her technical base as a dancer, Merrill’s post-grad experiences onstage helped her grow as a performer. “I feel that I’ve developed a better sense of being able to get into a character and tell that character’s story,” said Merrill. “There can be a disconnect — especially with ballet dancers — because there’s such a focus on perfecting the choreography and the technique, it can be hard to focus on the story you’re trying to tell with the movement. It becomes more enjoyable for both the performer and the audience when those worlds can find a way to balance and combine.” Merrill and her husband moved to Florida, expecting to settle down, when a contract offer came from Disneyland Paris — literally a dream come true. “I was so excited, and then it suddenly became so stressful,” she said. “There were so many big changes we had to make: Jordan had to reevaluate his career path, we had to let go of our goal of homeownership, and we realized we had to sell everything we owned to move to France.” Merrill was hired on at Disneyland Paris as a character performer and parade dancer, where she finished her training right before COVID-19 closed the parks for four months. Now, she is able to perform at the parks — albeit at a distance from guests. “Being here and performing in any capacity is still very fulfilling, especially at a time when so many artists have lost their jobs or are waiting for things to open back up again,” Merrill said. “I’m really looking forward to when I get to dance down Main Street, USA for the first time.” While her experiences between graduation and Disney were never part of the plan, they expanded Merrill’s abilities as a dancer and were crucial to fulfilling her life-long dream. “Learning those skills was so important for me, and helped immensely at my audition for Disneyland Paris,” she said. “I don't think that I would have gotten as far as I did in the audition without those lessons about character work that I had post-graduation.” Throughout her journey, there were times when Merrill thought about giving up, but the experience has helped her realize the importance of following your dreams. “I just wish that more people believed in themselves enough to chase the dreams that they have,” she said. “It’s not going to be easy — a lot of the time it’s going to be really, really hard — but it’s so worth it. I just want to shout that message from the rooftops.”

The college welcomes new faculty and staff for the 2020-2021 Academic Year

Performing student

As the dean of the BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications, I’m grateful for all the energy and efforts of our faculty, staff and students to contribute in a meaningful way to help alleviate the pain and hurt in our society and communities. Recent events have once again shown me that this college is filled with deep-feeling and compassionate souls. Last year, our college undertook an initiative to create a diversity and inclusion statement. It is a work in progress, headed up by associate deans Amy Jensen and Jeremy Grimshaw, and involves many from around the college. The College of Fine Arts and Communications Diversity and Inclusion Committee has been meeting weekly during Spring term and will continue working together during the 2020-2021 school year. Committee members are charged with working on diversity, inclusion, and accessibility goals established by college and department leaders. I hope as a community we are committed to change, not just making statements. In a recent email, some of our colleagues in the Department of Art expressed much of what I have been feeling. Collectively and individually, I hope we move forward in ways that demonstrate sustained efforts to show love, care and concern for all people. I invite you to read the statements made by President Nelson and President Worthen and consider how you can foster dialogue on these crucial issues. I hope we truly envelop a commitment to the BYU Aims, which state a desired outcome for all of us: “Leading him or her to the ultimate wellspring of charity — the love for others that Christ bestows on his followers.” -Ed Ed Adams Dean, College of Fine Arts and Communications

The center announced 50 winners in various creative disciplines, including visual arts, literature, music composition, film and dance In response to the ongoing circumstances that have impacted individuals across all disciplines, the Center for Latter-day Saint Arts recently announced 50 grant winners to support its artistic community. These grants were awarded in disciplines of visual arts, scholarship, literature, musical composition, film and dance. Thirteen of the grant recipients had ties to the BYU College of Fine Arts and Communications, with faculty, students and alumni being among those 50 recognized. The winners were chosen from hundreds of submissions to the center’s “Art for Uncertain Times” program, which was initiated to provide micro-grants for artists and scholars in the Latter-day Saint art community. The center’s call for submissions aimed to allow scholars and creative artists in any discipline to engage with the goals of the center — to advocate and explore the arts of our culture: visual art, music, literature, film, dance, design and drama. The organization encouraged submissions that related “to the needs of people at this specific moment in time.” The 50 winners each received grants of $250 for the submission of their works, which will be distributed digitally through the center’s website and social media platforms in the near future. In its announcement, the organization emphasized the talent of those who participated in the program. “The Center received hundreds of high-caliber proposals from artists and scholars all over the globe. We asked for a diversity of voices and are delighted by the diversity that we received — in viewpoints, disciplinary methods and geographical origins.” Check out the complete list of grant winners (by discipline) who have ties to the college. Dance Dance | Rachel Barker - “Untitled” Dance | Keely Song - “Covenant Keepers” Film TMA | Barrett Burgin - “Gathered” TMA | Jeff Parkin - “Silver Linings and Compensatory Blessings” Music Music | Jed Blodgett & Andrew Maxfield - “Untitled” Music | Esther Megargel - “Songs of Comfort and Joy for Soprano, Piano and Flute” Music | Joseph Sowa - “Untitled” Visual Art Art | Madeline Rands - 'Untitled' Art | Colby Sanford - “What Is Tiny, What Is Big?” Art | Maddison Colvin - “Threshold (After Sonatine)” Design | Silvia Borja - “Fish Out of Water” Design | Claire Forste - “Sufficient unto the Day” Design | Sarah Robinson - 'The Signs of the Times' Design | Brinnan Schill - “Untitled” Design | Emily Wall - 'Untitled'

Dean Ed Adams shares how those throughout the college have responded to COVID-19

Adams began his first term June 15, 2015 and will serve in the position for another five years