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Five faculty members have each received $10,000 New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) Individual Artist grants to carry out creative projects, including several that have a focus on public service in the arts.

NYSCA also awarded a $40,000 Organizational Support grant to an interdisciplinary art and storytelling collaboration by faculty from the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) and the School of Education and a separate, $20,000 award to Punto de Contacto/Point of Contact Inc.

This is a record-setting achievement for the University, since it marks the second year in a row that five faculty have received the highly competitive NYSCA awards, says Sarah Workman, associate director of research development (humanities) in the Office of Research and College of Arts and Sciences.

Duncan Brown, vice president for research, says the grants represent “an investment in the vibrant and diverse artistic voices of our faculty.”

“The breadth of this year’s awardees reflects our continued excellence in engaged scholarship in the arts, both by scholars working independently and by those working in unique collaborations— from the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Architecture, the College of Visual and Performing Arts and the School of Education,” Brown says.

Individual Artist Grants

Individual Artist grant awardees are:

, associate professor of studio arts and dean emerita of VPA, for an outdoor textile installation, “Interior Landscapes.” She is using the concept of landscape writ large as a metaphor for states of mind to create sanctuary settings for reflection on the environment and the self. The installation will be developed at Stone Quarry Art Park in Cazenovia, New York.

VPA faculty members , associate professor of applied music and performance (organ), and , assistant professor of music composition/theory and history, for their project, “Reimagining the Organ—A Composer Portrait Project by Anne Laver and Natalie Draper.” Draper will write three new musical works that expand and diversify the classical organ repertoire. The pieces will be part of a new commercial recording and a contemporary music festival.

Canary Lab co-directors and VPA faculty members , associate professor of art photography, and��received a grant for their project, “Watershed.” The work reflects on the historical, spiritual and ecological significance of the Mahikannituk (Hudson) River through photography, video, writing and a program of public engagement.

, assistant professor of architecture at the School of Architecture, for the narrative documentary podcast “Here There Be Dragons: Odes(s)a, Film, Media and New Technology.” The podcast explores contemporary urban territories and engages listeners in the concept of security narratives. Season four is about Odesa, Ukraine.

, professor of English in the College of Arts and Sciences, for��“Mutual,”��a novel about multiple generations of a family in New York. The book engages with historical and personal forms of amnesia, notions of belonging, solitude and community.

Organizational Support Grants

The $40,000 Organizational Support grant was awarded to��, assistant professor of art therapy at VPA (as principal investigator), and��, ��assistant professor of educational leadership in the��School of Education (as co-principal investigator). The grant is for their research work and curriculum development project, “This Woman’s Work: Elevating Black Women Voices in CNY Through Visual Storytelling, Freedom Makerspaces and Community Arts.”

They plan to unearth historical and present-day stories regarding abolition, health disparities and anti-Black violence and connect a cohort of oral historians with local artists to create an interactive arts exhibition. They will also co-create open art studio/makerspaces, host intergenerational storytelling workshops and create curricula for public schools and libraries to chronicle the narratives, history and artwork to create a more complete picture of local history through the lived experiences of Black women.

At Point of Contact, the award will support the organization’s annual programs in literacy and visual arts and its work as a forum for community collaboration and open dialogue, says , executive director, cultural engagement for the Hispanic community.