Stories from the Creative Edge
Graduate
Top-10 Fine Arts stories of 2021
As we wind down a(nother) year of unprecedented firsts, it is with gratitude and awe that we look back on the student accomplishments, faculty successes, new appointments and visiting scholars who made 2021 memorable. Read on to see some of the things that kept our...
New survey of scientists & journalists calls for media to cover climate as a crisis
While the term “climate crisis” has been in use by media outlets since 2019 and launch of the global journalistic initiative Covering Climate Now, the term itself has yet to be adopted by all major outlets. A new first-of-its-kind survey, released Nov. 16, has...
Alumni activity this fall
Looking for a good example of the interdisciplinary impact of Fine Arts alumni on the local arts scene? Consider the recent CRD Arts Champion Summit held in December, which included presentations by a wide range of our alumni including Mercedes...
Media & faculty activity this fall
There’s been no shortage of faculty activity beyond our departments this fall, with a wide range of professors and instructors appearing in the media, participating in festivals and exhibitions, or lending their expertise to workshops and symposia. Art History &...
ONC Artist-in-Residence call for grad student applications
Call for Proposals UVic's Faculty of Fine Arts and Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) are calling for graduate student applications for the 2022 ONC Artist-in-Residence program. Note: the application period closes on December 17, 2021. s The Artist-in-Residence will ignite...
Hot new electives for Winter ’22
Students, do you need a fascinating elective for Winter 2022? Fine Arts has you covered, no matter what your faculty or area of study. While we're offering dozens of electives, we're highlighting these four as they're open to all students across campus.The Ongoing Art...
Orion Series presents playwright Marcia Johnson
The Orion Lecture Series in Fine Arts Through the generous support of the Orion Fund in Fine Arts, the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Victoria, is pleased to present: Marcia Johnson "Turning Anger Into Theatre" 12:45 - 1:30 pm (PST) Friday, Nov 26, 2021 Chief Dan...
Staging Equality is making change by building relationships with theatre
If you’ve ever attended a play in the Phoenix Building, odds are good you’ve been inside the Chief Dan George Theatre. Named for the actor and chief of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation whose talent took him beyond North Vancouver to become an Oscar-nominated actor, the...
Fine Arts online open house Nov 17
Do you know someone ready to pursue a creative future? All are welcome to bring questions and inspiration to our free Fine Arts online open house, happening 6:30-7:30pm Wed, Nov 17 via Zoom. Register here. Note: registration closes two hours before the event. About...
Visiting Southam Lecturer: Andrew Nikiforuk
“I believe in getting into hot water: it keeps you clean.” —GK Chesterton As an author, journalist and contributing editor for The Tyee, Andrew Nikiforuk has written about the use—and abuse—of natural resources and wild landscapes in Canada for more than 30...
Jenessa Joy Klukas harnesses the power of the pen
When it comes to wrapping up a writing degree with a flourish, it’s hard to beat Jenessa Joy Klukas. Not only did Klukas finish the final year of her studies interning at the independent media outlet The Tyee as part of the Journalists for Human Rights’ Indigenous...
Join us for a discussion on sustainability & the arts
The climate crisis is one of the most urgent problems of our time, and the arts can play a vital role in helping people better understand its impact. Discover how scholars and researchers in UVic’s Faculty of Fine Arts are responding to today’s defining issues with...
Thinking globally, reporting locally
On October 31, world leaders will gather in Glasgow for COP26—the most important climate change summit to date. But how can Canadian journalists make those global negotiations relevant to their local audiences? Thinking Globally, Reporting Locally: A Conversation on...
Orion Lecture: The Day The World Stops Shopping
We can’t stop shopping. And yet we must. This is the consumer dilemma that noted author J.B. MacKinnon is addressing in this special Department of Writing Orion Lecture. Join us at 2:30pm Tuesday, Oct 19, as MacKinnon speaks to Writing students and the general public....
Climate-crisis sparks new journalism position
Wildfires, droughts, floods, extreme storms: we are living in a time when climate change should be the biggest story of our time—yet, as the recent federal election proved, all too often it doesn’t even make the headlines. As the new Wayne Crookes Professor in...
Student jobs now open!
Looking for on-campus work that won't conflict with your studies? Check out UVic's workstudy program: with 58 student jobs now posted in Fine Arts alone, each of our departments (and some associated units) are offering paid positions that will benefit your academic...
Beadwork as resistance
When it comes to beadwork, a design is created bead by bead, row by row: it’s much the same in writing, where poems and stories are created word by word, line by line. But for award-winning poet, memoirist and University of Victoria writing professor Gregory...
Banting Fellow & Vanier Scholar named in Fine Arts
Fine Arts researchers and creative practitioners Taylor Brook and Troy Sebastian are among UVic's recipients of the prestigious Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships and Vanier Canada Graduate Scholars, "Congratulations to Taylor and Troy," says Acting Dean Allana...
Poetry & motion: Writing alumni Billeh Nickerson
There’s a delightful irony in the fact that the most memorable part of Joe Biden’s inauguration as the oldest president in US history was the reading by the youngest poet to ever appear at such a ceremony. Arguably the highlight of the event, 23-year-old Amanda...
Theatre alum Justin Lee explores cultural hybrids
If the COVID era has shown us anything, it’s that the future of theatre continues to be written. When the pandemic forced the shuttering of performance venues, stages around the world suddenly realized they would have to adapt to survive. Enter the age of mainstage...
Writing MFA Kim Harvey wins GG Award for Drama
On June 1, Syilx & Tsilhqot’in playwright & director Kim Senklip Harvey became the first Indigenous woman to win the Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama for her play Kamloopa: An Indigenous Matriarch Story (Talon Books)—less than a week after receiving...
Congratulations to spring 2021 grads!
Congratulations, Class of 2021—you made it! You are now one of over 9000 Fine Arts alumni worldwide who studied at UVic—and have the distinction of graduating during the most difficult year in our history. "As part of an esteemed group of artists and creative...
New $1000 student award launched
New community impact award Are you a current or graduating UVic Fine Arts undergraduate who's been involved with some community-engaged creative activity in Greater Victoria between Jan 1/20 & May 31/21? If so, you could qualify for $1,000 via our new Community...
Orion Series presents Drew Hayden Taylor
The Orion Lecture Series in Fine Arts Through the generous support of the Orion Fund in Fine Arts, the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Victoria, is pleased to present: Drew Hayden Taylor Playwright, novelist, filmmaker, journalist "Canoeing Down the River of...
Distinguished Alumni Talk: Mercedes Bátiz-Benét on supporting IBPoC voices
When it comes to working in the arts and theatre sectors, IBPoC artists (Indigenous, Black, People of Colour) face a number of barriers due to systemic discrimination—yet IBPoC artists have always created innovative and bold new work. As Puente Theatre’s artistic...
Susie Winter’s feature film screenplay started as student project
It all started with an empty boat floating on a lake. Screenwriter Susie Winters (BFA ’16) recalls driving alongside the vast expanse of Cameron Lake just east of Port Alberni when the image first drifted into her mind, inspiring what would become the screenplay for...
Orion Series presents director & writer Soheil Parsa
The Orion Lecture Series in Fine Arts Through the generous support of the Orion Fund in Fine Arts, the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Victoria, is pleased to present: Soheil Parsa Artistic director, Modern Times Stage Company "Transcending Cultural and Political...
Zoom into our spring Fine Arts open house on March 9
Already enrolled in UVic's Faculty of Fine Arts for the 2021/22 academic year? Still thinking about it? Either way, bring your questions to our free Fine Arts online open house, running 6-7pm Tuesday, March 9 via Zoom. Register for the open house here. Registration...
Orion Series presents poet Louise Halfe
The Orion Lecture Series in Fine ArtsThrough the generous support of the Orion Fund in Fine Arts, the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Victoria, is pleased to present:Louise Bernice Halfe Parliamentary Poet Laureate 3:30 - 5:00 pm (PST) Wednesday, February 24,...
Reading Break student wellness message
With the Winter 2021 Reading Break now upon us, the faculty and staff of Fine Arts offer this short message as a way to remind our students to pause, breathe and consider their own sense of wellness in a very stressful year. As School of Music professor Adam Con tells...
Orion Series presents poet Canisia Lubrin
The Orion Lecture Series in Fine ArtsThrough the generous support of the Orion Fund in Fine Arts, the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Victoria, is pleased to present:Canisia Lubrin Poet, short fiction author 2:30 - 4:00 pm (PST) Monday, February 22, 2021 Free...
$1.875M gift supports environmental and climate journalism
The threat of climate change is the most perilous of our time—especially at the beginning of this new decade, which has been frequently identified as the most crucial for preventing catastrophic consequences. Now, one concerned individual is personally addressing that...