Stories from the Creative Edge
Undergrad
The freelance life of Jenessa Joy Klukas
Given the 24-hour global news cycle, we’re living in a time of rapid media consumption, but freelance writer Jenessa Joy Klukas is finding success by keeping her focus tight and building relationships one story at a time. A recent Department of Writing graduate,...
Theatre grad Markus Spodzieja’s kosher journey
While Stephen Sondheim made the Baker a central character in his musical Into The Woods, theatre isn't exactly filled with plum roles for those who love to bake. But in the case of Department of Theatre grad Markus Spodzieja, he went from the stage to starting a...
Trans queer UVic alumna named Rhodes Scholar
There’s getting a great education, and then there’s what you do with it. Canada’s first trans woman Rhodes scholar has big plans for both. University of Victoria graduate Julia Levy is one of 11 young Canadians—the only one in BC—chosen for the prestigious...
Fine Arts active with 5 Days of Action
UVic's 5 Days of Action is back! Running Nov 14-18, Five Days of Action: 365 Days of Commitment is UVic’s annual free, week-long event aimed at amplifying the work groups, units and organizations are doing to create a more diverse, inclusive and equitable campus and...
A coding career composed of science and sound
When Calgary-based Logan Wood was looking for a leading post-secondary music and computer science degree program, he quickly realized that there was only real choice for him. “In comparing programs across the country, UVic stood out for me,” he says. Despite landing...
Fine Arts well-represented at 2022 GVRA Awards
For over 50 years, Fine Arts has been an incubator for young artists, technicians, arts administrators, volunteers and audience members. And while our alumni and faculty members continue to make a vital impact on Victoria’s arts community, it's also important to...
Faculty Equity Survey
UVic’s Faculty of Fine Arts is conducting an Equity Review in preparation for Strategic Planning. We want to hear from members of the Fine Arts community to understand what we are doing well and what else we need to do to become a place where everyone is...
Young Alumni Lunch & Learn sessions engage current students
While Fine Arts has no shortage of national and internationally renowned alumni at the peak of their careers, finding meaningful ways to engage our more recent graduates remains a priority for the faculty. With that in mind, this year we created a new “Young Alumni...
Cello donation creates a musical legacy
One of the remarkable opportunities offered to School of Music students is the ability to perform on celebrated instruments for the duration of their studies. One such is the Ferdinand Gaglianojilus Nicolaifecit Neap cello, built in Naples, Italy, in 1779. Most...
Sharing fears and truths about climate change
Crookes Professor Sean Holman (right) with Writing student Sandra IbrahimRecent climate-related disasters—from heatwaves and wildfires to floods and hurricanes—make it clear that we need to prepare for climate change, while also trying to prevent it. Journalists and...
Best in her class: Victoria Medal winner Caitlin Wareing-Oksanen
Caitlin Wareing-Oksanen with Dr Allana Lindgren, Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts Students come to UVic for a variety of reasons: some because it’s close (or far) from home, others because of a certain program or faculty member. For outstanding Art History &...
Visual arts grad Dieu Anh Hoang has designs on life
If you ask international student Dieu Anh Hoang what aspect of her undergraduate degree had the biggest impact on her, she’ll tell you it wasn’t the pandemic, it wasn’t her co-op terms and it wasn’t even earning her BFA in Visual Arts with honours: it was actually a...
Annual BFA exhibit returns to in-person format
Given the shifting nature of life on campus recently, it’s hard to think of a better title for this year’s Visual Arts BFA exhibit than Subject to Change. Featuring the work of 32 graduating artists whose academic experience has been very much that since 2020, there’s...
Young Alumni Lunch & Learn Series: Finding Meaningful Work in the Arts
Everyone wants to find a relevant job after graduation, but what are the actual steps you’ll need to take to get there? How do you make connections and learn to network? How important can volunteering be to career development? What career assistance is available to...
Meet Shakespeare’s Women
The cast of Shakespeare's Women (all photos by Dean Kalyan)With the recent International Women's Day celebrations, the final Phoenix Theatre play of our academic year—Libby Appel's Shakespeare's Women—seems doubly appropriate. Featuring the Bard's most iconic leading...
Young Alumni Lunch & Learn Series: Are You Media Ready?
Whatever your creative practice, it's essential that you tell the right story about yourself—and have the kind of social media profile that shows you're serious about your craft. Join a recent grad for this insider-look at best practices when it comes to working with...
BC Arts Council Funding 101
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8LB8TFPdGU Curious about funding your creative projects? Wondering how to apply for grants? Get to know the BC Arts Council—the provincial funding agency for arts & culture—in this Q&A info session aimed at upper-level...
BC Arts Council Funding 101
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8LB8TFPdGU Curious about funding your creative projects? Wondering how to apply for grants? Get to know the BC Arts Council—the provincial funding agency for arts & culture—in this Q&A info session aimed at upper-level...
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...
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...
2021 Student Community Impact Award winners
The Faculty of Fine Arts is proud to announce the three recipients of our inaugural Fine Arts Student Community Impact Awards, presented as part of the annual Greater Victoria Regional Arts Awards on Oct 1 at a live event held at Sidney’s Winspear Centre. Each...
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...
New accordion scholarship offers keys to the future
Visit any music academy in Eastern Europe, Russia or China and you’ll find numerous programs created specifically to study the accordion. Not so in North America, where it still doesn’t get the respect it deserves as a symphonic instrument. At UVic, however, that...
Violin donation offers 250-year-old gift
Some gifts transcend time, as current School of Music undergraduate Iryna Peleshchyshyn discovered when she received the gift of a treasured 18th century violin to play during her degree program. The French violin—crafted in 1748 and valued at nearly $35,000—was...
New photo lab develops student skills
Thanks to cell phones, we live in an era where everyone has a camera in their pocket—but that doesn’t necessarily mean everyone is a photographer. “I keep having this conversation with students as photography evolves and becomes more ubiquitous,” says Laura Dutton, an...
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...
Making positive change with Student Life Grants
When Black fourth-year School of Music saxophone major Baylie Adams wanted to make a community impact during February 2021's Black History Month, she looked to her own instrument for inspiration. “We were only hearing about Black composers in terms of jazz music, so I...
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 curator Fahmida Suleman
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: Dr. Fahmida Suleman "Islamic Art & the Museum: A Curatorial Odyssey" 4:00 - 5:30 pm (PST)...
Annual Visual Arts BFA exhibit spotlights work created under COVID conditions
Even during a normal year, it can be a challenge for our Visual Arts students to complete their degree requirements and present a finished body of creative work while also planning the annual BFA grad show—a student-organized public exhibition which normally attracts...
Phoenix Theatre livestreams Problem Child
Phoenix Theatre is excited to be presenting their only public mainstage production of the 20/21 academic year: George F. Walker's Problem Child, running at 8pm March 24-27 via their new broadcast-quality livestream. Tickets $15 per household via the Phoenix box...
Orion Series presents Visiting Artist Curtis Santiago
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: Curtis Santiago Multidisciplinary artist, musician 7:30 - 9:00 pm (PST) Wednesday, March 24 2021...