Arts & Design Stories & News

UNI junior graphic design major Roshan Subba

A portrait of life in the pandemic

At just 9 years old, Roshan Subba made the incredible journey from a refugee camp in Nepal to Des Moines. Though Subba has few memories of his time in the camp, one thing he remembers is watching other children practicing calligraphy. Subba dreamed of being able to create intricate art like that someday.

Now, he’s a senior graphic design major at UNI and his first solo art show, “Modernism,” is being showcased through June 23 by Waterloo community center COR 220 East.

UNI assistant professor Francesca Soans

UNI’s GBPAC to host sneak preview of new documentary about local musician

UNI’s Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center will host a virtual sneak preview community screening of “Getting That Note Out” a new documentary film by UNI Associate Professor of Digital Media and filmmaker Francesca Soans, at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 9. The screening is co-sponsored by the North End Cultural Center. 

UNI Assistant Director of Campus Services Brian Hadley showcases an ash tree trunk ravaged by the Emerald ash borer.

Rising from the ashes

If you walk around the University of Northern Iowa campus with the right kind of eyes, you can see signs of both an arboreal crisis and the beginning of a new chapter of UNI’s biodiversity.

UNI campus

UNI School of Music to host outdoor concerts on UNI campus

Starting this week, the University of Northern Iowa School of Music will continue its 2020-21 series of outdoor concerts on the UNI campus, weather permitting. 

UNI campus

UNI Gallery of Art to present online Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition

The University of Northern Iowa Gallery of Art and the UNI Department of Art will present the "Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition" from March 29 through April 25.UNI campus

UNI Strayer-Wood Theatre

TheatreUNI announces streamed performance of “It’s Greek to Me”

TheatreUNI will present a virtual performance of “It’s Greek to Me,” which will become available for streaming later this month. 

In this collaborative performance, students will present classical Greek texts, and their personal responses to those texts – exploring themes such as inequality and racism along the way.UNI Strayer-Wood Theatre

The nyan cat

Why did a rainbow cat GIF just sell for nearly $600,000? A UNI art professor explains

Unique pieces of digital art known as NFTs (nonfungible tokens) have begun taking the art world by storm. A special anniversary version of the famous Nyan Cat gif recently sold for $560,000. And this week Christies became the first major auction house to sell an original NFT work of art. InsideUNI asked art history professor Elizabeth Sutton about this trend and what it says about our digital and real-world lives. 

What issues do you see in the future with digital art vs more traditional pieces? And what is art ultimately?   

A new digital fabric printer at UNI in action.

New fabric printer speeding up TAPP clothing production

Fabric printing in UNI’s Textiles and Apparels Program just hit double time.

The program recently acquired a Mutoh ValueJet digital fabric printer that will print fabric for student projects at nearly twice the speed of the previous model, giving students more time to design and assemble their fashion projects and gain valuable hands-on experience in a program that has seen graduates go on to leadership roles at clothing-industry giants like Cabelas and Macy’s. 

UNI campus

UNI Gallery of Art to honor Elena Curris with online biennial design exhibition

The University of Northern Iowa Gallery of Art will present an online exhibit of art produced by Iowa middle and high school students during the pandemic.

Piano

UNI School of Music’s Community Music School to offer UNI Children’s Choir this spring

UNI NEWS SERVICES – The University of Northern Iowa Community Music School will offer an in-person, music-making experience for children this spring. The University of Northern Iowa Children’s Choir (UNICC) is a choral ensemble for students in grades 3 through 7.

Spring rehearsals start Feb. 2 at 6:30 p.m., on the UNI campus.