The Art and Art History Department at Sonoma State University is well known for its excellent facilities and degree programs. This spring, the department is hosting an Artist Lecture Series that will take place virtually on Zoom every Wednesday from 12 p.m. to 12:55 p.m. starting Feb. 3, 2021 through May 12, 2021. These lectures are free and open to anyone, the Zoom ID number can be found on the Art and Art History Department website under the spotlight tab. On this tab there is also a list of dates and artists, along with the artists’ websites, so you can check out their work beforehand. 

The Art and Art History Department offers both a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Fine Arts, with a variety of emphases ranging from art history to 3D sculpture and ceramics. According to the department website, “It is the departmental philosophy that a grasp of the history and theory of art is indispensable…”, so this series is a way for students to continue their education with advice and information from professional artists. Assistant Professor of Art Sena Creston is in charge of organizing the lecture series. Creston said, “I chose the artists based on the interests of the students, and intentions of the program; considering the diversity of media, career, and culture.” 

The series will be covering a variety of topics including painting, video, 3D animation, performance and more. From the Art Department website, “The Visiting Artists Lecture Series provides our students with valuable insights and exposure to art professionals and their work.” The first lecture of the series took place Feb. 3, 2021 featuring artist Yashua Klos. Klos is known for his woodblock carvings and more recently, his collages, all inspired by the Black experience and construction of identity. To find more information on Klos, his website can be found on the Art and Art History Department website under Spotlight.

Up next on Feb. 10, 2021 is Snow Yunxue Fu, she is going to touch on her artist practice and some of her artworks. Snow is an international artist based in New York where she is working as an assistant professor of art at New York University Tisch School of the Arts. While Fu is currently working with new media to create art, she is originally a painter. She remains the youngest artist with work displayed at the National Art Museum of China. According to her artist statement, Fu works with 3D software to create, “scenes of experimental abstraction that translate the concept of liminality into the digital experience.” The word liminal pops up quite a bit in Fu’s artist statement in which it is explained that “liminal” is a word common in the field of anthropology. According to anthropologist Victor Turner, liminal is, “the quality of ambiguity or disorientation that occurs in the middle stage of a rite of passage…” which Fu uses to put the viewer in an intersection of the physical, virtual, metaphysical and multi-dimensional, a liminal space.

Students are welcome to interact with the artists after the lecture, with questions and comments. Again, the information regarding artists and dates can be found under the spotlight tab on the Art and Art History Department website along with the Zoom ID number. After Snow’s lecture, there will be 11 more lectures, so be sure to tune in and check out the wonderful art.