State of the Arts
NKU School of the Arts - May 3, 2021
Congratulations, Alyssa Wray
Despite continued rave reviews from judges and another incredible performance, Musical Theatre Performance Major Alyssa Wray was eliminated from American Idol by viewers' votes at the end of Sunday's live show. Wray was among three singers sent home as the competition was reduced to seven.
Congratulations on your incredible journey, Alyssa! Everyone at SOTA is very proud of you!
A message from the SOTA Director
Matthew Albritton, SOTA Director
Retirements
Steven Finke
Congratulations to Steven Finke (Visual Arts) on his upcoming retirement, providing 33 years of service to students and NKU. Steven started NKU as an adjunct in 1988, his role as a tenure track faculty in sculpture began in 1993. He transformed the sculpture area into an active studio that enabled students to work with a variety of materials and tools.
Through Steven's dedication over the last three decades, students have benefited from his ability to teach ideas and craft in sculpture. His influence helped countless students gain the confidence to use tools, create meaningful artworks and to think beyond their first ideas.
Steven's own sculptural practice engages with concepts on "mortality” and much of his work is intended to provide viewers to “reflect on impermanence and solitary-ness.” His work has been exhibited extensively at the local, regional, and national level at such venues as C.A.G.E.; Toni Birckhead Gallery; SSNOVA (all Cincinnati, OH); Northern Kentucky University Art Gallery (Highland Heights, KY); Carnegie Arts Center (Covington, KY); Riffe Gallery (Columbus, OH); Southern Ohio Museum (Portsmouth, OH); Akron Art Museum (Akron, OH); Dayton Art Institute (Dayton, OH); SPACES (Cleveland, OH); Huntington Museum of Art (Huntington, WV); and Ruby Green Contemporary Art Center (Nashville, TN). He is the recipient of two Ohio Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowships (1984, 1996) and a Major Artist Fellowship (1988). In 2001, he was awarded an Individual Artist Fellowship from Summerfair, Inc. His artwork is represented in private, corporate, and museum collections.
Lisa Jameson
Congratulations to Lisa Jameson (Visual Arts) on her upcoming retirement, having served 25 years to our students and campus. Lisa has been the coordinator of the art education program, empowering future art educators since 1996. She works regularly with area P-12 teachers, museum educators and local schools on collaborative projects involving university students. In addition, Lisa served as program head for Visual Arts from 2018-2020.
Lisa has received multiple awards for her teaching and art practice including Kentucky Art Educator of the Year Award, several Ohio Arts Council Individual Artist Grants and Higher Education Art Teacher of the Year.
Lisa is a past president of the Kentucky Art Education Association, which provides professional development opportunities for art educators at all levels. Furthermore, Lisa is a visual artist with an MFA in Drawing and MA in art education with teacher certification from the University of Cincinnati and a BFA from Webster College. Her work utilizes figurative, landscape and abstract imagery. As stated by the Weston Art Gallery in her exhibition On the Way to Morning states her “drawings evoke a dream-like state and provide a series of guideposts as we travel life’s journey.” Her work is included in many collections, including the Cincinnati Art Museum.
David Knight
Faculty and Staff Accomplishments
Rachael Banks
Tracey Bonner & Jeaunita Olowe
Joan Brummer & Candice van Loveren Geis
Katherine Colborn
Corrie Danieley
Rick Endres
Rick Endres (SOTA Events and Publicity Manager) was nominated and recognized as a part of NKU's Norse Uppreciation. Rick has found so many ways to be so effective in the remote environment. He has approached the past 9 months as an opportunity. He has continuously brought forth new ideas and new processes to make his job more effectively, and in doing so, has made SOTA more effective. The pandemic has hit the visual and performing arts especially hard as we have given up audiences and many of our in-person operations. Rick has remained responsive and effective in getting our online productions, performances, and exhibitions online and disseminated to as broad an audience as possible.
William Hogg
John Zappa
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Connect with Us
Email: sota@nku.edu
Website: nku.edu/sota
Location: Northern Kentucky University, Louie B Nunn Drive, Highland Heights, KY, USA
Phone: (859) 572-5879
Facebook: facebook.com/nkusota
Twitter: @nkusota