News
Today, Thursday, April 24, is #WWUGiveDay and we're asking you to support the arts and arts education at Western.
Art Interventions in Brazil is a combined Art History and Studio Art program taking place in Fall 2025. The course focuses on exploring modern and contemporary art in three major Brazilian cities: São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Belo Horizonte. Students will learn about printmaking tactics, work with local art studios, and visit the São Paulo Biennial and Inhotim art collection.
WWU Music grad Cami Gates led her Philharmonic Orchestra from Redmond High School to second place in the American String Teachers Association (ASTA) National Orchestra Festival, held in Atlanta, Ga., March 19-22.
Whatcom Museum will present "Not the Whole Picture," a comprehensive exhibition of Garth Amundson and Pierre Gour’s collaborative work and the first major museum exhibition for the Bellingham-based artists. The exhibition will be a visual compilation of 35 years of photography, painting, and mixed media installation.
In "Restorative Practices in Education Through the Arts," co-authors Zoë Fejeran and Olivia Spiers build on their expertise as art museum educators and researchers to suggest ways to combine diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion (DEAI) principles with trauma-aware practices to enhance art-related experiences for students and other learners.
Join us for the Metro Art Access information session Tuesday, March 4, 2025. This is a 6-credit course for Art majors and non-majors, where students visit New York City to tour art and meet with artists.
A physician discovers that a town’s water source is contaminated and threatens the public health. The difficult truth could threaten the town’s economy – and when the whistleblower refuses to back down from the truth he is labeled an ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE. Auditions are March 3 - sign up now!
Milica Jelača Jovanović, pianist and Professor of Piano at Western was a soloist for the rarely performed work Piano Concert No. 1, by Shostakovich.
Study in NYC with WWU Art faculty! Immerse yourself in the study of art, and get credit towards your degree. Come to the info session on Thursday, February 20 at 3 p.m. in FA 202 - the Photo Lab Seminar Room. Open to all majors and no prerequisites.
Western's Professor of Photography, Elizabeth Ransom, is co-hosting an online photography conference. It's free, and everyone is welcome! The Art of Experimentation runs Saturday and Sunday, February 8 - 9, from 9am - 12pm PST. It was organized by Women Alternative Photography Group and Folk House Darkroom, which is based in Bristol, UK.
Assistant Professor of Art Education Ashley Mask joined fellow Columbia University doctoral alumna Rébecca Bourgault at the Graduate Research in Art Education ("GRAE") Conference in October to deliver keynotes and hold dialogue with attendees. The conference provides a forum for doctoral students from Penn State University, Ohio State University and Columbia University Teachers College to discuss issues and developments in art education that are being opened up by their dissertation research.
Design students from Western created original content to be projected on the historic Tile Tank each night at the Bellingham Fire & Story event, taking place at the Waterfront District January 23-25.
Western's Associate Professor of Art Ryan W. Kelly will have some of his work featured in the Museum of Northwest Art's new Ceramic Invitational exhibit in La Conner from Jan. 25 through May 11
The six-member cast of the Seattle Children's Theatre production of "The Snow Queen" features Western Washington University Theatre alums Brenda Joyner and Teague Parker, as well as Rich Brown, Professor of Acting. The production runs November 27, 2024 through January 5, 2025 in the newly-renovated Charlotte Martin Theatre in Seattle.
Professor Seiko Purdue held and exhibition at Studio Kura in Fukuoka, Kyushu island, Japan, featuring a new installation piece.
The May 2024 production of "The Anonymous Lover" by WWU Opera garnered a tie for second place in Division II in the National Opera Association's national opera production competition. "Our students continue to blow me away," says director Heather Dudenbostel. "I’m so happy for their work to be recognized in this way!"
Lainie Pennington, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance graduate from Western, tells us about her recent accomplishments with Margaret Jenkins Dance Company - and a day in the life of a dancer.
Designer Justene Merriman describes how they put together the image for the play Hurricane Diane, used in promotions for the play.
WWU Theatre alumna worked on storytelling for Destiny 2, Magic, Baldur’s Gate 3, and others
The Western Washington University Percussion Ensemble performed at the 2024 Edeta Arts International Percussion Festival in Lliria, Spain this summer. The Percussion Ensemble is a uniquely collaborative, welcoming, and supportive group, combining music majors and non-majors from all over campus to share a space for music making.
This year's Grants for Artist Projects (GAP) invested $97,500 in 65 Washington State artists. Among them is a gem at Western: Assistant Professor of Flute and Woodwinds Area Coordinator, Mehrdad Gholami.
After winning Juror's Choice Award from the Whatcom Museum last year, BFA Studio Art alumna Renee Noelle Cheesman is a proudly featured Bellingham artist at the Cordata Gallery.
SOUND.OUT.RADIO is back and we’re worldwide broadcasting this week from Florence, Italy, with the first of 5 segments featuring original soundscapes and fresh tracks by Western's own artists, living and learning abroad with Professors Cara Jaye and Sasha Petrenko, part of Arts Italy Global Learning 2024.
Auditions for "L’amant Anonyme (The Anonymous Lover)", by Joseph Bologne Chevalier de Saint-Georges, will be held December 4, 2023.
Two Art classes took a field trip to tour exhibitions, archives, and visit with professionals from their field of study at the Whatcom Museum. Those professionals also happen to be Western alumni and long time treasures of the city of Bellingham, making the experience even more enriching.
"The Storyteller" by Sara Jean Accuardi is a beautifully heart-breaking story set against a magical space where anything can happen at the whim of The Lady, who weaves the story to life in front of the audience quite imperfectly to create a tale of survival, resilience, and love that could (should?) have been. Sign up to audition by Friday, November 1 at 3 p.m.
"Untitled Tempest" will be a devised production inspired by/responding to William Shakespeare’s "The Tempest." "Untitled Tempest" will be created by Christina Gutierrez-Dennehy alongside members of the production team and 8-10 actors. Register to audition by October 18 at 3 p.m. to join this unique production!
Nehemiah Jones is the third in a succession of WWU student composers who have been selected to collaborate in the Seattle Opera's Jane Lang Davis Creation Lab, formed in 2020 to present new opera productions by local composers and librettists.
Fiber arts and painting fans have two opportunities to see the work of Western alum Lena Miltimore in September and October. Her work is at the Inn at Lynden through September 28, and will be featured at Altitude 15 on October 4 and 5 during Olympia Arts Walk. Miltimore graduated in 2024 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art.
Music faculty members Pat Nelson, bassoon, and Jennifer Weeks, oboe, are starting their third year presenting professional chamber music at the beautiful Hotel Leo in downtown Bellingham. The Bellingham Chamber Music Society concert series provides regional musicians a place to demonstrate their skills and share their love of chamber music.
Dancer Karen Kao graduated from Western with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance in Summer of 2024. After studying and dancing on the West coast for five years, she looked for opportunities on the East coast to further her dance career. Karen describes her experience auditioning for the company Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers ("KYL/D") in Philadelphia, and what it's been like starting work with them.
Kuntz and Company artists and community members - including several Western faculty, staff and alumni - collaborate to bring a new dance performance "WAITING" to the Firehouse Arts and Events Center October 3-6th.
Meet Diane, a permaculture gardener dripping with butch charm. She’s got supernatural abilities owing to her identity – the Greek God Dionysius – and she’s returned to the modern world to gather mortal followers and restore the earth to its natural state. Auditions for Madeline George's "Hurricane Diane" are September 28. Sign up now!
In the summer of 2024, Western's Department of Theatre and Dance will once again partner with Seattle Children's Theatre to create a live theatre workshop they're calling "Summer Test Kitchen."
Theatre professionals, students, and faculty members will work together to develop two pieces by SCT's Artistic Director Idris Goodwin.
This summer, the National Endowment for the Humanities awarded a project stipend to Art History Professor Jacqueline Witkowski for her research and writing on textile and fiber art in South America since 1964.
A who's-who of Western faculty, staff, alums, and students are all working together to create the 2024 season of Fairhaven Summer Repertory Theatre which will offer live theatre six nights a week from June 25 through July 21 at the FireHouse Arts and Events Center in Fairhaven, WA.
This summer, join artist Kate Sechrist to learn Fibers and Fabrics in Art 160. This course is open to non-majors, community members, and visiting students.
WWU Dance Instructor Ethan Rome's piece "The Fell Tree Whispers Beyond the Forest" will be featured at the Seattle International Dance Festival on June 11. The piece originally premiered at the 2024 Dance in Concert performance at Western.
Geheim Gallery featured the exhibition Green River, by Art BFA alumna Elly Minagawa. If you missed it, images from the exhibition are still viewable and for sale on the gallery website.
Check out this summer lineup! All of this summer's Design courses are open to non-majors and community members.
Professors Jackie Witkowski and Julia Sapin took eight Art History students to Seattle on May 17 to present at the University of Washington Undergraduate Research Symposium. The students gave excellent papers, inspiring many questions and comments. It was a fantastic day exemplifying the intellectual rigor of our students and their research.
Each spring, Western Washington University hosts an annual, week-long celebration of outstanding student research and creative works, called "Scholar's Week." Art History students have created works of original scholarship which they will present as displays, individual presentations, and panel discussions on Thursday, May 16 from 10:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Fine Arts 232. The presentations are free and open to the public.
Auditions for "Masks Play! II Keep Playing!" are May 18. A devised work using the Six Basic Emotions masks and traditional Commedia masks, techniques and characters, the cast of "Masks Play! II Keep Playing!" will collectively devise original short scenarios that will be improvised in performances in Fall 2024.
Western Washington University’s Department of Design is excited to announce that Bachelor of Fine Arts students Cam Gibb, Elliot Fogarty, Elsa Haddock, Owen Paznokas, Jade Blue, and Taylor Truong all won American Advertising Awards. All students won in the category: Elements Of Advertising–Film, Video & Sound–Animation or Special Effects.
As a public university, Western is committed to being accessible and affordable to any student who wants to pursue higher education. We believe deeply that our students’ unique experiences and backgrounds are their greatest strengths—it’s what makes our community of inclusive teaching and learning thrive. Your support makes all the difference.
This is an excellent opportunity to work with professional artists from Seattle, make connections with the leadership of Seattle Children’s Theatre, gain experience developing new work, and get paid for your contribution! We hope you will submit an application.
See Seiko Purdue's installation of fibers and natural dyes at Queen, a unique exhibition space that is the same dimension as a queen-sized bed.
Hudson's work delves into the intricate relationship between humans and their environment, evoking a powerful sense of interconnectivity through her meticulous creations using carefully curated cuttings.
Cynthia Camlin’s latest work draws inspiration from sites in the coastal Southeast where she grew up. The paintings in "BOG" call attention to the unique ecosystems called Carolina Bays. These oval-shaped bogs, shallow lakes and savannas once numbered in the thousands: a vast pattern of oval depressions, aligned northwest to southeast.
Every year, Professor of Art History Julia Sapin takes the capstone Art History 475 students to Seattle to meet with alumni. This year was extra special: they gathered at Chihuly Garden and Glass (CGG) on Monday, April 15.
Continuing students in Art Studio and Art Education majors are invited to apply for two artist residencies this summer at Western's Shannon Point Marine Center (SMPC) located in Anacortes, WA. The residency will support two students who are interested in communicating marine science and/or climate change issues through their creative work.
The Department of Art and Art History and Fairhaven College present a lecture by Robert Yerachmiel Sniderman on Wednesday, April 17 at 5:00 to 6:00 pm in Miller Hall room 152.
A compelling exploration of trans art, activism, and resistance. Spanning over four centuries, this volume brings together a wide-ranging selection of artworks and artifacts that highlight the under-recognized histories of trans and gender-nonconforming communities.
Dance faculty Pam Kuntz's humorous duet "Is This Seat Taken?" was awarded a "Gala Selection" for the festival by the adjudicators at the American College Dance Association Conference in Utah. Attendees also enjoyed a surprise blizzard.
Join us on March 13 at 6 p.m. to learn more about our Global Study trip to NYC this summer!
Associate Professor of Printmaking Lisa Turner opened two solo exhibitions early in 2024. Her exhibition "Bodily Impressions” ran through January 26 at the Thompson Gallery of Furman University. The exhibition is now on display through February at Tennessee Tech in the Joan Derryberry Art Gallery.
Western is thrilled to announce that Trey McLaughlin, a renowned gospel singer, composer, and director, will be visiting the campus for a week-long residence this February.
Taught by Dana Ollestad, this three-week intensive covers the principles of manual motion picture filmmaking against the backdrop of understanding the contemporary socio-political and capital fascination with nostalgia, resulting in a deeper awareness of where these images come from, how they are made, and the way they are used to shape and market in contemporary society.
Professor of Art Cara Jaye is one of ten artists featured in "Fibonacci Footprint," an exhibition at Bellevue College Gallery Space exploring global warming through paintings, sculpture, installation, and video. The exhibition runs February 9 through April 11.
Arts of Italy is an intensive studio course that takes place in central and northern Italy. In this class we will explore Italian art and culture focusing on the arts and architecture in Florence, Tuscany, and Venice.
Ashley Mask's article "Mentoring Up, Down, and Sideways: Reciprocity and Care in the Museum Education Field" offers new frameworks for reconsidering the role of mentoring in the museum education field; both for newcomers and for museum professionals with many years of experience.
“Katazome: Japanese textile art from the US (Pacific Northwest)” curated by Seiko Atsuta Purdue, is an extension of the winter 2023 exhibition at the Whatcom Museum. The Italian exhibition is open from December 1 through 23 at at the Textile Museum of Chieri in Turin, Italy.
Renee Noelle Cheesman, who graduated from Western in 2017 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art, was awarded Third Prize in the juried exhibition "Acts of Healing and Repair" at the Whatcom Museum in Bellingham.
Get ready for MetroArtAccess: NYC 2024! Join the info session on Wednesday, January 24 for the Study Abroad details.
Western students in the Design program got to work on projects with big name professional Multimedia Designer Peter Clark, AKA Enternull.
As part of the First Fridays Art Walk for this month, Western's Design students worked with Design Alumni to project their designs onto the side of the Herald building.
This year's holiday cups from Starbucks "Share the Joy" thanks to Western Design Alumna Bridget Shilling.
Students from Pam Kuntz's "Dance for people with Parkinson's disease and other neurological disorders" class at the Firehouse Arts and Events Center collaborated with Western students in "Choreography I" to create original movement.
Auditions for Bekah Brunstetter's play "The Cake" are Friday, January 12 from 6 to 9 p.m. Directed by Eva Gil. Register to audition by Thursday, January 11 at 5 p.m.
Auditions for The Duchess of Malfi will be held on Wednesday, January 17 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. in room 399 in the Performing Arts Center. Please come prepared with two contrasting monologues in verse or heightened language (think Shakespeare, Marlowe, Greek tragedy, etc). Total audition time should not exceed 3 minutes.
The College of Fine and Performing Arts was incorporated in 1976 thanks to a group of faculty, a year before Western became a university.
Western's Art faculty, students, and art and climate scholars from throughout the Puget Sound region have come together to present an exhibition and symposium.
Recent Studio Art graduate Tesla Kawakami, Professor Cara Jaye, and Associate Professor Sasha Petrenko are selected artists among 20 whose work is featured in the Museum of Northwest Art's "Surge 2023." "Surge: Mapping Transition, Displacement, and Agency in Times of Climate Change" is an exhibition drawing attention to climate change and its tangible effects on the Northwest’s Coastal communities.
Ashley Mask, Assistant Professor of Art & Museum Education authored a chapter in "A New Role for Museum Educators." Mask's contribution centers the stories of three novice art museum educators in order to provoke and produce new ways of understanding how novice art museum educators find their way in the field.
Auditions for "Masks Play!" are November 4. A devised work using the Six Basic Emotions masks and traditional Commedia masks, techniques and characters, the cast of "Masks Play!" will collectively devise original short scenarios that will be improvised in performances in February 2024.
The Strategic National Arts Alumni Project (SNAAP) report on Western Washington University shows that arts alumni are satisfied with their education and careers, and recommend the experience.
Open to all students, performer Srivani Jade presents interactive multicultural learning opportunities on Friday, November 17th. This follows a Musicultural Series concert by the Srivani Jade Ensemble the evening before.
“Asteroid Autopsy” is a series of gouache paintings by Studio Art faculty member Christopher Hartshorne that suggest sci-fi narratives through alien forms and ambiguous text. The paintings are on view for the month of October during Brazen Shop + Studio hours, Tuesday through Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Advanced choreography students will be auditioning for their pieces in "Winter Dances" performed on the Mainstage Jan 25 through 27, 2024.
Inspired by the poetry of Jessica Ardis and Helen Scholtz's photographs of water, eighteen dancers ages 19 to 79, under the direction of Pam Kuntz, have created TIDAL - a piece about water...or "a piece about influence and connection, inevitability and change." The work is set to an original sound score by WWU composition professor Charles Halka.
Auditions for "Ride the Cyclone" will be held on Saturday, September 30. "Ride the Cyclone" is a musical and the second installment in Jacob Richmond’s “Uranium Teen Scream Trilogy.” In this hilarious and outlandish story, the lives of six teenagers from a Canadian chamber choir are cut short in a freak accident aboard a roller coaster.
Five Western Washington University dance students and three Western faculty joined dancers from Italy, Chile, and Colombia for an intensive residency in Arezzo, Italy. The students and faculty are part of a research program exploring dance and somatic practices called "Moving environment."
The University of Washington School of Art, Art History, and Design announced the appointment of Western alum Henry Jackson-Spieker as assistant professor in the Division of Art. Jackson-Spieker will begin teaching in the Fall of 2023 as the Dale Chihuly Endowed Chair of Glass.
Daniel Geiszler, Charlotte Offin, and Montana Siddle have each won a Student Addy for the American Advertising Awards, Seattle, 2022. Geiszler and Offin won in the category: Elements of Advertising, Animation or Special Effects. Siddle won in the category: Sales & Marketing, Sales Promotion.
"Misconceptions" is the story of a woman who dares to search for answers "wherever they take her." It is a dramatic inquiry into the performance of fact and fiction; an exploration of how verbatim theater, performance art, and magical realism illuminate reality. This is Rich's third time performing with Blessed Unrest, along with "Lying" (2014) and "The Snow Queen" (2017). Rich is now an associate member of the company. Photos by Maria Baranova Photography
This online course executes a survey of Hip-Hop through the study of the major works of Hip-Hop Music's most influential artists. The course will cover the history, culture and influence of the art form; from the beginning as a Black inner-city youth movement of the early 1970's to a major popular culture center in the early 21st century.
Explore the music that shaped the 20th century. Jazz is an iconic, originally American artform. Jazz 202 is offered online asynchronous in Summer 2023 at Western Washington University.
The best part of working with ceramics at Western Washington University, according to studio art majors and ceramics club members Gabe Rubanowitz and Kasey Maniulit, isn’t its expansive nature or even the act of creating. Rather, it’s getting to work with Ryan Kelly, the club’s academic advisor. Read more of this story by Kumiko Juker of The Front.
Register by May 27 at 5 p.m. to audition for Noel Coward's "Hay Fever," directed by Evan Mueller. Auditions are open to all Western students.
Video auditions for “The Snow Queen” due May 8. Submit your audition now!
The B_Gallery is seeking exhibition proposals for Fall 2023. Applications are due May 20. For complete application instructions and to submit, visit the B_Gallery website.
Lainie Pennington’s choreographed work “All the Old Familiar Places” was selected for the prestigious Gala concert at the American College Dance Association (“ACDA”) Festival in Salt Lake City. Lainie's piece was also one of the only undergraduate student pieces chosen for the concert, which otherwise featured graduate students, faculty and guest artists.
In his exhibition Interstitial Volume, Seattle-based artist Henry Jackson-Spieker presents a series of installations that uniquely integrate themselves into the studio’s architecture.
Michelle Bates, author of Plastic Cameras: Toying with Creativity joins us for an exclusive interview where we ask her about her experience with Holga, writing her book, personal and professional photography and for advice to photography students.
Guest Artist Toni Pasion will be choreographing for this spring's "Dance in Concert." Come to the auditions on Tuesday, January 31 at 6 p.m. at the Commissary Studios at Western.
The Western Gallery on the campus of Western Washington University presents “Arbitrary Borders: Works by artists of color in Washington’s State Art Collection” from January 5 through March 17, 2023.
Whatcom Museum’s exhibition “Katazome Today: Migrations of a Japanese Art” presents contemporary visions of a unique and historically significant Japanese textile-dyeing process. The exhibition is co-curated by Seiko A. Purdue, Professor in Fibers/Fabrics and Western alum Amy Chaloupka, Curator of Art at the Whatcom Museum.
When an injury took WWU Women's Basketball player Dani Iwami off the courts, her student journey took an interesting turn. Along the way she connected with Jennifer Anable and Ryan Kelly of WWU Art & Art History and discovered a passion she didn't know she had.
On Thursday, December 1 at 5 p.m. the Western Gallery presents "Resistance & Resiliency: Accounts from Japanese American Incarceration Camps of WWII." This event welcomes two representatives of Nikkei Northwest, Fumio Otsu and Gail Kuromiya, to speak about the Japanese Incarceration Camps of World War II.
Associate Art Professor Lisa Turner's work "Plastic Bodies" is on display until January 30, 2023 at 345 Boren Ave N. in Seattle as part of Shunpike's Storefront Program.
The WWU spring 2022 opera production of Puccini’s Suor Angelica and Carlisle Floyd’s Slow Dusk was awarded Second Place in Division II of the National Opera Association’s Opera Production Competition. This is the principal opera competition for university and conservatory programs across the United States.
Savannah LeCornu, WWU alumna, ’14, brings multiple talents to Western and the surrounding community. She works on Theatre productions at WWU and Mt Baker Theatre, and her main focus of creating diverse art that is special to her indigenous relatives and that anyone can afford to enjoy.
We are currently looking for guest DJs, designers, artists, musicians and sound designers to become part of our all volunteer army of sonic liberation.
WWU Dance is partnering with Kuntz and Company to present "Documenting Grace: a Film Series," beginning Sunday, November 13. The series of six films was selected to portray dance in its power to give voice to people through movement.
Bellingham's Circa Pottery hosts the work of Art & Art History's Ryan Kelly for the Friday, November 4 ArtWalk. Find the alley entrance between Commercial and Cornwall.
BFA Studio Art alum Debbi Kenote's works appear in five upcoming or current exhibitions in Toronto, Beijing, Oakland, Connecticut, and Seattle. Image: Debbi Kenote, Anemone, 2022, Acrylic on dyed canvas over shaped stretcher bar, 25 x 25 in. (63.5 x 63.5 cm)
"Being vulnerable and showing up as my true self and having others recognize that and accept me fully for who I am makes me feel liberated."
At 14 feet tall and 63 feet wide, "Root to Rise" is the biggest painting Christen Mattix has ever created, although she did knit a rope of yarn from Bellingham's South Hill to Bellingham Bay — a feat that took more than three years.
A brief guide to help ensure you and your fellow audience members have the best experience possible.
Sign up by November 11 to audition for "Street Scene" - an American Opera by Kurt Weill and Langston Hughes - jointly staged by Music, Theatre, and Dance.
Sign up by 10 p.m. on October 21 to audition for "what the Gods gave me," written by WWU alum Eryn Elyse McVay.
Western Washington University’s Department of Design is proud to announce that 2022 graduates, Isabel Barni, Jacqueline Karis, Sybil Roberts, Joshua Shinoda, Charlie Sperry, Mavis Yao, and current seniors, Charlotte Offin and Daniel Geiszler, have won awards for their projects.
Music ensemble auditions are OPEN - September 19 and 20. Get in touch with us to learn more!
"We spent the last year working on our website, our logo, gathering musicians, dreaming up our first season, finding a new home."
Macklemore is rocking center stage but we’re all eyes for alum and 2021-2022 WWU Hip-Hop faculty Cieon White dancing in the newly released video.
Color perception is both nature and nurture. Take blue: In psychological terms, our response to blue evokes tranquility, serenity, and safety. Nowadays these associations are used purposefully by many financial institutions in their logos. And yet, there’s “feeling blue.”
Congratulations to our Outstanding Graduates from the College of Fine and Performing Arts, including: Emma Rose DeSantis, Outstanding Graduate of Dance, who worked with contemporary dance theatre Whyteberg based in LA for her Bachelor's of Fine Arts in Dance Capstone performance.
In four short years, Alex made incredible improvements as a musical performer; Jordan brought an infectious sense of enthusiasm and eagerness to learn to the classroom, to performance ensembles, and to the offices of his professors.
With a major in theatre arts and minors in music, arts enterprise and cultural innovation, and honors interdisciplinary studies, Aidyn is a performance artist who has held leading roles on stage and behind the scenes. Her performance in “Henry V” earned an Irene Ryan Nomination from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival.
Carly Cloward has been an incredible leader in Theatre as she participated in both departmental productions as well as student clubs and community performances, performing and writing works for Plays4Us, regularly volunteering to direct scenes outside of her own course work, and staying active in STP and Dead Parrots Society rehearsals and shows.
Playwrights Leonard and Losansky were intentional about bringing their own experiences to light in a play that focused on the queer community without having the plot be mired in trauma — and that included bringing the stories of real people into the mix.
Richard Hodges, DMA, joins the faculty of the Music Department in the Fall of 2022 as the new Director of Voice Studies.
Ryan Dudenbostel, Western's Director of Orchestral Studies, will host a series of virtual pre-concert talks for the prestigious annual Bellingham Festival of Music's 2022 season.
Paul Bain will join the music faculty at Western Washington University this fall as a visiting Assistant Professor of Music and the Interim Director of Bands.
WWU Student Comp code for opening night is STUDENT22 - Tickets in advance at bellinghamtheatreworks.org, or purchase at the door with ID.
Learn the basics of audio recording, mixing, and editing, the underlying principles of MIDI, the ins and outs of analog and digital synthesis, as well as the fascinating history of electronic music creators, performers, engineers, instruments, devices, and more!
You don't need a ten-gallon hat to register - you don't need a belt buckle the size of a license plate.
Western students will have the opportunity to present their own art for social justice pieces during the informal performances at the culmination of the residency with NYC dance artist Briana Reed.
All students won in the category: Elements of Advertising, Animation or Special Effects.
We are honored to present Gabrielle Kazuko Nomura Gainor (’10) the College of Fine and Performing Arts Distinguished Alumni Award for 2022!
Director of Dance Susan Haines has been selected by the Dance Studies Association to present at the their annual conference in Vancouver, B.C. in October of 2022.
The Western Washington University Department of Design announces Design Days 2022! With events already in full swing, there's plenty to take in.
Thanks to Monica Gutchow, Mrs. Carole Hoerauf, the Office of the Dean of the College of Fine and Performing Arts, and the Western Washington University Foundation for supporting the work of our Dance students.
Hear about Rashawn’s journey from WWU, to Chicago, to LA working professionally on stage and screen (including South Side on HBO Max).
WWU Dance is bringing in internationally known artist Briana Reed to set a new piece on our students. We hope you will be able to participate in this residency.
The Department of Theatre and Dance will be holding auditions for William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" on May 13 and 14. Professor of Theatre Mark Kuntz will direct the production. Performances are set for Fall Quarter 2022.
Do you dream about running your own gallery creating groundbreaking art programming to encourage and support artists in your community?
“I had weekly meetings with Aric [Mayer] and Lucas [Senger]. They helped me develop the idea behind HodWall way back before I graduated college when The Blue Room wasn't a thing yet.”
The Arts Enterprise and Cultural Innovation minor is intended to enhance the College of Fine and Performing Arts ("CFPA") majors, whose career paths place them working successfully as an artist or working successfully in an arts-oriented institution.
Western Washington University's College of Fine and Performing Arts ("CFPA") Dean's Office is currently offering scholarships for the academic year 2023-24. These scholarships are open to returning majors in Art, Art History, Dance, Design, Music, and Theatre Arts.
Visit SAM Gallery throughout the month of March to experience colorful abstract works by Katie Anderson, Cara Jaye, Anna Macrae, and Dana Roberts.
The event will begin with a Zoom presentation on hearing conservation and health led by Ian Cox. After intermission, WWU Director of Dance Susan Haines will lead a workshop on body health.
Jensen was a faculty member at Western Washington University for 30 years. He retired in 1997 and continued his vibrant work.
Presented by Kuntz and Company at the Whatcom Museum Lightcatcher Building, "Dialog(s)" is a movement conversation between two seated individuals. One chair will be empty, waiting for an attendees to sit down and make a gesture.
Director of Dance Susan Haines shares her research on shifting the culture of dance science began with an acknowledgment that our foundational resources come from a very narrow viewpoint.
The series will include one full length play, an evening two of one-act plays, and an evening of ten minute plays. Each play reading will be performed twice during the series. We'll read live on stage Old Main Theater, and we'll be livestreaming the readings.
Jacob Scherr is joining the Music Department as the Visiting Director of Bands beginning Winter Quarter of 2022.
Bellingham TheatreWorks presents the world premiere drama of office politics and intrigue: "Just Once", written and directed by Professor of Directing Mark Kuntz, featuring Associate Professor of Voice/Acting Evan Mueller and Theatre Arts alum Gabi Gilbride.
Jim gives so much. Following his example, now we can give back.
Daniel E. Coslett, PhD, Visiting Assistant Professor of Art and Art History, and two colleagues have recently produced an anthology that collects developing scholarship outlining a new decentred history of global modernism in architecture using postcolonial and other related theoretical frameworks.
Anna Wulfekuhle (Class of '16) and Dylan Gervais (Class of '15) performed in Tennessee Williams' Battle of Angels with NYC-based physical theater ensemble Blessed Unrest in September 2021.
The Western Washington University Department of Music is proud to announce the appointment of Heather Dudenbostel to the position of Assistant Professor of Voice and Dramatic Arts.
White is a Seattle-based dancer with a BFA in English, Art History and Dance from Western Washington University. She has studied styles such as contemporary, ballet, and jazz. Her main love has always been groove and hip-hop.
Pilates, Yoga, and breath work will get you moving mindfully, and the live format of the class keeps you engaged! Connect with alums and the Western community in this all-levels class.
Between the Keyframes is a new podcast/vidcast uniting industry legends Austin Shaw and Erin Sarofsky. The pair take on hot topics in an effortless back and forth as they candidly discuss the crazy world of Motion Design, from their biggest mistakes to their ample frustrations to the unique insights that will tee up the next generation.
Instructors Jennifer Weeks (oboe) and Pat Nelson (bassoon) along with students Martijn Wall (oboe) and Trevor Born (bassoon) will play in the pit of Pacific Northwest Opera's production of Verdi's "La Traviata" at McIntyre Hall at Skagit Valley College October 29 and 31, and November 5 and 7.
Visiting theatre instructor Patrick Midgley’s review of "All the Devils Are Here: How Shakespeare Invented the Villain" was published in the latest edition of Theatre Journal.
The Western Washington University Dance program is partnering with the Pickford Film Center to present two dance documentaries for the Pickford's celebrated film festival, Doctober.
Camp Mograph brings together industry leaders for fireside chats and professional workshops in a natural setting. This year’s event sold out in 45 seconds.
This performance is a collection of original dance pieces choreographed by our advanced choreography students.
Image: View of “Queer California: Untold Stories,” 2019, Oakland Museum of California. From MOTHA’s exhibition series “Trans Hirstory in 99 Objects,” 2015–19. Photo: Palmer Rose.
Do you play a woodwind, brass, or percussion instrument? It’s not too late to become a member of the WWU Symphonic Band! All you need to do is register for Symphonic Band (2 credits) - No audition required!
The Department of Theatre and Dance is holding auditions for "Sonata Escondida" by Manuel Zarate and directed by Ana María Campoy.
Western Washington University’s prestigious Sanford-Hill Piano Series returns to live performances with a trio of concerts starting in January of 2022. The last live performance of the series was in the spring of 2020.
We are honoring the work of Professor Nolan Dennett as he keeps moving and shaking into retirement after 32 years at Western.
Kate Sechrist and Stephanie Le - graduates of Seiko Purdue's Fiber Arts studio - are featured in the Surface Design Association's exhibition in the Charles W. and Norma C. Carroll Gallery at Marshall University in West Virginia.
We want to celebrate the life of recent BFA graduate, Jackson “JZ” Zechnich, by featuring some of his work during his time as a design student.
“I sat down and had a conversation with my mom and I told her I wanted to be a professional actor. So I was preparing to starve, to live off of Top Ramen, and basically just struggle. And she stopped me dead in my tracks in the conversation and she said, ‘Don’t ever ever say that. Cause you’re setting yourself up for failure. If you’re one of those people who are lucky enough to know what they want to do and what they love to do, then you simply just find a way to make it work.’ And that was a really profound moment in my life because I was like, ‘Yeah, she’s right.’”
In fall of 2020, WWU Director of Dance Susan Haines was looking for a way to offer dance students a safe performance opportunity during COVID. She was able to gain access to Ann Morris' Sculpture Woods - an art studio and property that was recently gifted to the College of Fine and Performing Arts. The property is both retreat and collection of Morris' work, featuring numerous mythically-inflected life-size bronze sculptures.
Professor of Theatre Rich Brown has been away from Western Washington University Spring quarter of 2021 on professional leave. As part of his activity, he's performing in Yasmina Reza's award-winning play "Art" at the Oregon Contemporary Theatre, a professional theatre in Eugene, Oregon.
Western Washington University’s Department of Design is proud to announce that Coral Saville and Mercedes Schrenkeisen have each won a Student Silver Addy for the American Advertising Awards, Seattle, 2021.
In 2018, artist Ann Morris and her family made an extraordinary gift to Western Washington University: the 14-acre retreat on Lummi Island known as “Sculpture Woods."
Award-winning international director and actress Shirley Jo Finney joins the theatre faculty this spring to teach Introduction to Acting (THTR 160).
The Department of Music is thrilled to welcome D’Anthoni Wooten to teach MUS 108, Survey of Video Game Music for Spring, 2021. The course is a critical overview of the history, development, and current state of music and audio in video games and interactive media and surrounding issues.
Watch the the animated music video for the single “Left My Mind,” produced and directed by Til and partner Paz Mallea. Follow them on Instagram, and read the critical reception to the EP from Global World Rock and American Pancake.
Winter, 2021, music lecture courses will be offered remote synchronous or asynchronous following the ICS guidelines.
Last week, the world lost a beautiful person, a singer, a mom, a wife, a friend, a colleague. In the music department, we lost a beloved member of our family, Soprano Erin Wall, a 1998 graduate of Western.
Matthew Palmgren (Studio Art, '07) gravitated to art and design from a young age, and committed to sculpture when he was a teenager after he apprenticed under Hai Ying Wu, a Chinese American sculptor.
I transferred to Western for the Industrial Design program, but had no goals for my career. I started taking art history classes and loved them so much that I switched majors. I have never once regretted my decision. I owe Professor Jimena Berzal de Dios a debt of gratitude for his guidance and persistence in helping me identify my career interests.
We stand in solidarity with those protesting. Black lives matter.
Thank you for helping us create a learning environment that welcomes, nourishes, and celebrates our students.
Theatre Arts Professor Deb Currier uses new techniques in immersive theatre for youth to address social awareness, under-served populations and non-traditional learners
Alum Henry Jackson-Spieker (Art Studio BFA, '13) enjoyed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to pursue his work at the historic and idyllic Chateau d'Orquevaux in France.
The BFA students in the Department of Design had the exciting opportunity to produce a promotional video for the local non-profit, Make.Shift Art Space - a DIY art and music venue dedicated to innovative, alternative and unusual art and music.
Western Washington University Assistant Professor of Ceramics Ryan W. Kelly is exhibiting work at Method Gallery in Seattle through February 15.
In 2014, Kate Sechrist (Art Studio BFA, '16) traveled to Japan with students from WWU’s Department of Art & Art History. Five years later, in March 2019, she opened her first solo show at Kyoto’s GalleryGallery. And, she’s just passed the entrance exams for the Master’s program at Kyoto Seika University.
Quinton Maldonado used photography skills to develop a new body of work at Shannon Point through student internship
WWU Music alum Andrew Christianson was one of only twenty-four singing actors (ages 20-28) from across the nation selected to compete in the semi-finals of the National Teachers of Singing Musical Theatre Competition in New York City, on Saturday, January 11, 2020.
“Whipping It Up: A Collaborative Alchemy,” the catalog designed by Delphine Kiem and Roger Rowley for last year’s exhibit by Garth Amundson and Pierre Gour, received Honorable Mention in the 2019 American Alliance of Museums Publications Design Competition.
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, but the local Bellingham jewelry shop works to end sexual and domestic violence through their business everyday.
Our work is impressionistic in nature. It is lovely to watch and is best appreciated if audience members allow the experience to wash over them without trying to 'figure it out'.
Western Washington University’s Rich Brown, associate professor of Theatre Arts, has been selected as the 2015 Washington Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).
Learn how Paden Koltiska, a theatre major at Western Washington University, uses skills and knowledge from the Arts Enterprise and Cultural Innovation program to prepare himself for a rewarding career in theatre.
Students welcome and enjoy our latest addition to the sculpture collection at Western Washington University - SPLIT STONE (NORTHWEST by artist Sarah Sze.
Choose among nine different courses - three credits each. Many of our online Music courses fulfill WWU GUR requirements.
Eight current and former Western Washington University Design students won international recognition in competitions sponsored by CMYK Magazine and Adobe.
Time-lapse video of collaborative installation project with visiting artist Christopher Hartshorne and Chris Vargas's Fall 2017 Art 120 class at Western Washington University.
Jensen, now approaching 81, is exhibiting his work at Smith & Vallee in Edison, WA. The exhibition, "Bob's Boats" is on display Aug. 5- 30, 2016
The work exhibited examines the ways in which artists translate what makes something abstract as defined by being pulled from, extracted, or as a summarization of larger concepts.
Katherine Mullen came to WWU in 2014 from Whatcom Community College as an honors student to do a double major in Dance and Sociology. Her international travels and her work in Dharamshala, India with Tibetan refugees have truly set her apart.
.Design student Bradlee Thielen is the recipient of the 2019 Western Washington University Presidential Scholar's Award for the College of Fine and Performing Arts.
New Design faculty member has work featured in the Journal of the American Institute of Graphic Arts
Western Assistant Professor Alex Egner has a short essay and a collection of images featured in the new AIGA Design Educators Community journal, Dialectic.
Professors Seiko Purdue and Julia Sapin participated in Art Inquiry Night at Wade King Elementary School. About 120 students took part.
Equus, a saxophone quartet comprising four Western Washington University students, has advanced to the prestigious Music Teachers’ National Association Young Artist Chamber Music competition in Chicago.
Seattle design firm POSSIBLE has given Twitter users spreading hate a hard choice before they retweet a nasty, hateful nugget: don’t retweet – or retweet and send a donation to an anti-hate group.
Berzal's book Visual Experiences in Cinquecento Theatrical Spaces studies the performative aspects of the early modern stage, paying special attention to the overlooked complexities of audience experience.
On Friday, Feb 27, the BFA Design students presented design solutions at Wieden+Kennedy in Portland - one of the largest independently-owned advertising agencies in the world.
'Lunar Drift' is two slow-time kinetic sculptures that will constantly point at the Moon and to the Sun, wherever they are located, whether above or below the horizon, in daylight or night, clear skies or overcast lending a continual presence to the entire path of their movements.
Brett Mitchell followed his love of music around the world and rose to the top. He has become one of the most prominent conductors of our time.
The Northwest Classical Guitar Society presents guitarist Paul Grove in concert. Grove’s program this season features WWU Music Department professor David Feingold’s “Song and Dance for Solo Guitar.”
Anelese Webster was crowned “Portfolio Night All-Star,” and will be joining the Huge design team, supervised by Jon Jackson.
After a Spring Portfolio Review the students interviewed for placement at professional design firms in the Northwest, including Bellingham, Edmonds, Seattle and Portland.
National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Chairman Jane Chu recently announced that Kuntz and Company is one of only 163 nonprofit organizations nationwide to receive an NEA Challenge America grant. Kuntz and Company is recommended for a $10,000 grant to support three dance residencies by artists from different cultures.
Jazz Combo I of Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA performed before music educators, district arts supervisors, and leaders in the music education profession from around the country at the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) National Conference in Dallas, Texas.
Sebastian Mendes, born in San Francisco in 1948, died unexpectedly on Thursday, April 26, doing what he loved – bicycling around Lake Whatcom. He was a proud father, devoted husband, and Professor of Art who was a member of the Western Washington University faculty since 2001.
Western's College of Fine and Performing Arts, the Western Gallery, and the Department of Art and Art History will be hosting a celebration of Sebastian’s life in the Western Gallery on Thursday, May 10, 5-7pm. All are welcome to attend.
Liz Gerring, a nationally-recognized choreographer, will set her piece glacier on WWU Dance students in the spring of 2015. The premier of glacier received unfettered praise from the New York Times.
Gallery preparator Paul Brower took the initiative to research and personally retrofit lighting for energy savings and the health of artwork in the Gallery when funds were lacking.
Western Washington University Assistant Professor of Art Chris E. Vargas was awarded a $50,000 prize Creative Capital, a group known for applying principles of venture capital to arts financing.
Successful creative designer Stefan Sagmeister attempts to find the root of human happiness by experimenting with meditation, therapy, and drugs in this graphic design project-turned experimental documentary.
Theatre has been a treasured part of Bryce Hamilton’s life since he was in grade school. Bryce is now fundraising and acting as the Board President for Sylvia Center.
WWU Design Department student and AS Publicity designer Zach Becker won the 2015 Adobe Design Achievement award in “Interactive Experience Media/Digital Publishing” for his work “Isolation” which combines animated typography and images to create a vivid narrative about space exploration.
The WWU Opera’s April 2016 production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s and Lorenzo da Ponte’s “Così fan tutte” was awarded First Prize in Division 2 of the 2016 Opera Production Competition sponsored by the National Opera Association (“NOA”)
The WWU Opera’s April 2014 production of Benjamin Britten’s “A Midsummer Night's Dream” was awarded First Prize in Division 3 of the 2014 Opera Production Competition sponsored by the National Opera Association (“NOA”).
Visiting Art Instructor Werner Klotz and 39 Western art students have been invited by the City of Bellingham (COB) to propose six separate masterplans for a major collaborative public artwork, at Whatcom Waterway Park.
Western BFA students talk about the passion that drives them to explore and develop their portfolios as they prepare for careers in the Fine Arts.
Twelve Design majors recently wrapped up their summer internships and returned to campus to resume their BFA design sequence this academic year.
The Western Washington University Department of Art is offering a pair of upper-division architecture courses in Spring of 2015.
Department of Theatre & Dance playwrighting faculty Kamarie Chapman is set to debut the first full-length original musical produced by Bellingham's iDiOM Theater.