Integrating research and creativity on and off campus
Embedded in the cultural and artistic vibrancy of the Gainesville community, the University of Florida College of the Arts values opportunity to integrate research and creative practice on and off campus. Beyond a host of traditional forms of artistic production that welcome residents to campus for exhibitions, concerts and theatre productions, the college’s research focuses on how the arts and creativity can improve lives and catalyze change through health, technology, education and more.
Faculty in the college are active practitioners who create and perform locally as well as engage students in community-based projects. Professor Julia Morrisroe teaches site-specific art courses that repurpose and enliven local communities with paintings and murals. Morrisroe’s large-scale work is hard to miss when you’re downtown or on campus.
As artists and educators, UF students and faculty work with local schools to deliver performances, internships and resources. To aid remote learning, researchers with the Center for Arts, Migration, and Entrepreneurship partnered with Howard Bishop Middle School to create virtual arts courses that keep creativity in curriculum.
UF students and alumni also engage local narratives and histories of Alachua County through community theatre projects. Recent productions, led by Center for Arts in Medicine lecturer Jeffrey Pufahl, have found ways to unpack injustices and uncover stories that can help communities heal. Plays capture the voices of protests, discuss the health consequences of systemic racism, and foster dialogue around sexual assault and consent. Ticket sales have been donated to local nonprofit organizations to advance conversations to actions.