September 14, 2001

Contact: Kerri Conan, KU School of Fine Arts (785) 864-5567 or Vickie Hamilton Smith, (785) 864-9742

KU art department exchange with Scottish university makes history

LAWRENCE - The University of Kansas Department of Art is chalking up a handful of "firsts" when a faculty exchange program begins this month with the Edinburgh College of Art.

For the first time, faculty from that institution's School of Drawing and Painting will exhibit work in the KU Art and Design Gallery from Sunday, Sept. 23 through Saturday, Oct. 6 during the university Open House. Admission is free.

Edinburgh professors John Brown and Gordon Brennan are bringing drawings and paintings from 17 of their colleagues in Scotland and plan to spend two weeks in Lawrence touring the area's cultural offerings, lecturing to students and associating with their KU counterparts.

From Nov. 7 to 17, as the second part of the exchange, KU art faculty will show their work together in another country for the first time. Judith McCrea, department chair and exchange program coordinator; Roger Shimomura, distinguished professor of art; and Tanya Hartman, assistant professor, will travel to Edinburgh.

"This event is important because it is one of the few exchanges with the Edinburgh College of Art in the United States,"said McCrea.

Yale University's School of Art and KU's School of Architecture and Urban Design have both enjoyed long exchange relationships with their respective departments in Edinburgh, although this is the Edinburgh college's debut at KU, McCrea said.

The School of Drawing and Painting is one of several study areas within the Edinburgh College of Art. The ECA is part of Scotland's Heriot-Watt University system, one of Europe's premier research-led learning institutions.

The public is invited to the opening reception from 1 to 3 p.m. Friday, Sept. 28 in the third floor hallway outside the gallery.

Admission to the art and design gallery is free. The gallery is located on the third floor of the Art and Design Building, at the northeast corner of 15th Street and Naismith Drive. Hours are Sunday, 1 to 4:30 p.m.; Monday-Wednesday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The gallery is closed on Saturdays and holidays, with the exception of Saturday, Oct. 6, when the gallery participates in the KU Open House from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, call (785) 864-4401.