Rice Magazine No. 12 by Rice University

Rice Magazine No. 12 Published by the

Ofﬁce of Public Affairs

Linda Thrane, vice president

F O R E W O R D

This is an auspicious time for the arts at Rice. When I began editing Rice Magazine more than 17 years ago, art had a presence on the Rice campus, but you had to look for it. There were a couple dozen portraits hanging in various buildings, and half a dozen sculptures occupied the quads and other open spaces. Fine arts majors had to share a department with art historians and did not have their own dedicated exhibition space. And the Shepherd School of Music had just built Alice Pratt Brown Hall and was beginning to develop its stellar international reputation. Today, as Rice approaches its centennial, it seems as if Edgar Odell Lovett’s dream of the arts taking their rightful place alongside the sciences and letters is finally coming to fruition. Sculptures have cropped up all over campus — inside buildings as well as on the grounds. Paintings and photographs now grace the walls of many interiors. And the area just east of Alice Pratt Brown Hall is the site for the new skyspace, a permanent environmental art piece by James Turrell scheduled for completion this spring. In fact, just recently, Rice dedicated a new sculpture by renowned international artist Jaume Plensa. Rice has become a destination for art lovers, but the artworks that adorn the campus are just the most obvious examples of the arts at Rice. Art majors now have their own department that includes theater and film in its offerings, and the university boasts four exhibition spaces: Rice Gallery, the Matchbox Gallery, the EMERGEncy Room and the exhibition space in the Rice Media Center. And just as important for the future of the arts at Rice is the establishment of the Rice Public Art Program, which is working to further enhance the campus with thoughtful and intriguing pieces of art. In this issue, we strive to bring you the breadth and depth of the arts at Rice, first by taking a look at the Department of Visual and Dramatic Arts, then by surveying a number of other artistic offerings and achievements that are taking place here. Among our features are one on the Rice Theater Program and profiles of three young alumni who recently launched artistic careers in the public sphere. I am as pleased to present this survey of the arts at Rice as I am astounded at the changes that have been wrought here in the arts and other disciplines since I began editing Rice Magazine. Then, of course, it was titled Sallyport, and it, too, has undergone several transitions over the years. And now it, and I, are preparing for another major change. It is time for me to move on to other projects, and this will be my final issue as editor of Rice Magazine. I will miss my co-workers and friends on campus, but I will miss even more having the opportunity to showcase the best of this great university to its most ardent fans and supporters. My successor is Lynn Gosnell, former editor of Sombrilla, the magazine of the University of Texas at San Antonio. Please welcome her with as much generosity as you have shown me during my time here. May you and Rice prosper. Christopher Dow cloud@rice.edu

Editor Christopher Dow Editorial Director Tracey Rhoades Creative Director Jeff Cox Art Director Chuck Thurmon Editorial Staff B.J. Almond, staff writer

Jade Boyd, staff writer

Amy Hodges, staff writer

Jenny West Rozelle, assistant editor

David Ruth, staff writer

Alyson Ward, staff writer

Mike Williams, staff writer

Photographers Tommy LaVergne, photographer

Jeff Fitlow, assistant photographer

The Rice University

Board of Trustees

James W. Crownover, chairman; J.JD. .D. D. Bucky Allshouse; D. Kent Anderson;

Keith T. Anderson; Laura Arnold; Subha

Viswanathan Barry; Suzanne Deal Booth;

Robert T. Brockman; Nancy P. Carlson;

T. Jay Collins; Lynn Laverty Elsenhans;

Douglas Lee Foshee; Lawrence Guffey;

James T. Hackett; John Jaggers; Larry

Kellner; Ralph Parks; Lee H. Rosenthal;

L. E. Simmons; Charles Szalkowski;

Robert B. Tudor III; James S. Turley;

Lewis “Rusty” Williams;

Randa Duncan Williams.

Administrative Ofﬁcers David W. Leebron, president; George McLendon, provost; Kathy Collins, vice pr esident for Finance ; Kevin Kirby, vice president for Administration; Chris Muñoz, vice president for Enrollment; Allison Kendrick Thacker, vice president for Investments and treasurer; Linda Thrane, vice president for Public Affairs; Richard A. Zansitis, vice president and general counsel; Darrow Zeidenstein, vice president for Resource Development. Rice Magazine is published by the Ofﬁce

of Public Affairs of Rice University and

is sent to university alumni, faculty, staff,

graduate students, parents of undergradu ates and friends of the university.

Editorial Ofﬁces Creative Services–MS 95 P.O. Box 1892 Houston, TX X 77251-1892 77 Fax: 713-348-6757

Email: ricemagazine@rice.edu

ONL INE AT: WWW.ISSUU.COM / RICE UNIVE RSITY

Correction: The last issue of Rice Magazine contained an error in the feature on the Susanne M. Glasscock School of Continuing Studies, “For Love of Lifelong Learning.” The article stated that the fund for the new Continuing Studies building is “just a shade under our $24 million goal.” The sentence should read, “just a shade under halfway toward our $24 million goal.” Our apologies to the Glasscock School of Continuing Studies and to our readers for this regrettable error.