Art students receive annual scholarships and awards

Frances R. And Louis B. Morrison Memorial Scholarship Fund

The Morrison Scholarships, established by Louis Morrison and his family, are awarded to talented art majors to help support them towards completion of their degrees. The awards this year went to the following students:

Angelina Weaver, Annastasia Kuczka , Audie D’Amico, Bella Rosenthal, Caitlin Andrejova, Claire Carey, Deirdre Harderr, Desislava Furber, Doga Ertekin, Eeman Khan, Eric Ruettimann, Eugene Sims, Gardner Astalos, Isabelle Janssen, Jessica Stratton, John Mack, Justin Jimenez, Kaixin Lu, Katie Pohlman, Krystian Szatko, Lily McDonough, Marjan Khorramgolkaran, Michaela Chittenden, Milo Lauria, Rich Tomasello, Sudi Wang, Sydney Jackson, Tristan Doneza Walbesser, Yilin Li

Evelyn Rumsey Lord Travel Award

Elton Kinkelaar, and Mali Lamanna

• Evelyn Rumsey was born into a prominent Buffalo family. Evelyn was a student of Robert Henri and Charles Hawthorne, and one of her works was exhibited in the New York Armory Show of 1913. According to one critic, “Her most significant work, the early impressionist paintings, establish her as one of a select group of early 20th-century American impressionist painters.” Her brother, Charles Cary Rumsey was a well-known sculptor, some of whose work has been restored by the Casting Institute. 
• The purpose of the Rumsey Award is to provide funding for summer travel to students who wish to further develop their artistic practice. Applicants participate in a competitive exhibition, from which the Department of Art faculty and staff select an award winner based on the quality of both the exhibited sample work and the accompanying written travel proposal.

• Mali's proposal will bring her to China, where she plans to "go to a series of contemporary museums to understand and observe the different types of art installations. The 798 Art Zone is a great representation of this as it’s known for having a series of galleries and art instillations along the streets and sidewalks that create an engaging experience. While at these museums/galleries and throughout [her] everyday observations [she] will be sketching and noting different studies and observations. The studies consist of photographing and sketching [her] experiences as a form of documentation [she] can recall for the show the following spring”

• Elton proposes a trip to Massachusetts, where they will “begin their art process in the cities Salem, MA and Provincetown, MA.’ This is the home to the Peabody Essex Museum and Salem art gallery [they] have dreamed of visiting but have not had the ability due to finances. One of [their] day’s staying in these towns, [will be] dedicated to museum exploring to take time to experience art in person. Overall, [they are] looking to be granted towards a trip to enact performance art, create art, and give back to the community and spread as much awareness on LGBTQ+ issues and political issues in this time as possible to make something that has impacted an area positively.”

Virginia Cuthbert & Philip C. Elliott Graduate Art Fund

Caitlin Andrejova, and Bella Rosenthal

• Established in 1998, this award is in honor of Virginia Cuthbert Elliott and her husband, Philip C. Elliott, who served for 30 years as artists and art educators in Western New York, including lengthy tenures at the Albright Art School and at its successor, the University at Buffalo Department of Art. From 1941-69, Philip Elliott served successively as director of the art school and the first chair of the UB Art Department. Virginia Cuthbert Elliott taught art at both institutions from 1941-61. Both were a strong force in shaping the UB Art Department during its formative years.

William E. Townsend Photography Scholarship Fund

Sydney Jackson, Eric Ruettimann, and Thomas M. Walsh

• This award is a result an endowment set up by William E. Townsend, UB Class of 1950 to recognize a worthy student in photography. Mr. Townsend set up this award because of his lifelong love of photography and his experience in auditing photography courses in the Department of Art.

Julius Bloom Memorial Scholarship Fund

Eeman Khan, and Kaixin Lu

• Julius Bloom worked in a typographic environment with some of the best typographers and graphic designers in the United States. He was instrumental in organizing the International Center for the Typographic Arts and helped to host their first international conference in the mid-1960s.
• The scholarship, created by Toby Bloom Schoellkopf, in memory of her father, is given for excellence in graphic design to a student in the Graphic Design concentration.

Dennis Domkowski Memorial Scholarship Fund

Caleb Ahrens, Eeman Khan, and Katie Pohlman

• Established in 1992 by the Professional Communicators of Western New York in memory of Dennis Domkowski, the Dennis Domkowski Memorial Scholarship Fund supports annual scholarships in support of undergraduate student(s) in the Graphic Design program who show exceptional potential for design.

Eugene L. Gaier Award for Excellence in Printmaking

Gardner Astalos, and Sudi Wang

• Established by the Last Will and Testament of Eugene L. Gaier, this an annual prize is awarded for the best print(s) in the Department of Art. Gaier was a collector of contemporary works on paper, a longtime friend of the Art Department and Professor Emeritus of Educational Psychology at UB. 

Alan E. Cober Memorial Fund

Gardner Astalos, and Makena St. George 

• Alan E. Cober was a visiting artist in the Art Department from 1986-1996 and as one of America's foremost illustrators, his work was published in major magazines and commissioned by many Fortune 500 companies. He was posthumously inducted into the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame for lifetime achievements in illustration. In 2001, family and friends of Cober established the Alan E. Cober Award to honor his memory and his body of work and support undergraduate students with exceptional ability, interest and portfolio in drawing.