Wells College Announces 2007 Alumnae Award Recipients

Two Wells women are honored for their volunteerism, service, humanitarian efforts

Carrie Bolton, president of the Wells College Alumnae Association, has announced the College’s two 2007 Alumnae Award recipients. Shirley Schou Bacot of Montclair, New Jersey, and Karen Eckberg Gottovi of Raleigh, North Carolina, will be honored on Saturday, June 2 during Wells’ annual Reunion Weekend. 

The Wells College Alumnae Award honors Wells women of high achievement in professions and careers, in volunteer and community work, in service to their alma mater, or in some combination of these endeavors. 

Shirley Bacot, Wells College Class of 1958, is recognized for her extraordinary volunteerism and for her indefatigable support of Wells. For more than 30 years, Shirley has volunteered at the Memorial Home for Aged People of Upper Montclair. As board president of the Senior Care and Activities Center of Montclair, she co-chaired that organization’s successful $3.1 million capital campaign undertaken to build a state-of-the-art elder day-care facility, which has since been named in her honor. Shirley has volunteered since the early 1980s with the New York Philharmonic; in 2005, she was unanimously elected to its board of trustees. 

In addition to a lifetime of exemplary community service, Shirley has been a generous donor and dedicated leader and volunteer for Wells. Beginning in the 1980s and continuing today, she has held almost every volunteer fund raising position available. She has also been an important supporter of the College’s internship program, partnering with late husband J. Carter Bacot to provide Wells students with experiential learning opportunities at the Bank of New York, where he was chairman and CEO for 16 years.

Both Shirley and Carter served Wells as trustees, Shirley from 1989 to 1998, culminating in five years as chair of the board. She led the College through the largest capital campaign in its history, exceeding the $50 million goal by $8 million. Her financial support and project leadership has also been instrumental in the creation of Wells’ new science facility.

Karen Gottovi, Wells Class of 1962, is honored for a distinguished career in public service, her commitment to the environment and outstanding leadership.

Karen’s career in public service began in North Carolina when she helped found a local chapter of the League of Women Voters. She went on to serve as New Hanover County commissioner, was appointed by the governor to the Coastal Resources Commission, and served in the North Carolina General Assembly. 

While in public office, Karen worked tirelessly for environmental issues, in particular the protection of North Carolina’s fragile coastline. As a state legislator, she helped secure funding to preserve Fort Fisher at the mouth of the Cape Fear River and to establish an aquarium in the area. Her promotion of environmentally sound development practices along the river helped make Wilmington a thriving commercial port again as well as an important historical site, adding greatly to the state’s economic growth. The North Carolina Wildlife Federation awarded her the coveted Legislator of the Year distinction in 1993.

In 1997, Karen was appointed director of the Division of Aging and Adult Services for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. During her tenure, she oversaw the development of two of the state’s four-year State Aging Services Plans. Under Karen’s guidance, the division was able to implement a wide range of important programs and initiatives. Karen retired last year from the Division of Aging and Adult Services.

The Alumnae Award was established in 1968 as part of the Wells Centennial Celebration, and is presented by the President of the College at a convocation ceremony held during Reunion Weekend each spring. 

For additional information about Shirley Bacot, Karen Gottovi, and the annual Alumnae Award at Wells College, please contact Communications Director Kelly Tehan at 315/364-3260.

May, 2007

Dr. Leslie Miller-Bernal appointed Vice President of Academic Affairs

Wells College President Lisa Marsh Ryerson recently announced that Leslie Miller-Bernal has been appointed Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College, effective immediately. Miller-Bernal has taught sociology at the College since 1975 and was appointed interim dean last August. 

Dean Miller-Bernal has advanced a number of important strategic planning projects, including the development of the Pilot Information and Learning Center in Long Library and initiating a ten-year academic planning effort.  In addition, she has broadened faculty participation in the academic budgeting process, developed new off-campus study programs, and improved and expanded library services to meet the changing needs of today’s learning community.

“I am confident Dean Miller-Bernal’s collaborative and decisive academic leadership, commitment to excellence for Wells, and broad-based support will serve her well in this new post,” President Ryerson said in her announcement to the campus community.

Miller-Bernal joined the Wells faculty in 1975 and was promoted to full professor in 1991. She earned her B.A. and M.A. at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and her Ph.D. at Cornell University. In her 31 years at Wells she has provided exemplary service in a variety of leadership capacities. In addition to prior service as associate dean of the College, she has served as both chair of the Social Sciences division and chair of the Sociology department, and on faculty committees including Advisory; Academic Standing and Advising; and Admissions and Financial Aid; as well as on important campus-wide planning committees. Miller-Bernal held the distinguished Frances Tarlton Farenthold Presidential Professorship from 2000 to 2005.

One of the nation’s leading scholars in her field, Miller-Bernal’s extensive body of work includes Separate by Degree: Women’s Experiences in Single Sex and Coeducational Colleges (2000); Going Coed: Women’s Experiences in Formerly Men’s Colleges and Universities, 1950-2000 (2004); and her newest book, released earlier this year, Challenged by Coeducation: Women’s Colleges Since the 1960s. In these works and numerous others, Dean Miller-Bernal uses case studies, interviews and historical evidence to track the evolution of both single-sex and coeducational learning.

“Becoming dean of the college at this point in Wells’ history is a wonderful opportunity and an awesome responsibility, in the true sense of the word ‘awesome’,” said Miller-Bernal. “With the growth in enrollment, a new science building, an institutionalized commitment to diversity, and development of our study abroad programs, including some in the non-Western world, Wells faces exciting challenges. As dean I hope to work with faculty, staff, and students to develop these initiatives more fully, all the while mindful of how our past as a women’s college puts us in a unique position to promote equality.”

Dean Miller-Bernal’s husband, Martin Bernal, is professor emeritus at Cornell University. He retired from the Department of Government in 2001, where he held a joint appointment with the Department of Near Eastern Studies. He is the author of Black Athena: the Afroasiatic Roots of Classical Civilization (Rutgers University Press, 1987) and Black Athena Writes Back: Martin Bernal Responds to his Critics, ed. David Chioni Moore (Duke University Press, 2001).

For more information on Miller-Bernal’s appointment at Wells College, please contact Kelly Tehan, communications director, at 315/364-3260.

May, 2007

Dean of Catholic University’s Law School to address graduates on May 26

Wells College President Lisa Marsh Ryerson has announced that Wells alumna Veryl V. Miles, dean and professor of law at Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law, will be Wells’ 2007 commencement speaker.  This year’s ceremony will take place at the Aurora Inn on Saturday, May 26.

Veryl V. Miles, Wells class of 1977, earned a dual degree in English and theatre arts. She went on to earn her juris doctorate from the Columbus Law School in 1980. After working in the office of general counsel of the Federal Reserve System’s Board of Governors, she joined the faculty at George Mason University School of Law. Miles became a member of the law faculty at Catholic in 1988. She also taught briefly as a visiting adjunct professor at Washington University School of Law in St. Louis and the American University Washington College of Law. 

“I am delighted that Veryl has accepted our invitation to give the 2007 Commencement address,” said Ryerson. “Veryl is a dynamic leader in American higher education today. She has a deep commitment to the liberal arts and extensive experience educating generations of students. I am pleased to welcome this extraordinary Wells alumna back to campus.”

Miles has taught law for more than 20 years and held a number of administrative positions, including associate dean for academic affairs at Columbus School of Law and deputy director of the Association of American Law Schools, a national organization that oversees 166 institutions. Her teaching and scholarship interests include consumer bankruptcy, commercial law, and applied concepts of social justice, and she is published in the areas of diversity in the legal profession and higher education. She was named Dean of the Columbus Law School in 2005; she is the first woman and first African–American to hold that position.

In addition to a number of other leadership roles, Miles has served her alma mater as a College trustee for two terms, from 1978 to 1993 and again from 1999 to 2001. In that role, she sat on the External Relations, Academic Affairs, and Student Affairs Board committees. A native of Washington, D.C., she is a lector at St. Anthony’s Catholic Church, was a member of the Law School Alumni Society Board of Catholic University from 1990 – 1994, and is the recipient of the 2003 Public Leadership Education Network’s distinguished Mentor Award. Founded in 1978 by Wells College, PLEN is the only national organization whose sole mission is preparing women for public leadership.

For more information about Dean Miles’ 2007 Commencement address at Wells College, please call Communications Director Kelly Tehan at 315/364-3260. Additional information about Dean Miles may be found at http://law.cua.edu/fac_staff/milesv/.

May, 2007

Two graduates display paintings, photographs as part of thesis project

The Wells College Art Department is pleased to present the spring senior thesis exhibit featuring paintings and photographs by graduates Abby Corbly and Blythe Untiet. The show opens on Monday, May 14 in the String Room Gallery, Main Building, and will run through May 26. The public is cordially invited to view the free exhibit. An opening reception on May 14 from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. offers an opportunity to meet the student artists and discuss their work; light refreshments will be served.

Abigail Corbly of Springfield, Mass. has been involved in the creation of art for as long as she can remember. Her thesis work is centered on the idea of abstract collage, incorporating found materials such as bubble wrap, corrugated cardboard and bright colors into bold, larger-scale pieces. 

“I like the idea of art that fluctuates between paintings and 3-D sculptures,” she says.  “This series incorporates both in a way that is engaging to the viewer and, I think, exciting to look at.”

Corbly enjoys abstract painting with both oils and acrylics. She is the self-appointed “art director” of Kate’s Lazy Meadow Motel, a retro-kitsch motel in the Catskills, where she helped mural painter Michael Lee Scott decorate the outside of the buildings. She is also currently working on a retrospective for the Wells yearbook using black-and-white photographs, which will be on display in the College’s library during Reunion Weekend, May 31 – June 3.

Next fall, she plans to attend graduate school on the west coast for her MFA.

Blythe Untiet’s photographs reflect her personal vision of natural elements combined with the beauty of the female form.  The artist from Bluffton, S.C. created her own library of nature slides using a Nikon semi-automatic 35 mm camera and special slide film. She then photographed the nude female form to capture the subtleness and beauty of the model’s body. The slides projected onto the body play a large role in her unique collection of photographs, allowing one to see a shape from nature blossom onto a woman’s curves. 

“Combining these two distinct images helps me recognize that many things in life are related when you take the time to study them,” she says. “I chose individuals close to me, women with whom I’ve shared experiences.  My personal familiarity with each alters the image I project onto their body and therefore changes the way observers view them.  The selection of photographs I have chosen to display in my thesis show reveal an intimate look at how I perceive these four women. It is, however, the overwhelming sense of beauty and sensuality portrayed by these women that individualize each photograph.”

Blythe took full advantage of Wells’ Arts in Paris program last academic year; she spent both semesters in France studying under a master in the Louvre, and was able to take advanced photo lessons with a professional photographer. 

Following graduation, Blythe plans to return to South Carolina to continue her photography studies.

Senior theses are the culminating requirement of study at Wells College. Art seniors are expected to plan and implement the entire exhibit, including the creation of the artwork to be shown, hanging the pieces and preparing the gallery, coordinating the reception, and promoting the show. Art professor and gallery director William Roberts guides the students’ work in the studios and oversees the installation of the show. Both artists also found support and encouragement in Associate Professor of Art Ted Lossowski, who explored with them all aspects of their senior thesis project.

The String Room Gallery is located in Main Building. Hours are Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.; Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.; and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. For more information about the exhibit, please contact Professor Roberts at 315/364-3237.

May, 2007

Dear Alumna, 

Reunion at Wells is more than a weekend party. It’s a chance to come together and celebrate with your Wells sisters. Regardless of where you are or where you’ve been, come back to Aurora where your journey began. Enjoy a few late nights, lots of laughter, strolling through the village, watching the sunset and rediscovering a memory or two. 

Times may change but you and your class help define a unique moment in the history of this very special place. And the best way we know to make this celebration better is for you to pick up the phone and call your classmates. Find out who’s coming, who’s on the fence and if they’ve talked to anybody else yet. Encourage them to fill out the registration form and join you in Aurora for Reunion. 

Find out more here. We look forward to welcoming you back to campus. 

Pam Sheradin ’86 
Director of Alumnae Relations 

Carrie Bolton ’92 
WCAA President 

May, 2007

With the warm weather here, landscape grading around the new science building site has begun. Framing and drywall installation in the main atrium is complete and workers have been laying decorative ceramic and quarry tile; millwork in the atrium is scheduled to begin soon. The ceiling grid is complete, while painting continues as does work on electrical and plumbing fixtures. 

Many of the new fume hoods have been moved into laboratory spaces, and cabinetry work is well underway on the first and second floors. Chalkboards and recessed screens have been put into the classrooms and labs.

The College has selected the colors and styles for the building’s furniture, which will arrive in late June, and audiovisual equipment will be installed in the lecture hall after Commencement and Reunion activities are over. Science faculty and staff are working on a timeline to move into the new building. Return to www.wells.edu for regular updates.

Save the Date

Dedication ceremonies for the science center, which will be named in honor of Ann Wilder Stratton ’46, will be held the last weekend in September! A full schedule with more details will be shared in the coming months. We hope you will join us to celebrate the opening of this wonderful new addition to campus.

May, 2007

“Three Ways to Dance a Concert” is collaborative work

The Wells College Performing Arts Department is pleased to present the annual spring dance concert, with performances on Friday, May 4 and Saturday, May 5 at 7:30 p.m. in Phipps Theatre, Macmillan Hall. “Three Ways to Dance a Concert” features choreography by Wells Professor of Dance Jeanne Goddard of Ithaca and guest artist Elizabeth Wilmot Bishop. Prices are $3.00 for students, $5.00 for seniors and the Wells community, and $7.00 for the general public; tickets are available at the door or by calling the box office at 315-364-3456.

Goddard’s new choreographic suite, “Three Ways to Dance a Concert,” was created through a series of collaborations with three other Wells faculty members and was crafted with a curiosity about bodies in space, storytelling, and confronting the “other;” each unfolds its own stunning imagery in a unique stage environment strewn with trash and treasures. 

During a presentation by Professor of Physics Scott Heinekamp on Brownian motion, which governs the random movement of large particles being pushed along by smaller particles, Goddard says she “immediately saw dancers ricocheting across the stage!”, describing the portion of the dance called ‘In Motion.’ “Similarly, I have been impressed with [Anthropology Professor] Ernie Olson’s storytelling abilities, his understanding of interactions between peoples, and his way of describing the dynamic meeting of land and sea. That part of the dance is called ‘Navigating by Water’.” 

For Goddard, it seemed natural to complete the trilogy by working with her closest colleague, Assistant Professor of Theatre Siouxsie Grady: “We had shared childhood stories about quests for buried treasure as well as images from dreams. Siouxsie is studying the Egyptian Book of the Dead and the idea of traveling through the underworld or the afterlife. Her own performance art installations influenced my choreography of this piece. Siouxsie’s section is called ‘Digging Dreams’.” 

Goddard says the three conversations became “remarkably interconnected” around themes of memories and dreams, journeys, and encounters. She created the movement vocabulary in collaboration with the dancers, who will work with long rolls of paper, ladders, enormous water jugs, swaths of wet fabric, and barrels of earth on stage. 

In addition to Goddard, the dancers in this performance include several Wells students: Elizabeth Chacchia ’07, Hannah Elwyn ’10, Heather Frost ’09, Mary Gooding ’10, Talyse Hampton ’09, Janin Hendry ’08, Eden Kostick ’10, Jenna Martinez ‘07, Christina Miglino ‘07, Rebecca Moss ’10,  Iivy Murphy ‘09, Rebecca Nichols ’09, Caitrin O’Connell ’07, Erin O’Meara ’10, Tiffany Orellana ’09, Pershemia Reynolds ’09, Shanna Scramlin ’10, Leah Swenson ‘10, and Bella Tschinkel ’07.

“Three Ways” marks the third dance and music collaboration for Goddard and local composer Ethan MacCormick. MacCormick has crafted an original score for “Three Ways” using, in part, excerpts from the conversations between Goddard and Grady, Heinekamp, and Olson.

Also on the program are two works by Elizabeth Wilmot Bishop of Weedsport. “Waltz of the Flowers,” from the beloved Tchaikovsky score for The Nutcracker, is a classic celebration of long-awaited spring, performed by twelve dancers. Wilmot Bishop’s contemporary trio, “Per te,” is a poignant lyrical piece danced to Josh Groban’s haunting baritone. Wilmot Bishop has taught ballet at Wells for five years.

Wells’ technical director Joe DeForest has created vibrant scenic and lighting designs for the entire concert.

For more information about “Three Ways to Dance a Concert” and dance at Wells College, please contact Professor Goddard at 315/364-3213.

May, 2007

Benefit performance to fund construction of elementary school in Senegal

The Wells chapter of the student organization Operation D.E.E.P. (Developing Elementary Educational Possibilities) will host “Breaking Ground,” a benefit performance featuring multicultural dance and music, on Saturday, May 5, from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. The concert, which aims to raise $1,500 to fund construction of an elementary school in Senegal, will take place in Barler Recital Hall on the Wells College campus in Aurora. 

Tickets are $10 general admission ($5 for students and senior citizens) and will be available at the door the night of the show.

Headlining the event is the Bush Mango Drum and Dance troupe from Rochester. The ensemble promotes the depth and power of traditional West African dance and drumming in its performances throughout the Central New York area. Ithaca-based alternative rock group Soundfall —fronted by Wells College sophomore Nik Mateer — and the Wells dance group In Motion will also perform. 

Operation D.E.E.P. began at nearby Cornell University, where students came together to provide education opportunities for children in rural China. Among other projects, the Cornell group conducts an annual teaching and training project in Yujiang, where a school it helped build is located. 

Wells senior Chearnysa Tim returned from studying abroad in Senegal last spring with a desire to help its elementary education system; after a chance meeting with Andrew Fleury, this year’s acting chair of the Cornell student group, she believed that that D.E.E.P.’s scope could be expanded to countries other than China. Hence the Wells chapter of Operation D.E.E.P., with its focus on building a school in Senegal, was born.

The benefit is sponsored by Operation DEEP, Collegiate Cabinet, and the Model United Nations Club. For more information about this event, please contact Communications Director Kelly Tehan at 315/364-3260.

May, 2007

Afton youth among 18 Coca-Cola First Generation Scholarship Recipients in New York

Heather Frost from Afton, NY has been selected as a recipient of a Coca-Cola First Generation Scholarship.  Frost attends Wells College in Aurora, NY due in part to the scholarship from The Coca-Cola Foundation and its partnership with the Independent College Fund of New York. 

“Thanks to The Coca-Cola Foundation, students like Heather at our member colleges and universities have the opportunity to be the first in their families to achieve a higher education,” said Joseph Curtin, president, Independent College Fund of New York.

The Coca-Cola First Generation Scholarship program supports students who are the first in their immediate family to attend college or university. 

Heather’s grant is part of the Coca-Cola First Generation Scholarship program with the Independent College Fund of New York (ICFNY), which has resulted in almost $1 million in scholarships for New York since 2000.

The Coca-Cola First Generation Scholarship program has awarded more than $14 million to over 1,000 students on almost 400 campuses in 32 states since 1993.

“The Coca-Cola Foundation is pleased to help deserving students who without this scholarship might not otherwise have the opportunity to attend college.  It is especially rewarding for us to play a part in supporting students who are the first in their families to attend college and to invest in their education,” said Ingrid Saunders Jones, chair, The Coca-Cola Foundation.

The grants provide one student scholarship of $5,000 per member school for four years.  To be eligible for the program, qualifying students, who are selected by their schools, have a demonstrated financial need, are the first in their immediate family to go to college, are enrolled as full-time incoming freshmen, and attain and maintain a 3.0 academic average.

About the Independent College Fund of New York
The Independent College Fund of New York, founded in 1952, represents 18 small to mid-size private colleges located throughout the Empire State. Its primary goal is to secure support for its member colleges from corporations, foundations and individuals.

About The Coca-Cola Foundation
The mission of The Coca-Cola Foundation is to improve the quality of life in the community and enhance individual opportunity through education. The Foundation supports educational programs primarily within three main areas: higher education, classroom teaching and learning, and international education. Their programs support scholarships for aspiring students; encourage and motivate young people to stay in school; and foster cultural understanding. Over the last ten years, The Coca-Cola Foundation has contributed more than $155 million in support of education.

May, 2007

Two choral ensembles to perform

The Wells College choral ensembles, conducted by Professor of Music Crawford R. Thoburn, will present their annual spring concert on Sunday evening, May 6 at 7:30 pm in Barler Recital Hall. Participating will be the College Concert Choir of women’s voices and the recently formed ensemble of mixed voices, Sine Nomine. Admission to the concert is free, and the public is cordially invited to attend.

The Wells Concert Choir, accompanied by pianist Nancy Gilbertson of Moravia, will begin with the performance of selections from the Renaissance by Christopher Tye, Orlando di Lasso, and Gregor Aichinger, followed by two works by 19th century composer Felix Mendelssohn.  The opening group will conclude with “Wisdom Exalteth Her Children,” a composition by Thoburn.

The mixed voice chamber ensemble, Sine Nomine, will next present a group of unaccompanied works ranging from Elizabethan sacred and secular songs by Adrian Batten, Thomas Tomkins and John Farmer, through English and American folksongs and spirituals.

Following a short intermission, the Concert Choir will return for a concluding group of selections which will include Edward Elgar’s “My Love Dwellt in a Northern Land,” Eugene Butler’s “Loveliest of Trees,” settings of American folksongs, and Harvey Enders’ “Russian Picnic.” Student vocal soloists will be Molly Cichy ’10 of Oswego, NY and Mary Gooding ’10 of Penfield, NY.

The Wells choral ensembles have achieved a national reputation for excellence. Under Thoburn’s direction, they have appeared by invitation at national professional conventions, on tour throughout the northeastern United States and Western Europe, on national network radio, and on public television.

For more information about the concert and music offerings at Wells College, please contact Professor Thoburn at 315/364-3347.

May, 2007

RPI Professor John Gowdy gives public lecture on climate change, global warming

Dr. John Gowdy, professor of economics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, will give a lecture at Wells College in celebration of Earth Day. The free talk, “The Economics and Politics of Climate Change,” will take place next Wednesday, April 18 at 4:45 pm in the Art Exhibit Room, Macmillan Hall. All are invited to attend. 

Dr. John M. Gowdy has been with the economics department at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute since 1982. He holds a B.A. in anthropology from American University, a master’s in community planning from the University of Rhode Island, and an M.A. and Ph.D. from West Virginia University. The Fulbright Scholar is the author of eight books, including his latest, Paradise for Sale: Markets, Myths, and Ecosystem Destruction, to be published next year by the University of California Press. 

This event is co-sponsored by the Environmental Studies major and the Campus Greens.

For more information about Dr. Gowdy’s Earth Day lecture, please contact Professor Niamh O’Leary at 315/364-3279 or Professor Kent Klitgaard at 364-3231.

April, 2007

Pavel Litvinov to address human rights in Russia

Former Soviet dissident Pavel Litvinov will be on the Wells campus to give a free lecture, “A Look at Putin’s Russia.” The talk will take place on Tuesday, April 24, at 4:30 p.m. in the Art Exhibit Room, Macmillan Hall; all are invited to attend.

One of the early leaders of the dissident movement in the Soviet Union, Pavel Litvinov will discuss his campaign for free speech in the Soviet Union; his lead role in a 1968 demonstration in Moscow’s Red Square against the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia (all of the demonstrators were beaten by KGB agents and arrested); his five years of exile in Siberia; and, also at the hands of the KGB, his ultimate exile in 1974 to the United States.

In the U.S., he continues to speak out in defense of human rights. He is a member of the Human Rights in Russia group, and founded “Friends of Memorial,” one of the largest Russian human rights organizations in the U.S. 

Litvinov received his physics degree from Moscow State University in 1966 and, before his exile, was an assistant professor of physics at the Moscow Institute of Fine Chemical Technology while working on his doctoral thesis in the field of atmospheric physics. He has given numerous interviews and talks; published and edited several articles and magazines; and has taught at SUNY Purchase and Manhattanville College. He travels to Russia regularly.

This lecture is sponsored by the Wells College History Department. 

For more information on Pavel Litvinov’s lecture, please contact Kelly Tehan, communications director, at 315.364.3260.
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April, 2007

Spring Weekend festivities in Aurora include jousting match

Hear ye! Hear ye! Ye olde Wells College Programming Board is pleased to announce Spring Weekend 2007. On Saturday, April 28, Renaissance Faire will take place on the Wells College campus on Route 90 (Main Street) in the village of Aurora. Gates open at 11:00; knights and ladies will be admitted for $5; youngsters and elders for $3. Renaissance Faire is free for Wells students and employees.

Festivities run from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on the grand lawn in front of Main Building (inside the Sommer Center in case of frightful weather). Such minstrels as the Bottom Feeders and the Destination will provide live music to get the crowd moving, and soft drinks and food will be available for purchase.

Watch as Lady Catrina Bard fights on horseback for the right to choose her own life course. In keeping with the Renaissance theme, of special interest this year will be a jousting match presented by senior Becca Cooper. As part of her performing arts senior thesis project, Becca joins with the Paragon Jousting Company and friends to put on a jousting contest complete with trumpets, fanfare, fluttering flags, and full costumes. Contests will take place on the lakeshore at 2:00 pm and again at 5:30 pm by the Wells College boathouse. In the event of thunder and lightning, the matches will be postponed until Sunday, April 29.

Special novelty activities featured during Renaissance Faire will include candle making, Renaissance old time photos, Dip ‘n Dots ice cream, face painting, sword fighting, inflatable jousting, and more. The public is invited to bring a blanket or lawn chair. No recording devices, coolers or outside food or beverages permitted. 

Renaissance Faire will be held rain or shine. For more information, please contact Alyssa Binns Gunderson, director of campus involvement, at 315/364-3428 and visit the College’s events calendar www.wells.edu/calendar.
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April, 2007

Noted scholar of Hispanic studies Pedro Piñero Ramirez to lecture in Spanish

WHAT: The Wells College Department of Foreign Languages, Literatures and Cultures, together with the Office of Off-Campus Study, will host a talk by Pedro Piñero Ramirez, a noted scholar of Hispanic studies. The lecture, which will be delivered in Spanish, is free and open to the public. 

His talk is entitled, “Cervantes y Mateo Alemán—frente a frente: El comienzo de la novela moderna” (“Cervantes and Mateo Alemán—Face to Face: The Beginning of the Modern Novel”).

Dr. Piñero is chair of the Department of Spanish at the University of Sevilla (Spain) and co-director of the Wells College Program for Advanced Spanish Studies in Sevilla. He has dedicated his long academic career to the study of the Spanish Renaissance and Baroque periods and has written extensively in both fields.

For more information about the lecture, please contact faculty secretary Deborah Boyd at 315.364.3288 or visit the College’s Web site at www.wells.edu.

WHEN: Thursday, April 26, 2007, 4:45 p.m.

WHERE: Wells College
Art Exhibit Room, Macmillan Hall
170 Main Street (Route 90)
Aurora, N.Y.  13026
www.wells.edu

PRICE:  Free and open to the public

MEDIA CONTACT:  Kelly Tehan, Communications Director, 315.364.3260    ktehan@wells.edu

April, 2007

Father and daughter duo display their abstract paintings

The Wells College Art Department is pleased to announce the opening of its next exhibition. The show, titled ROBERTS.JOHNSON – NEW ABSTRACT PAINTINGS, features a selection of artwork by Wells Professor of Art William Roberts and his daughter, Melissa Roberts Johnson. The paintings will be on display in the String Room Gallery, Main Building, from April 11 through May 10. The exhibit is free and open to the public. An opening reception to be held on Wednesday, April 11, from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. offers an opportunity to meet the artists; light refreshments will be served.

The ROBERTS.JOHNSON – NEW ABSTRACT PAINTINGS exhibition will include recent non-representational abstract paintings by artists William Roberts and Melissa Roberts Johnson. Roberts and his daughter Melissa will be collaborating for the first time in an installation which is focused strictly on abstract imagery with an emphasis on movement, brush stroke, coloration and composition. The artists have been working independently of one another in their respective studios and will view one another’s new work for the first time when the show opens. Both are devoted aficionados of abstract expressionism and all of the descendent variations of that mid-20th century movement. 

Roberts, who is in his 36th year of teaching painting and drawing at Wells College, has moved back and forth between representation and abstraction. “I find that this vacillation has allowed me to advise students of realism and abstraction with greater ease,” he says. “I can relate to the issues of both directions because of my varied experiences pursuing my own work as a painter. I am a firm believer that the very best realist work has a strong abstract foundation and that the best realists are really abstractionists. My new work is an attempt to create the sense of excavation or uncovering layers as well as movement.” 

The new paintings by Roberts will include oils on paper, slate and canvas.

Melissa Roberts Johnson of Manlius, N.Y., holds a B.F.A. and M.F.A. from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She also has a B.S. in sociology from Cornell University. Roberts Johnson replaced her father while he was on sabbatical leave from Wells last fall. She is currently teaching art at Syracuse University and LeMoyne College. Her work has been displayed at a number of galleries in Chicago and the Northeast.

“My father shared his love of art with me as I was growing up and I attended many openings at the String Room Gallery,” said Roberts Johnson. “Last semester I had the privilege of teaching at Wells and I truly enjoyed being part of the Wells community.  I am honored to be showing my work with such an accomplished artist, my father.”

For Roberts, who has directed the String Room Gallery since 1972, the show also holds special meaning. “I am delighted to finally have the privilege and honor to collaborate with my daughter in an art exhibition in the String Room,” said Roberts. “It is an absolute thrill for me to know that she and I share the same obsession with painting and that our common devotion to art is a catalyst that helps reinforce our relationship.”

The String Room Gallery is located in Main Building. Hours are Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Wednesday evenings from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. For more information about the show and art classes at Wells, please contact Professor Roberts at 315/364-3237.

April, 2007

Wells College News Archive
 

Last updated 01/03/2007