College of Arts + Architecture

Jamie Franki, associate chair of the Department of Art + Art History, has created the commemorative medal for the American Numismatic Association’s (ANA) 2015 World’s Fair of Money, which takes place in Chicago Tuesday, Aug. 11, through Saturday, Aug. 15.

The medal, the fourth in a series inspired by the stars on the Chicago municipal flag, depicts the city’s famed 1933-34 World’s Fair, the Century of Progress.  Franki will present a special “Money Talks” lecture on Friday, Aug. 14.

Mary Tuma, associate professor of fibers in the Department of Art + Art History, has the piece “Lingering Presence” in the international traveling exhibition “The Map is not the Territory.”

Art professors Heather Freeman and Jeff Murphy created the works in the exhibit “Fabled: Flederhund and Other Stories” on display in the Student Union Art Gallery through Friday, Aug. 7.

Some of the images were for their book “Flederhund.” Written for children, “Flederhund” centers on a young boy’s encounters with both imaginary creatures and real places as he searches for his missing dog in Central Europe.

A current production at Chicago’s Steep Theatre Company, directed by Assistant Professor of Theatre Robin Witt, has received excellent reviews. “Brilliant Adventures,” by British playwright Alistair McDowall, opened July 9 and runs through Aug. 15. Time Out Chicago praised “Robin Witt’s crack staging,” while Newcity Stage noted her “creative fearlessness.”

During the past academic year, the Department of Music has had access to first-class standard and digital pianos through an association with the Rockley Family Foundation.

To perpetuate this program, these instruments, along with those provided other institutions, will be sold Friday through Sunday, Aug. 7-9, at the Robinson Hall for the Performing Arts.

Individuals can schedule appointments to attend a “pre-sale” on Friday and Saturday by calling 704-687-1999; a final day sale will be from noon to 5 p.m., Sunday.

UNC Charlotte student Hunter Aldridge won first place in the final round of the Upper College Men Division of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) National Student Auditions on July 7. Aldridge, a tenor, studies with Brian Arreola, assistant professor of voice and director of the Department of Music opera workshop program.

College of Arts + Architecture Assistant Professor Ming-Chun Lee and students from the Master of Urban Design program will present their work at the next Civic by Design Forum on Tuesday, July 14, at the Levine Museum of the New South. The event is free and open to the public.

Two UNC Charlotte music students will compete in the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) National Student Auditions on Tuesday, July 7.

The students, Hunter Aldridge and Tyrez Dabbs, are tenors who study with Brian Arreola, assistant professor of voice and director of the Department of Music opera workshop program.

School of Architecture alumnus Chuck Travis was inducted into the College of Fellows by the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

Election to the College of Fellows is the highest honor bestowed by AIA upon an architect in the United States. Travis joins only three other members in the North Carolina AIA as well as 147 AIA members nationwide to be awarded this prestigious designation this year.

Tim Keane, who earned a bachelor’s degree in geography and a master’s degree in architecture from UNC Charlotte, has been named commissioner of planning and community development for the city of Atlanta.

Keane had served as director of planning, preservation and sustainability for the city of Charleston since 2009 and previously served as director of planning for the town of Davidson.