• Japan-1

    Art Students Experience Japanese Culture Firsthand

    Assoc. Teaching Prof. Yuko Oda and 12 students from the Art & Design Department traveled to Japan for two weeks over the summer, culminating a course focused on the country's culture and influence on contemporary arts and game design.
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  • Rist fellow Caralyn Conrad

    Sustainability Projects Take Shape on Campus

    The Rist Institute for Sustainability and Energy granted fellowships to mechanical engineering major Caralyn Conrad, industrial engineering Ph.D. student Mahsa Ghandi and Art and Design Assoc. Prof. Kirsten Swenson.
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  • Terrence-Masson-1

    From Star Wars to South Park

    Alumnus Terrence Masson '89, a pioneer of media and visual entertainment, returned to campus this spring to share his career experiences and insights on the industry going forward.
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  • Book Party 1

    History Professor Helps Second Graders Become Published Authors

    Distinguished University Prof. Robert Forrant held a “book party” to culminate a monthslong collaboration with a second grade class from Lowell’s McAuliffe Elementary School in which he helped the students write and publish their own books.
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  • Eleanora Peters, wearing a UML School of Education shirt, and Regina Peters, wearing a Kennedy College of Sciences sweatshirt, frame the statue of Joan of Arc in Coburn Hall

    Cross-Campus Sisters Graduate Together

    Two of the four Peters sisters, all UMass Lowell Honors students, are graduating together. Eleanora, an education major, has already started on her master's degree. Regina, a biology graduate, is tracking turtles.
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  • DraftKings Team

    From the Art & Design Department to the Super Bowl

    Connecting through the UMass Lowell Art & Design Department, alumni Derek Kunze '16, Otto Setiajita '18 and Julien Saliba '19 used their graphic design skills to work on DraftKings' 2023 Super Bowl commercial.
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  • A student walks past an educational sign about Indigenous peoples

    New Campus Signs Tell History of Lowell’s Indigenous Peoples

    A group of UMass Lowell students and faculty created educational signs across campus to spread community awareness and knowledge of Indigenous peoples who were originally settled on the local land.
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  • UML art major Urdilinya Smith helps paint a mural on South Campus

    New Campus Murals Are Part of Citywide Arts Collaboration

    When students arrived back on campus, they were greeted by two colorful murals: a “chrome” hermit crab by internationally known artist “Bikismo” and six endangered species painted by New England muralist Sophy Tuttle. The murals were sponsored by ArtUp Lowell, a citywide coalition that brought nine muralists to the city in August.
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  • Chancellor Jacquie Moloney holds the hand of theatre arts student Lucas Bermudez, as philanthropist Nancy L. Donahue and theatre arts students Raphaela Pereira and Cristian Ramos Delgado look on

    Nancy L. Donahue Celebrates the Arts with $2 Million Gift

    This year, the Nancy L. Donahue Celebration of the Arts celebrated the Lowell philanthropist’s $2 million donation to renovate Durgin Concert Hall. It is only her latest gift to the university.
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  • The first poster in a Blue Mountain Alphabet by Ingrid Hess, with illustrations and information about the Blue Mountain area national parks in Australia

    Professor Educates Children About Environment Through Art

    Art Assoc. Prof. Ingrid Hess is traveling to some of the world’s most beautiful places to make artwork that educates children about the natural world and environmental sustainability. She’s won grants, fellowships and artist residencies to visit national parks in Costa Rica, Australia, the U.S. and more.
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  • Photo of model of mostly empty room with window looking onto the walls of another building

    'If These Walls Could Talk'

    Art Asst. Teaching Prof. Pavel Romaniko, who has roots in both countries, is divided by the war between Ukraine and Russia. Yet long before Russia invaded Ukraine, Romaniko was meditating on the diminishment of free artistic and political expression in Russia through his photographs of reconstructed, depopulated spaces.
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  • Two photos by Pedro Letria from his show "Maskirovka"

    Portuguese Photographer Documents Lowell’s Luso-American Community

    Visiting Prof. Pedro Letria, a Portuguese photographer and writer, is teaching photography and documenting the Portuguese American community in Lowell for the university’s Portuguese American Digital Archive. His wife, journalist Cláudia Lobo, is also gathering oral histories for the archive.
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  • UML digital media student assistant Nick Jarek checks out a new camera lens

    New Digital Media Major Combines Storytelling and Technical Skills

    The university’s new digital media major prepares students to become video, audio, corporate media and advertising professionals through classes that combine storytelling and technical skills. Students also get hands-on experience through internships.
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  • A Cool Science bus poster

    Professor: Science Education Can Help Slow Climate Change

    Science education can help slow the pace of global warming, because people who understand climate science can make informed decisions, says Education Assoc. Prof. Jill Hendrickson Lohmeier. Lohmeier does research on using artwork in informal settings to educate the public about climate science.
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  • A woman in glasses holds a piece of cardboard that has a rectangular hole in the middle. Her right hand is in the opening.

    Climate Change Lessons Reach Beyond the Science Classroom

    “Integrating Climate Change into the K-12 Classroom,” a free professional development workshop hosted by EEAS Assoc. Teaching Prof. Lori Weeden and the university’s Climate Change Initiative, showed teachers how they can address the topic through a variety of educational lenses.
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  • Fiona Bruce-Baiden won the 29 Who Shine award for UMass Lowell in 2021

    Political Science Major Recognized as One of ‘29 Who Shine’

    Her leadership on campus and advocacy for Black students won Fiona Bruce-Baiden recognition as one of “29 Who Shine,” an award given by the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education to one student from each of the state’s public colleges and universities.
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  • UMass Lowell honors student Gayathri Dayashankar

    Honors Students Create Graphic Novels on Science and Medicine

    Honors College students are creating graphic novels about science and medicine in a new seminar. Assoc. Prof. of Art Karen Roehr says that during the COVID-19 pandemic, they’re more relevant than ever, because linking words and images helps people understand and relate to health and safety issues.
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  • Kirsten Swenson, seated on a "throne" of recycled aluminum at the top of Mierle Laderman Ukeles's public earthwork, "Turnaround/Surround," at Danehy Park in Cambridge.

    Land as Art Lands Art Professor Burkhardt Fellowship

    Armed with a prestigious Burkhardt Fellowship, Assoc. Prof. of Art History Kirsten Swenson will spend the 2021-2022 school year researching and writing about a subject she calls an “obsession” – urban parks designed by artists.
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  • A whimsical shot of the Class of 2020 of UML’s animation program. That's Pouya Afshar in the bag.

    Animation Program Draws Third-Place Ranking

    For the first time, UMass Lowell’s animation program has cracked the top five among the state’s animation schools, ranking third in Massachusetts according to Animation Career Review’s 2020 listing.
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  • Kimberly Cosgrove designed Holly Hops, which celebrates and empowers women in beer marketing.

    Seniors Display the Art of Resilience

    The Art & Design Department transformed the opening of its annual end-of-the-year student art show into an online celebration for a class of 46 graduates whose last semester of college has been disrupted, but not defined, by the coronavirus pandemic.
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  • Katherine Mayer, front right, UMass Lowell EMT, outside the Tsongas Center

    Seniors Adapt Capstones to Online Learning

    With labs closed and all academic programs now online due to COVID-19, seniors are adapting their capstone projects. Some capstones have even taken on new relevance because they address aspects of the pandemic.
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  • UML English professors Todd Avery and Maia Gil'Adi

    Going Stir-Crazy? Find an Antidote in the Arts

    Going stir-crazy? Here are some suggestions from arts and humanities faculty on how to enrich and entertain yourself – all while staying safe.
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  • As the image of Nina Coppens gazes away, gathering to celebrate the late dean's student-created portrait are (from left) Coppens' daughter Katie, Chancellor Jacquie Moloney, Nina’s husband, Paul Coppens, daughter Lindsay, student artists Julie Howard ’18, Yahira Torres, ‘19 and Adel diPersio ’19.

    Nina Coppens Watches Over O’Leary Now

    A large gathering recently celebrated the unveiling of a student-painted portrait of late FAHSS Dean Nina Coppens. It is, say friends and family, exactly what she would have wanted.
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  • Students John Fedirko, Sarah Galevi and Jacqui Gallant pose at the starting area

    Chaos Theory: Students Conquer Lowell Kinetic Sculpture Race

    College of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences students Jacqui Gallant, Sarah Galevi and John Fedirko competed as the Rowdy River Rovers in the fourth annual Lowell Kinetic Sculpture Race, a festive community event that merges the “STEAM” fields of science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics.
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  • Andrew Fournier '19 returned to campus recently for the dedication of his art piece "River" in the front hallway of the Pulichino Tong Business Center.

    A ‘River’ Runs Through Pulichino Tong

    Increasingly, student art is enlivening buildings across the UML campus. Recently, Andrew Fournier '19 saw his "River" installed int he Pulichino Tong Business Center,
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  • Twins Kayla and Jae'la Rowles and friend Tyson Minor are part of the new DC-CAP Scholars program at UMass Lowell

    New Program Provides Merit Scholarships for 20 Students from Washington, D.C.

    Under a new partnership, 20 high school graduates from Washington, D.C., are studying at UMass Lowell this fall with merit scholarships. It’s part of the university’s mission to support students from all backgrounds in getting a great college education.
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  • Researchers Bob Chen, Stephen Mishol and Jill Lohmeier pose for a photo with a Cool Science contestant

    Cool Science Expands with $3 Million NSF Grant

    For seven years, the Cool Science contest has asked children to communicate climate science through art, with the winning works displayed on Lowell buses. A $3 million National Science Foundation grant will expand Cool Science in Massachusetts and add two metropolitan areas in the Midwest.
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  • Erin Reynolds and Sara May in the PA booth

    UML Connection Keeps Baseball Fans Smiling

    When liberal arts alum Erin Reynolds ’18, coordinator of creative services and entertainment for the Lowell Spinners minor league baseball team, needed a video production intern this summer, she turned to her former classmate, senior graphic design major Sara May.
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  • "Gallery," another of the images from Pavel Romaniko's grant-winning series. Note the visible staples.

    Four Questions with Photographer Pavel Romaniko

    Pavel Romaniko, visiting assistant professor in the Art & Design department, has been busy lately.  In addition to welcoming a baby son, he also welcomed a $15,000 fellowship from the Mass Cultural Council. 
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  • A group of students stand in front of the ocean holding a UMass Lowell flag

    Photo Class Pictures the Azores

    Eleven students who comprised the Documentary Image photography class finished off last semester with a trip to the Azores.
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  • Administrators and guests look at the new Green Roof garden

    UML Celebrates Energy Savings, Sustainability on Earth Day

    The university marked two major milestones at its Earth Day celebration: the completion of its $23.1 million Accelerated Energy Program and its latest STARS Gold rating, which moves UML into the top 10 nationally.
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  • A good chunk of the labor behind the Library of New England Immigration includes (from left) alum Ernest Guerrera '18, History Professor Robert Forrant, junior Cameron Blanchard and Ingrid Hess of the Art & Design department.

    Students Help Create Home for Lowell Immigration History

    For four years, History Prof. Robert Forrant and Assistant Prof. Ingrid Hess of Art & Design have quietly charted the history of immigration in Lowell. With the help of a team of UML students , they have built a unique website to help teachers and students understand the waves of immigrants calling the city their new home.
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  • Chalk artist Anna Dugan '18, Assoc. Prof. Marie Frank and Art & Design Chair Jehanne-Marie Gavarini between the designs Dugan added to the historic chalk boards found during the renovation of Coburn Hall.

    Alum Draws on Past to Bring Advice to Art Students

    Anna Dugan '13 returned to the Art & Design department recently to design in chalk and encourage current students to use all of their skills in the world beyond the university.
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  • Asst. Prof. of Psychology Miko Wilford speaks at a panel on problems with the plea system

    Psychology Prof Tackles Injustice in the Justice System

    Asst. Prof. Miko Wilford has won a five-year, $498,000 National Science Foundation CAREER grant to study an urgent issue for the justice system: Why innocent suspects plead guilty.
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  • Ellen Wetmore and Deborah Santoro hang out with TweetBot, v.2., in the University Gallery. The spider-like robot will be sifting through tweets during 404 Arts Festival through March 5.

    404 Fest Humanizes Tech through Art

    In its first time in the U.S., the 404 International Festival of Art & Technology is at UMass Lowell University Gallery and other sites across campus, through March 5.
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  • UML junior Anthony Palacios of Lawrence is seen through moving mirrors that are part of "Nuclear Family" by Anne Lilly of Cambridge.

    Tech Brings Art to Life at UMass Fest

    Virtual reality, augmented reality, optical illusions and more are all on display at UMass Lowell through March 5 as part of the 404 International Festival of Art and Technology. This is the 16th annual installment of the festival, which originated in Argentina.
    Lowell Sun In The News
  • Kirsten Swenson and Akbar Abjduljalil stand nextt to the teach-in poster

    Image is Everything at Climate Change Teach-In

    The 2018 David Lustick Climate Change Teach-In, “Invisibilities: Seeing and Unseeing the Anthropocene,” explored how images can both shape and obscure our understanding of climate and environment. It was organized by Assoc. Prof. of Art History Kirsten Swenson as part of the IDEA Leadership Grant Initiative.
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  • At UML's Dec. 2 opening reception for high school artists, left to right, Gallery Director Deborah Santoro, Anya Crowley of Landmark Academy, Prof. Stepehn Mishol, Autumn Bellan of Chelmsford High School, Prof. Ellen Wetmore, Mary Elizabeth Miller of Haverhill High School, Prof. Ingrid Hess.

    High School Art Prospects Get Gallery Showing

    Sponsored by the Art & Design Department, the university’s first Regional High School Exhibition features 50 works by students from public and private high schools around the state.
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  • Art and Designs students and alumni painted a mural celebrating the Acre neighborhood, and it is now on display on Decatur WAY

    Grant Bursts to Life in Acre Painting

    Seven UMass Lowell students collaborated on a large mural, the latest stroke in a move  to make a once-gritty and blighted alley into a green haven for art and poetry.
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  • Kim Cosgrove (left) and Kady Phelps created an exhibit about the history of St. Joseph’s Hospital

    Exhibit Remembers More than a Hospital

    It was a hospital, yes. But Lowell’s St. Joseph’s Hospital was so much more to the nuns who worked there and to the residents of the Acre neighborhood. Now, two UMass Lowell students have created a tribute to the hospital, celebrating its singular value to its workers, patients and the neighborhood around it.
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  • One of the images Ingrid Hess created to open discussions of diversity and immigration during her recent Fulbright stint in Ireland.

    Fulbright Times Two for Art & Design

    Assistant professors Ingrid Hess and Pouya Afshar, both four-year veterans of the UML faculty, have earned 2018 honors from the Fulbright Scholar Program, the cultural exchange program designed to improve intercultural and diplomatic relations across the globe. 
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  • Jordi Love and Thomas Nelson met at UMass Lowell and plan to marry

    The Games of Love

    Jordi Love and Thomas Nelson bonded over video and board games. They texted each other their romantic feelings. They worked with professors on a research animation. And now they’re planning to marry. Among their “children” will be their own video games.
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  • UML psychology asst. prof. Miko Wilford meets with Jordanne Love and Thomas Nelson

    To Plead or Not to Plead

    Most arrests end in guilty pleas instead of trials, and research suggests that many innocent people plead guilty to escape the threat of a long prison sentence. A psychology professor has teamed up with an art professor to make plea bargains easier to research – and to change an unjust system.
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  • girlsvid

    Students Share the Message of Girl Power

    Students in Regina Milan's Design in Motion class took their assignment outside the classroom to help Girls Inc. create videos that would appeal to donors.
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  • Brian Trainor (right) joined Bob Lucier at the openeing reception of Branding Lowell on March 24 at the Mogan Center.

    Lowell by Design

    What can graphics tell you about a city's history? A new exhibit focuses on design branding in Lowell – including UMass Lowell – over the years.
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  •  The Mobile Sauna begins bringing people together in 2018.

    Got an Issue? Sweat It Out!

    With the sweat of more than their brow, a couple of UML professors lead a team looking to quell conflict with sauna diplomacy.
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  • Rising Loaves director Mary Guerrero and small group leader Lidyanette Gonzalez work with students in the carpenter shop.

    Lawrence Students Write and Learn About History

    University Prof. Robert Forrant helped launch a summer history and writing program for Lawrence students from third grade through middle school, with help from the Lawrence History Center, Andover Bread Loaf and a Creative Economy Grant from the UMass President’s Office.
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  • Student Employee of the Year Mary Connell in Lowell

    Student Employee of the Year Makes Lowell Her Canvas

    Student Employee of the Year Mary Connell, a sophomore art major from Princeton, helps promote all that Lowell has to offer through her work with the Community Relations office.
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  • Students use a 3-D scanner in the new Fab Lab

    Fab Lab Melds Art and Graphics

    This spring, construction begins on a fabrication lab for the Art and Design Department in the basement of Dugan Hall.
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  • Matt Levenson visits London in fall 2016.

    New Honors Class Develops a Mindset for Adventure

    Honors students are learning about the hero’s quest in a new film and literature class, A Call to Adventure, and preparing to become the heroes of their own adventurous lives.
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  • Iranian artist Morehshin Allahyari explains to students that art should be a form of activism

    Iranian Artist Issues Call to Activism

    The Iranian-born artist is a pioneer in new media who re-created what ISIS destroyed, saw the presidential travel ban up close and returned to the U.S. to reiterate the power of activist art.
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  • Middlesex County Sheriff Peter Koutoujian; Elizabeth Cerda, administrative attorney in the Massachusetts District Court Department; and Ken Lavallee, former Lowell Police superintendent, at the launch event.

    New MPA Degree Offers Unique Track in Public Arts and Humanities

    The first students in UMass Lowell’s new Master of Public Administration program are getting a crash course in how to manage public and private agencies in the arts and humanities, criminal justice and human services.
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  • "Applecore" staircase at Wannalancit Mills

    Campus Hidden Gems

    UMass Lowell's campus is littered with hidden gems.
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  • Erika Decker of DigitasLBi talks to aspiring graphic designers.

    For FAHSS Majors, Your Career Starts Here

    The Career & Co-op Center is targeting FAHSS majors with several innovative programs, including Employer-in-Residence days and a one-credit course on career preparation.
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  • Jay Hungate steers his contraption during Lowell first kinetic sculpture race.

    Michael Roundy Sets Sculpture in Motion

    The debut of a race of kinetic sculptures from near and far was engineered by UMass Lowell lecturer Michael Roundy. It was a sloppy, kooky and colorful blast, and Roundy says you can count on it returning next fall.
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  • John Cullen is interning at NASA this semester

    Space is the Place for Art Major

    John Cullen, a senior art major, is spending a chunk of his senior year at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston as a graphic design and video intern.
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  • Ferrous Park includes an open-air classroom on top of a hill overlooking the mills.

    Three Projects Win Creative Economy Grants

    The Lowell campus has won three UMass Creative Economy grants that will fund educational projects on Southeast Asian folklore and immigrants, environmental history and animation.
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  • Summer-Reading-Book-Beach-Chair-1400

    Readers Hit the Books over Summer

    More than two dozen people from across the campus community share what’s on their summer reading lists. Their responses run the gamut—with authors ranging from the Dalai Lama to Kurt Vonnegut and topics spanning quantum physics to dieting strategies, and everything in between.
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  • Afshar animation

    Art Gets Personal for Assistant Professor

    Pouya Afshar, assistant professor of art and design, uses a series of animated stories featuring mythical Iranian hero Rostam to generate discussion about serious issues in Iran.
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  • decatur way opening

    Acre Alley Reborn with Art, Poetry

    UMass Lowell is a partner in a dramatic transformation of a troubled alley whose five-year journey was celebrated with an opening June 2.
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  • Jennifer Mayer's "Neural Impulse"

    Art and Design Students Celebrate Big Unveiling

    The work of seven Art and Design students has been selected to appear on an 80-foot multi-screen LED outside the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.
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  •  Senior-Cap-Gown-1400

    Salute to the Class of 2016

    As they prepare for commencement, some of our seniors reflect on how they found their place at UMass Lowell and what legacy they’d like to leave behind.
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  • Art on Marquee at BCAC

    Students' Videos Star in Art on the Marquee

    Seven of the 10 student video installations featured in the latest Art on the Marquee exhibit at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center were created by UMass Lowell graphic design students.
    Lowell Sun In The News
  • Graphic art students posing outside of Melmark school in Andover

    Art Students Have Designs on Greater Good

    Visiting Lecturer Regina Milan’s Design in Motion students created 60-second fundraising motion graphics for Melmark, a school in Andover that treats severely autistic children and teens.
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  • Art students pose in front of their mural at Drum Hill Ford

    Art Students Drive Home Vision

    Art students created a mural commissioned by the owner of Drum Hill Ford in Lowell, who was so impressed with the end result, he committed to funding an annual Art Department scholarship.
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  • Art Prof. Stephen Mishol

    Art Prof's Work Earns Fellowship

    Assoc. Prof. Stephen Mishol has once again been honored with a Massachusetts Cultural Council Artist Fellowship in recognition of his excellence in drawing.
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  • Gospel choir singing at MLK Dinner

    Student Wins MLK Award for Work with Girls Inc.

    Distinguished Service Awards, presented at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. dinner, go to students, faculty and staff dedicated to social change, service and community engagement.
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  • Salesman James Dabilis of Lowell, right, enjoys watching the mural take shape in the Drum Hill Ford showroom thanks to the talent and skills of Carlos Pujols, Josh Rondeau and Courtney LeMay.

    Artistic Showroom at Drum Hill Ford

    The recent renovation of Drum Hill Ford is not only giving prospective car buyers a pleasant car-buying experience, but it's also giving UMass Lowell fine arts students a great opportunity to strut their stuff.
    Lowell Sun In The News
  • UMass Lowell Image

    Art Students Get Interdisciplinary in Israel

    Art students visited the Shenkar College of Engineering and Design, continuing a partnership between several of the school’s departments.
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  • UMass Lowell Image

    BAM! Comics Meet Literature at UMass Lowell

    Established and emerging graphic novelists, three of whom visited campus for an artist talk with students, are featured in a show in the University Gallery.
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  • egyptian art

    Egyptian Art Exhibit

    The University Gallery is featuring a selection of contemporary artwork from Egypt. The exhibit resulted from a visit to Egypt by a UMass Lowell delegation led by Provost Ahmed Abdelal.