By Design

The Windgate Art and Design building at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith is now open, thanks to the single largest donation in the school's history. The grand opening celebration was held last night in the lobby space of the $15.5 million building, which was completely privately funded. Though students have already been hard at work in the Windgate building for more than two weeks, visitors were able to tour the space for the first time during the open house and view the first professional exhibit to be on display in the main gallery.

"We had a strategic plan for five years," to improve the quality of place of the community, says Paul Hankins, dean of the College of Communication, Languages, Arts and Social Sciences. "This building is like the culmination of everything; it puts a bow on that package. This building is concrete and tangible. Without it, [the plan] is just more words in a brochure."

FYI

Windgate Art & Design Building

WHAT — New visual art facility made possible by the largest grant in school history

WHERE — University of Arkansas at Fort Smith

INFO — art.uafs.edu

Moving the entirety of the visual arts department into one building, Windgate Art and Design will provide resources previously thought to be only a pipe dream to students and faculty. The 58,000-square-foot building houses studios comparable to a professional design agency, open critique spaces, certifiable galleries for professional and student work and more space for every piece of the program.

The printmaking studio now holds one of the largest traditional letter presses in the state. There is a 150-seat film theater on the first floor. Students have access to an industrial-strength spray room to spray-fix their work. The photography and videography facility, previously comprised of a pull-down screen in an old computer lab, now occupies its own space complete with an "infinity" green screen. Until this semester, the studio art and graphic design programs have been spread across four buildings on the campus.

"Already in these first two weeks, I feel a major change just among my colleagues," says Bryan Alexis, an assistant professor of graphic design at UAFS. "In seeing them in the halls, there's more collaboration than there ever was in the previous facility. And the students will be able to have that, too."

Planning for the art and design building began in 2012, when the Windgate Charitable Foundation approached the university about making a donation. Design ideas came together over the next two years through exploring what works and what doesn't for art departments at other universities across Arkansas and Oklahoma. The needs and desires of the students, faculty and maintenance staff shaped every part of the building.

"It's exactly what we need in every way. I feel like my fingerprint is here," says Alexis. "There was a lot of single-mindedness, in a good way. The [student focus groups] would come in and be asking for the same things the faculty already mentioned. I feel really comfortable teaching here, and I'm really honored for that."

Beyond the investment in the students, the Windgate building also contributes to a creative economy for the entire city of Fort Smith. Hankins says the new gallery spaces will enable the university to host exhibits that speak to community and region-wide artistic interests. The new building also aligns with the university's goal of preparing students with real-world experience. The professional studio spaces and industry-standard technology will provide a greater range of skills and encourage students to seek jobs in larger markets.

"We're competitive. I've never been embarrassed by what is produced here when I compare it to other galleries," says Don Lee, associate professor and head of the art department. "If we're able to produce that in our previous situation, my expectation is tremendously high for what we're about to do. I fully expect this [building] to become a benchmark statewide in terms of potential for building art programs."

NAN What's Up on 09/04/2015

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