Art 1A Artist Talk Featuring Alexis Childress on Wednesday, December 3

Artwork and photograph courtesy of Alexis Childress

What: Artist Talk featuring Alexis Childress

When: Wednesday, December 3 from 12:30-1:45

Where: Phelps 2524

Website: www.alexischildress.com

Artist Bio:

Alexis Childress (1993) is a mixed media artist born in Illinois. She received her BFA from Georgia State University (2020), and is currently pursuing an MFA at the University of California Santa Barbara. Her work visualizes an investigation of identity, systems and Afrofuturistic dreams. Using 2D and 3D digital collage to craft creatures and imagine worlds that symbolize the Black American consciousness. Alexis has exhibited in venues such as the Morean Arts Center (FL), MINT Gallery (GA), Atlanta Photography Group Gallery and the Rhode Island Center of Photographic Arts. As an established writer, her contributions extend to publications like Burnaway Magazine, Create! Magazine and the New York Public Library Zine. She has been recognized with the Red Bull Arts Microgrant, the Georgia Visual Artist Grant as well as selected to present at the 2021 Society of Photographic Education National Conference.

GLASSBOX GALLERY EXHIBITION: NON SCIMUS

Special Art 1A Events:

You will view this exhibition in your discussion sessions on Monday, November 24, and you are invited to the reception from 4-6PM that day.

On Monday, December 1 from 12:30-1:45, Kelly Andrade, Tyler Alexander, Maddie Cupples, Elyse Harris-Crayton and Krista Havluciyan are giving an Artist Talk about their work in this exhibition.

What: Art 1A Artist Talk

When: Monday, December 1 from 12:30-1:45

Where: Phelps 2524

Art 1A Artist Talk Featuring Maiza Hixson on Wednesday, November 26, 2025

Image Provided by Maiza Hixson

WHAT: Art 1A Artist Talk featuring Dr. Maiza Hixson

WHEN: Wednesday, November 26 from 12:30-1:45 PST

ZOOM LINK: https://ucsb.zoom.us/j/83111992304

WEBSITE: https://maizahixson.com

About the Dr. Maiza Hixson:

The Art of New Media Theatre: Staging Site-Specific Performances from the White Cube to the Black Box and Beyond.

Multimodal artist, painter, performance scholar, curator, and theatre director Dr. Maiza Hixson will present on contemporary art as a transdisciplinary aesthetic practice that merges the visual and performing arts. 

Hixson holds a PhD in Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She served as Chief Curator of the Delaware Center for the Contemporary Arts from 2010-2015, during which time she taught, performed, and lectured at Towson University in Baltimore and the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. She studied Art History, Theory, and Criticism at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and holds an MFA in Fine Art from UC Santa Barbara, as well as an MA in Critical and Curatorial Studies, and BA in French from the University of Louisville. She was a recent grant panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts, and her curatorial work was featured on the Emmy Award-winning PBS TV show Articulate with Jim Cotter. She was a Warhol Foundation grant recipient for Radical Participation: A Series of Four Interactive Exhibitions. Hixson also designed and curated a 5,500 square-foot group exhibition, American Idyll: Contemporary Art and Karaoke, featuring Candice Breitz, Phil Collins, and Christian Jankowski, for the Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center, designed by Zaha Hadid.

Hixson has exhibited and performed nationally and internationally at venues such as Eisenwunderwelt in Berlin; Little Tokyo Arts Complex in Los Angeles; the Art, Design, and Architecture Museum in Santa Barbara; Highways in Santa Monica; Brooklyn Museum of Art in New York; Baltimore Contemporary; Soap Factory, Minneapolis; Portland Institute for Contemporary Art in Portland, Oregon; Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art in Winston-Salem, NC; Haverford College; and many others. She is a member of the American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR), Independent Curators International (ICI), Performance Studies International (PSi), and a Lead Jury Member of Art Papers for the ACM/SIGGRAPH Vancouver 2025 Conference. SIGGRAPH stands for the Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques, a special interest group within the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) focused on computer graphics and interactive techniques.

UCSB AD&A MUSEUM FIELD TRIP ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER 24

WHAT: Museum Field Trip!

WHEN: Monday, November 24 from 12:30-1:45 PM

WHERE: UCSB AD&A MUSEUM

FEATURED EXHIBITIONS: 

• Mexican Prints: The Garcia-Correa Collection
• Beyond the Object: Selections from the Permanent Collection
• Environmental Communications: Big Bang Beat L.A.

Please arrive on time. The museum is adjacent to the University Center and Storke Plaza/Tower.

ART 1A ASSIGNMENTS TO CLEAR UNEXCUSED ABSENCES

If you have missed a lot of classes, with unexcused absences throughout the quarter, then you should do these assignments to clear them. As you know, 5 or more unexcused absences will result in failing the class. However, if you had emergencies, and can provide me with a note from your doctor, from Student Health, or from your CAPS, DSP, CARE Counselor (for the specific dates in question)– then those absences will be excused. These are not extra credit assignments to improve your grade. These papers are due no later than Friday, December 5 by 5:00 PM. Submit them to Alexis via email.

Please note: If you did not go on the museum field trips, or the alternate museum field trip, then you have 2 unexcused absences for each of the trips, and you will also be missing the graded weekly assignment those weeks.

To clear unexcused absences: Watch the recorded Arts Colloquium Artist Talks found below, and write a 2-page Artist Talk response. Each talk and written assignment clears a single absence. Therefore, if you need to clear more than one absence you will need to do more than one of these assignments. 

You may submit up to 3 assignments total:

1) Tia-Simone Gardner: Recorded Talk

2) Nicholas Galanin: Recorded Talk

3) Alisha Wormsley: Recorded Talk

Mechanics of a Formal Research Paper & Scholarly Research Training Workshops

Scholarly Research Training Workshop: Monday, October 20 from 12:30-1:45 in lecture with Heather Nisen.

Mechanics of a Formal Research Workshop: Wednesday, October 22 from 12:30-1:45 in lecture.

Heather Nisen (Art & Architecture Librarian):
hnisen@ucsb.edu
http://guides.library.ucsb.edu/art1a

(805) 893-3026

Here is the link to the plagiarism tutorial that the Teaching & Learning Department created:

https://guides.library.ucsb.edu/citation/plagiarism

Paper Format (PAPER TOPIC HERE): 

- 10 pages of text (this does NOT include the cover page, bibliography or images)

- Double-spaced

- Cover page

- Footnotes or endnotes

- Bibliography

- Images (at the end of the paper)

- Use at least 10 different research sources (including peer reviewed 
journal articles, books, exhibition catalogs, monographs, etc.)

- Use at least 10-15 citations

QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF WHEN WRITING & EDITING YOUR PAPER:

1) Do I have the proper number of citations and sources?

2) Did I properly format my citations using MLA or Chicago?

3) Do I have a properly formatted formal bibliography?

4) Did I adhere to the proper paper length?

5) Do I have a clear, and specific thesis statement?

6) Does my thesis statement specifically relate to the final draft of my paper?

7) Did I run spell check (repeatedly)?

8) Did I carefully edit to make sure that I used proper grammar, and were my tenses consistent?

9) Did I formulate clear arguments and substantiate all of my claims with clear and concrete examples?

10) Did I avoid sweeping generalizations and vague assertions?

11) Did I use casual colloquial language in my formal research paper? If so, find more precise ways to describe the point being made.

12) Did I use scholarly research sources such as peer-reviewed journal articles, scholarly articles and books rather than sources such as blogs, Wikipedia, encyclopedias etc (that are not acceptable sources for a formal research paper).

13) Did I properly cite quotes and summaries of other people's intellectual property (footnotes and in-text citations)?

14) Did I avoid excessive biographical information about the artist? Instead I should only include biographical information that is directly relevant to their artistic practice.

15) Would anyone reading my paper understand what I am trying to convey, or do I need to more clearly define the scope of my research and ultimately the point of my paper?

16) Did I place the pictures at the end of my paper? If I embedded them in the text, I need to remove them and place them at the end of my paper.

17) Did I remember to put my name, perm number and section time on my paper?

18) Did I remember to frequently save, backup and email drafts of my paper to myself (just in case my computer crashes)?

19) When I had questions, or needed help, did I reach out to my TA, professor or CLAS?

GENERAL TIPS ON WRITING YOUR PAPER:

1) The selection of a good thesis and supporting examples is an important part of producing a good paper. Be selective. The paper is about how to look closely at works of art and how your evaluation of objects and images is expanded by the specific context in which they are presented.

2) Write primarily with nouns and verbs. Avoid unnecessary (especially vague and imprecise) adjectives and adverbs.

3) Revise and rewrite. Proofread your work. Do not rely solely on "spell check."

4) Use the dictionary to refer to words you do not fully understand.

5) Do not overstate, or excessively use qualifiers (such as very, rather, little, etc.).

6) Use orthodox diction and accurate spelling. ("Its" is possessive; "It's" is a contraction for "it is," "Its' " doesn't exist. "Their" is possessive, "They're" is a contraction of "they are," There is declarative).

7) Be clear. Make references clearly. (Do not use the word "this" as the subject of a sentence).

8) Do not let your opinions get in the way of your writing.

9) Avoid using Wikipedia, blogs, newspaper articles and other materials that are not scholarly. These ARE NOT research materials for a formal research paper.

10) Get to the point quickly. Concentrate on quality of writing not quantity of words.

11) For help with formatting MLA and Chicago citations, visit Purdue Owl: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/purdue_owl.html

For help writing the paper contact CLAS at 893-3269. They have a writing lab that will help you with papers, and will even proofread your papers. They also offer help specifically to students for whom English is a second language. CLAS site: http://www.clas.sa.ucsb.edu/

Welcome to Art 1A Fall Quarter 2025

Hello everyone,

Welcome to Art 1A: Visual Literacy! I wanted to reach out to let you know that everything that you need to know about Art 1A will be posted here on the Art 1A website, not on Canvas. Please read everything carefully, I will go over this information in class when we meet, and I will answer any questions that you may have.

Art 1A lectures and sections will be taught in-person. However, the first lecture, on Monday, September 29 will be taught via Zoom from 12:30-1:45 (sections will be in-person in Arts 1344 from 3:00-3:50 and 4:00-4:50). Zoom link: https://ucsb.zoom.us/j/83111992304

You do not need a pass code to join the Zoom meeting, sign in as an attendee.

If you have time conflicts with work, or with other classes, then you should make arrangements to be available these days, or consider taking Art 1A another quarter. There are also two Los Angeles museum field trips that are an important part of the class. We are offering an alternative museum field trip in Santa Barbara for one of the field trips, if you can't get to Los Angeles twice. Please make sure that you are available on Saturday, October 18 and Saturday, November 8. These two museum field trips are in lieu of the lectures those weeks, but sections are still scheduled. Students are responsible for their own transportation to the Los Angeles and Santa Barbara museums. Neither UCSB, nor the UCSB Department of Art will furnish transportation, or organize it. However, students tend to organize their own carpools each quarter.

Please purchase your course reader and book as soon as possible because you will have written assignments due the first week of class. The course reader is on reserve at the library, and the book is on reserve every single quarter.

Please fill out the Art 1A Questionnaire (HERE), and return it to me and your TA ASAP. This will help us get to know you, and it will also let us know whether you are having any technology issues. You can find our contact information HERE.

Course Reader (cover pictured below) and book information (please have them in your possession before class meets for the first time). The course reader is on reserve at the library.

1) The Course Reader (cover shown above) is only available from Associated Students. You can purchase a physical copy (HERE).

Weekly assignments are due the first week of class, and if you don't have your course reader you can use the Reserve Copy at the Library so that you do your first assignment on time. The physical copy will be available for purchase at the Associated Student Ticket Office. Location Information and Hours HERE.

2) John Berger's Ways of Seeing is available from the Campus Bookstore and Amazon (Click HERE).

3) Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross, Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us. On reserve at the library, but you can download a free copy when you log into the library website (using your UCSB Net ID).

4) The Course Syllabus can be found HERE.

5) The Calendar, where your weekly reading and writing assignments are located, can be found HERE.

6) Information about Lectures and Sections can be found HERE.

7) The Research Paper prompt can be found HERE.

8) The UCSB Library Art 1A Research Page can be found HERE.

9) The UCSB Campus Learning Assistance Services (CLAS) can be found HERE.

10) View the UCSB policy about Academic Integrity and Academic Dishonesty (cheating, plagiarism, furnishing false information, unauthorized collaboration and misuse of course materials) HERE.

11) Fill out the museum liability waivers: All trips require Liability Waivers: and they will be linked to here, once they are available. Fill out all three of the liability waivers (HERE). Simply sign and date them. You must use your full legal name as it appears on eGrades and GOLD.

12) Information about the Department of Art can be found HERE.

13) The UCSB Diversity Statement can be found HERE and the University of California Diversity Statement can be found HERE.

14) The UCSB Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) contact information can be found HERE.

15) The UCSB Health and Wellness website can be found HERE.

16) UCSB Department of Art Intellectual Challenge Policy: "Intellectual challenge and academic rigor are among the foundations of our program. Our faculty foster communities of inquiry and free speech based in self-awareness, individual responsibility, and an informed world view. We encourage divergent opinion and cogent argument, believing lively debate, exposure to differing viewpoints, and a certain level of discomfort are essential to intellectual and artistic growth.

 

In our classes, students will be shown work and introduced to theories and practices that may challenge their beliefs and assumptions. Students are expected to think critically rather than react impulsively; to consider opposing viewpoints and others’ opinions and experiences with openness and thoughtfulness; and to engage in a manner befitting themselves as artists and scholars in this university, an institution of higher learning."