APSU This Week: ‘Frozen II’ artist to speak at Austin Peay

(Published Feb. 24, 2020)

The Department of Art + Design, with support from The Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts, is pleased to welcome award-winning senior matte painter & environment designer, Heather Abels, to Austin Peay State University. 

“Abels is a Clarksville resident and friend of the Department of Art + Design who works with major film, TV and animation studios such as Walt Disney Animation Studios, Rhythm and Hues and Nemesis Collective,” Michael Dickins, chair of the Visiting Artist Speaker Committee, said. “She is credited on such films and TV series as ‘Frozen II,’ ‘Deadpool,’ ‘Game of Thrones,’ ‘A Series of Unfortunate Events,’ ‘Zootopia,’ ‘Django Unchained,’ ‘300: Rise of an Empire’ and ‘Moana.’ We are really excited for her visit as she will give an artist lecture on her creative practice and her life and career as a sought after, award-winning, Hollywood matte painter.”

Abels’ lecture – which is free and open to the public – is at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 26, in the Trahern Theatre, located in the Trahern building at Austin Peay. All ages are welcome. 

For more on Heather Abels and her work, visit www.heatherabels.com. 

For more on this lecture, contact Dickins at dickinsm@apsu.edu.

To read more, click here.

‘The Vagina Monologues’ to raise money for sexual assault center 

The Austin Peay State University Women’s and Gender Studies Program and the APSU Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance will host the 19^th annual production of Eve Ensler’s award-winning play, “The Vagina Monologues,” at 7 p.m. on Feb. 26 and Feb. 28, in the University’s Clement Auditorium.  

The annual production is part of the international VDAY campaign to raise awareness about violence against women and girls and money to fund agencies that support survivors of interpersonal violence. This year, Austin Peay’s production will feature the monologues “The Man Prayer” and “Respect.” “The Man Prayer,” which will be performed by APSU male students, defines masculinity in new terms — terms that do not rely on conquest and subjugation to represent men’s power. “Respect,” which is written in honor of Aretha Franklin, highlights the struggles of black women in American society. This monologue takes a historical look at all that black women have endured.

The money raised from the two performances will be donated to Clarksville’s Sexual Assault Center and the Legal Aid of Middle Tennessee. 

To read more, click here. 

Basketball-focused ‘Spectacle’ exhibit opens

The New Gallery at Austin Peay State University, with support from The Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts and the Department of Art + Design, is pleased to present Spectacle to continue an exciting 2019-2020 exhibition season. 

“Spectacle is an exhibition that combines basketball and visual culture. It’s a three-person show that features the work of Brandon Donahue, Vesna Pavlović and Chris Boyd Taylor,” Michael Dickins, curator and director of The New Gallery, said. 

The exhibit opens Monday, Feb. 24, at The New Gallery in the Art + Design building at Austin Peay State University and runs through March 27. The three artists, the curator and sportswriter Brandon Vogel – who wrote the exhibition essay for Spectacle – will participate in a panel discussion at 6 p.m. March 18 in Heydel Hall of the Art + Design building. A reception is scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. on March 19 with a brief gallery talk by the curator and artists at 12:15 p.m. 

All events are free and open to the public. 

To read more, click here.

Govs men’s basketball finishes against Morehead, Murray

The Governors lost a heartbreaker to Eastern Illinois on Saturday and are looking to rebound when they host Morehead State for Senior Night on Thursday, Feb. 27, at the Winfield Dunn Center. The game will tip off following the women’s game, which starts at 5:30 p.m. The women also lost a heartbreaker to Eastern Illinois on Saturday.

The men’s team is tied for first in the Ohio Valley Conference with Belmont and Murray State, who the Govs play in Murray, Kentucky, at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 29. The women also finish at Murray at 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 29. 

For more, go to www.letsgopeay.com.

Get your taxes done for free

Austin Peay State University’s College of Business is looking to ease some of that stress by providing free tax preparation through its Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. The program is open to anyone with an annual income of $56,000 or less, individuals with disabilities or Spanish speakers with limited English skills. 

For the last three years, Austin Peay has offered the VITA program as part of a service-learning course that provides an important community service while also giving APSU accounting students practical, real-world experience. The students in Business Professor Jennifer Thayer’s class are all IRS-certified volunteers who spent the winter months preparing for the VITA program. 

The VITA program has 31 student volunteers ready to serve members of the community at 322 Home Ave., home of the APSU Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement. Appointments can be made by calling 931-221-6590, but walk-ins are welcome. Students will offer tax preparation from 1-7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays. The VITA program will remain open (except for the week of March 8-14, which is spring break) until the final tax-filing day on April 15. 

For more, click here.

Other Austin Peay happenings this week:

• Jalondra Townsend to present senior show Feb. 24-28 in the Art + Design Building’s student gallery. Click here for more.
• The 2020 Ziegler Leadership Forum from 3:30-8:45 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27, on the top floor of the Morgan University Center. Click here for more.
• Carnaval Latino from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Friday, Feb. 28, in Einstein Bagel Bros., Morgan University Center. Click here for more.
• Govs baseball to host Western Kentucky at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 25, at Raymond C. Hand Park. Click here for more.
• Govs softball travels to Bowling Green, Kentucky, Feb. 28-March 1, for the Holiday Inn Hilltopper Spring Fling. Click here for more.
• Govs men’s tennis hosts Martin Methodist at 2 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27, and Dayton at 11 a.m. Sunday, March 1. Click here for more.
• For more campus events, click here.