Arts & Culture

From Daedalus to da Vinci, from Kitty Hawk to Cape Canaveral, the dream of flight has powered some of the world’s most ambitious feats of design and engineering. On April 28, freshman architecture students from the Sam Fox School launched their own aeronautical experiments from the top of Art Hill in Forest Park.

One of the first U.S. artists to hold an academic appointment in a scientific unit, Patricia Olynyk has collaborated with particle physicists and biologists; investigated anatomical models and medical devices; and displayed at the National Academy of Sciences. We sat down to discuss Washington University in St. Louis’ new Art|Sci Initiative and Fellows Program, which she launched earlier this spring.

Knowledge can be imparted not only by spoken language and the written word, but also by drawing and photography and the moving image. This spring, 15 WUSTL students have explored St. Louis through the language of experimental film. We sat down with renowned video artist Monika Weiss to discuss the city, digital filmmaking and the training of the mind and soul.

More than 170 Washington University in St. Louis undergraduates showcased their research projects through poster, visual and oral presentations during the 2014 Spring Undergraduate Research Symposium, held April 28 in Bauer and Knight halls.

On Sunday, May 4, dozens of models will take the stage wearing scores of outfits by 26 aspiring designer from the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts. Here are some highlights from the senior class.

Long before John Travolta fumbled her name at the Academy Awards, Idina Menzel was known as the star of “Wicked,” Stephen Schwartz’s musical reimagining of “The Wizard of Oz.” On April 29, the WUSTL Wind Ensemble will present excerpts from “Wicked,” “Phantom of the Opera,” “Star Trek” and more in the Ballroom Theater of the 560 Music Center.

It’s the stage that launched juniors fashion. On Sunday, May 4, the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts will present its 85th Annual Fashion Design Show in the 560 Music Center. The fully choreographed, Paris-style extravaganza will feature dozens of models wearing scores of outfits by 26 aspiring designers.

The parent company of Commerce Bank has finalized donation of two paintings by Ernst Wilhelm Nay (1902-1968), one of the most important German artists of the mid-20th century, to the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum at Washington University in St. Louis.

During his 40-year career, Richard Henry Franklin has worked in every facet of architecture and mentored scores of students, architects, planners and community advocates. On Thursday, April 17, Franklin will return to Washington University in St. Louis as one of seven alumni honored at the Sam Fox School’s annual Awards for Distinction dinner.

This month marks the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Shakespeare. From April 17-20, WUSTL’s Performing Arts Department in Arts & Sciences will celebrate the Bard with a new production of “Twelfth Night,” one of his most beloved comedies, in the A.E. Hotchner Studio Theatre.