arshall owntownM DM a r s h a l l U n i v e r s i t y C o l l e g e o f a r t s a n d M e d i a

volume 1 • issue no. 5 • Winter 2013

Above: Art graduate student Nikos Karabetsos and volunteers paint 10 lords-a-leaping. Below: Karabetsos (center) takes a break from painting the “eight maids-a-milking” scene withShelby Spence, art education student and National Art Education Association student chapter president; Maribea Barnes, associate professor of art education and School of Art and Design interim director; Jillian Smallwood, fine arts student and art and design ambassador; and fine arts students Jacqueline Gentner and Zoey Myers.

students and faculty from Marshall’s College of arts and Media and members of downtown live

hit the streets in november to spread holiday cheer via a “12 days of Christmas” depiction on

storefront windows downtown.

downtown live, a huntington regional Chamber of Commerce committee, was created to

attract more customer traffic to huntington’s urban core. Marshall’s new state-of-the-art visual

arts Center, slated for May 2014 completion, aims to do the same but with a bit of Big green flair.

“our mission is to create and foster a Marshall University presence downtown,” said nikos

Karabetsos, the Marshall graduate student who coordinates the alliance with downtown live.

“this partnership is something we want to continue, especially with the visual arts Center in

development.”

MU art students, faculty adorn downtown storefronts with classic Christmas scenes

( Co n t i n U e d o n s i d e 2 )

for more information about the College of arts and Media, the visual arts Center or our partnerships, call (304) 696-6433,

email cam@marshall.edu or visit www.marshall.edu/cam

Decking the streets of Huntington

Cathy Burns, president/Ceo of the

huntington regional Chamber of

Commerce, said working with Marshall

University’s College of arts and Media has

been invaluable to downtown live and the

huntington community.

“the collaboration between our business

community and the school of art and

design allows us to enhance the look

of downtown and offer more events for

people to attend,” said Burns. “With the new

visual art Center, this partnership is just the

beginning — that’s the way we look at it.”

Maribea Barnes, associate professor of art

education and school of art and design

interim director, said she and her students

will again work with the downtown live

committee on its annual springtime

“It’s kind of neat when you see a child’s eyes light up at the sight of the paintings. Building those relationships between the Huntington community and Marshall University is what these partnerships are all about.”

- Nikos KarabetsosSchool of Art and Design

Graduate Student

Children’s art festival extravaganza (CafÉ)

event. CafÉ has been exposing huntington’s

youth to a range of art materials since 2009.

“We hope to continue and grow this holiday

event as we have with CafÉ,” said Barnes.

“assisting the committee has broadened

our outreach initiatives and provided

an opportunity for both our fine arts

students and art education students to

work collaboratively within the downtown

community.”

to create the “12 days of Christmas” window

paintings, Karabetsos gathered students

and faculty, including art education student

shelby spence, fine arts students Jillian

smallwood, Jacqueline gentner and Zoey

Myers, and Maribea Barnes, associate

professor of art education and school of

art and design interim director. then they

and community volunteers all headed

downtown to consenting businesses

between tenth and eighth streets.

Using paints and brushes donated by latta’s

school supply, the volunteers painted the

windows, following outlines drawn by

Karabetsos. he said the art, positioned along

the Christmas Parade route, was whimsical

specifically for the community’s children.

“it’s kind of neat when you see a child’s

eyes light up at the sight of the paintings,”

Karabetsos said. “Building those

relationships between the huntington

community and Marshall University is what

these partnerships are all about.”

D E C K I N G T H E S T R E E T S Co n t i n U e d f r o M s i d e 1 Building partnershipsOur lives are marked by partnerships. We have partners at work and play, in business, community and in our relationships. The Marshall University Visual Arts Center is creating opportunities for exciting new partnerships between Huntington’s downtown and the arts.

As we anticipate an influx of more than 300 students and faculty members into the heart of the city, university and business interests are working together as partners to make this happen seamlessly.

Our partners in the design and construction of the building itself include bond holders, architects, the construction company and trades people, who are transforming a vast space for a bold new purpose. The donors whose gifts and pledges are making this dream a reality are partners, too, as are the civic leaders and government officials who have worked together with the university since the project’s inception.

The Visual Arts Center’s completion next summer will be followed by the arrival of hundreds of new faces to downtown, opening the way for partnerships that have been greatly anticipated and that hold promise for a more vibrant, creative downtown Huntington.

To the many partners engaged in this amazing transformation of our city and university we say, “thank you.”

“Unless we make Christmas an occasion to share our blessings, all the snow in Alaska won’t make it ‘white.’”

- Bing Crosby American singer and actor