RUTH LUBBERS @ SUU's Art Insights (CC: Sept 1)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 08/18/11
Michael French
Public Information Coordinator
College of Performing and Visual Arts
Southern Utah University
Office: 435-865-8667
michaelfrench@suu.edu

Photos: Ruth Lubbers, courtesy of Ruth Lubbers
Art Access Building, courtesy of Ruth Lubbers

FOR CALENDAR EDITORS: ART INSIGHTS, RUTH LUBBERS

WHAT: An arts administrator who as Executive Director of Art Access/VSA Utah, Ruth Lubbers has had a mission in providing equal opportunities to inclusive arts programs for Utahns with disabilities and those with limited access to the arts. Ms. Lubbers sums up her career in a unique presentation entitled Art, Disability and Community.

WHO: Art Insights
Southern Utah University, Department of Art and Design

WHEN: Thursday, September 1, 2011

TIME: 7:00pm

WHERE: Centrum Arena, Section K, Southern Utah University, Cedar City, UT

TICKETS: Phone: Arts Hotline: (435) 865-8800 or visit: www.suu.edu/arts

PRICES: Free and the General Public is encouraged to attend.

SUU’S ART INSIGHTS TO FEATURE
ARTS ADMINISTRATOR RUTH LUBBERS
OF ART ACCESS/VSA UTAH
SEPTEMBER 1, 2011

Southern Utah University, Cedar City, Utah: An arts administrator who as Executive Director of Art Access/VSA Utah, Ruth Lubbers has had a mission to provide equal opportunities for inclusive arts programs for Utahns with disabilities and those with limited access to the arts. Ms. Lubbers sums up her career in a unique presentation entitled Art, Disability and Community in SUU’s Department of Art and Design’s weekly lecture series, Art Insights, on Thursday, September 1, 2011. The lecture begins at 7pm at SUU’s Centrum Arena, Section K. Admission is free and the general public is encouraged to attend.

Ruth Lubbers, Executive Director of Art Access/VSA Utah has guided the organization since 1993, developing inclusive programs in the arts for people with and without disabilities. She moved to Salt Lake City in 1981 from Western Michigan where she had been Fine Arts Coordinator for the Muskegon Area Intermediate School District. Ruth was given the Honorary Alumna of the Year Award from the College of Fine Arts at the University of Utah in 2002 and was a member of the Salt Lake City 2002 Olympic Winter Games Arts and Culture Advisory Committee from 1998 through 2002. As director of the Art Access Gallery, she has been an active member of the Salt Lake Gallery Association, as well as a past president. In 2004 Utah Business Magazine and the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce designated Lubbers one of thirty Women of Vision in Utah for her contributions to the Utah arts community. Ruth recently served on the boards of the Utah Arts Festival and the Utah Museums Association.

Ruth Lubbers' appearance coincides with the fall 2011 launch of SUU's new Museum Studies minor. While at SUU, she will meet with the students in ART 4910/Education in a Museum Environment to discuss strategies for inclusion of all audiences in a museum, art center, gallery, or other similar art venue.

Art Insights is a weekly program hosted during the fall and spring semesters by SUU’s Art and Design faculty. Students and community members meet weekly to experience presentations and discussions by visiting artists and art educators from around the nation who share their work and insights and attend gallery openings. Admission is free, and the general public is invited to attend.

Learn more about Ruth Lubbers’ special artistic mission by attending her Art Insights’ appearance. For more information on the SUU College of Performing and Visual Arts events, please call the Arts Hotline at (435) 865-8800, or visit www.suu.edu/arts.

ABOUT THE COLLEGE
The Southern Utah University College of Performing and Visual Arts is comprised of nationally accredited departments of Art and Design, Music, Theatre Arts and Dance, as well as a graduate program in Arts Administration. The College offers 16 different degree areas, including liberal arts Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees; professional Bachelor of Music and Bachelor of Fine Arts in art and theatre degrees; and a Master of Fine Arts in Arts Administration degree. More than 60 full- and part-time faculty and staff are engaged in teaching and mentoring over 550 majors in the College. Over 1100 students enroll each year in over 195 arts classes on the SUU campus. The College presents 100 performances, lectures, presentations, and exhibitions each year. The College’s affiliate organizations include the Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallery, American Folk Ballet, Utah Shakespeare Festival, the performance group Acclamation, and the SUU Ballroom Dance Company. For more information about the College of Performing and Visual Arts, contact the Office of the Dean at (435) 865-8561, or by e-mail at cpvamktg@suu.edu.