a2ru Faculty Research Cluster

The a2ru/Willson Center Faculty Research Cluster partners with departments, initiatives, and programs in supporting extraordinary contributions to arts-oriented research at UGA. The goals of the a2ru Faculty Research Cluster include administering support and increasing external funding for UGA faculty engaged in arts-oriented research, increasing the visibility and understanding of arts-oriented research, establishing a community of faculty and institutions involved with arts-oriented research, securing UGA’s reputation as a leader in arts-oriented research, and supporting curricular initiatives that promote arts-oriented research and interdisciplinarity. For questions about the cluster and its programming, please contact: Isabelle Loring Wallace 

a2ru (the Alliance for the Arts in Research Universities) is a partnership of more than 40 institutions committed to transforming research universities in order to ensure the greatest possible institutional support for interdisciplinary research, curricula, programs and creative practice between the arts, sciences and other disciplines. UGA’s membership in a2ru is made possible by the UGA Arts Council, the Office of the Provost, the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, the Lamar Dodd School of Art, and the Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) through the Willson Center for Humanities & Arts.

The University of Georgia is proud to host the a2ru annual conference, to be held in Athens November 1–3, 2018. The 2018 theme, Arts Environments: Design, Resilience, and Sustainability, is an invitation to explore the relationship between creativity and diverse cultural locations, by framing discussions about design, resilience, and sustainability in context of interdisciplinary artistic and environmental practice. The theme offers an opportunity to think broadly about the ecology of the arts and their environments, in terms of performance, design, and engineering. A land and sea grant institution inextricable from the town of Athens and the broader ecologies of Georgia and the Southeast, the University of Georgia will provide a rich context for thinking creatively about Arts Environments globally.