The Center for Innovation, Research, and Creativity in the Arts (CIRCA) presents talks by Joy Davis ’11 and Phil Davis ’07 M.F.A, in a CIRCA Catalyst event, an ongoing series promoting conversations around transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary research that fuses the performing and visual arts with other fields of inquiry and scholarship.

Joy Davis is a scholar and curator, the director of Waller Gallery and the co-producer of Unravel Podcast. Her work transcends many fields of study, which includes: fashion, history, art, media, and performance among people of color through history. Her current research focuses on fashion and race analysis in Spanish colonial paintings. She splits her time in the Baltimore/DMV area and New York City. She has spoken at Johns Hopkins University, LIM College, the Costume Society of America, and more. With Waller Gallery and Unravel Podcast she works to break down the institutions and disseminate information to the community.

Talk Description:
How do you create space for artists, ideas, and community engagement? These are key questions to ask oneself about starting and maintaining a gallery and community center. Scholar and curator, Joy Davis, will discuss the process timeline of starting a new, black owned, gallery in Baltimore, MD.

Phil Davis is an animator, filmmaker, sound artist and curator residing in Baltimore. He was born and raised in rural New Hampshire where he learned to throw rocks, climb trees, and collect insects. He has a BFA in Film Art from Syracuse University and a MFA in Imaging and Digital Arts from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. His films, music videos, and animations have screened and won awards at a number of international film festivals. Phil is the founder and curator of Sweaty Eyeballs Animation, a screening series of eccentric and cutting edge animation started in 2012. He is currently a professor in the department of Art + Design at Towson University where he teaches animation and digital art courses.

Talk Description:
Phil Davis is the founder and head curator of Sweaty Eyeballs Animation, a screening series in collaboration with the Maryland Film Festival and Parkway Theatre. The screening series started as an annual invitational, featuring ground-breaking work in animated short film. In 2017 the annual screening expanded to a monthly screening series at the Parkway Theatre with programs ranging from themed animated shorts, guest artists/curators, and feature-length animated masterpieces. Phil will talk about his work curating animation programming along with successes and failures in helping establish a vibrant animation community in Baltimore.

Reception to follow talks. Admission is free and open to the public.