August Grahn Memorial Thriving Artist Series

The August Grahn Memorial Fund is designated solely for the purpose supporting the The August Grahn Memorial Thriving Artist Series. This series will present a number of artists and speakers in various disciplines and mediums, who will be commissioned to create and or present works centered on mental health and wellness, for a series of lectures, shows, and on campus performances and presentations. The funds will be utilized to secure their works/presence for campus, and for post-event receptions for students to discuss their thoughts and feelings surrounding the works.

Ova and Leilani - TeAda Productions

TeAda is a nomadic theater of color rooted in the stories of immigrants and refugees. Their artistic directors will share with us how this work attends to the healing and honoring the lives of the displaced, exploited and overlooked. 

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Josh Kornbluth

Josh Kornbluth, monologuist, will be doing an autobiographical monologue on the subject of empathy using story to explore brain function. Josh has been doing autobiographical monologues for over three decades. 

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Susan Schwartzenberg

Susan Schawartzenberg a visual artist, photographer, and curator will present, People in time and place – Reflections on Public History, a selection of works concentrating on the ways people are shaped by memory, history, and place. Projects presented will include, the Rosie the Riveter Memorial/Honoring Women’s Labor during World War II, Philosopher’s Way, Becoming Citizen’s: Family Life and the Politics of Disability among other works. 

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'Art and the Brain' Lecture by Dr. Bruce Miller

For the first iteration of this series, Dr. Bruce Miller, MD and co-director of the Global Brain Health Institute of UCSF, will present a lecture titled Art and the Brain. His engaging presentation will focus on the anatomy of the brain and specific areas that appear to be involved in the new interest in art in people who develop neurological conditions like frontotemporal dementia. He has several examples of patients in whom art becomes almost an obsession. An expert in this field of neurology, he views the brain as a dynamic system in which areas of vulnerability (losing an ability like speech) can unmask areas of strength (artistic talent).

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