News & Blog

Walt Disney revolutionized the film and art markets, and in the 1930s, he took on the consumer market with the development of the all-encompassing marketing program. Every Disney film, beginning with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, has included a complete marketing campaign, and the successful marketing of Disney characters has brought beloved characters into our everyday lives.

The latest exhibit in Special Collections & University Archives, “Walt Disney, Impresario of Consumption,” looks at Disney’s marketing strategy from the 1930s to today using publications, artifacts, and ephemeral materials produced by and about the Walt Disney Company. The exhibit was curated by UCF students in Dr. Keri Watson’s “The Art of Disney” class (ARH 3888).

The Special Collections & University Archives’ exhibit space is located on the fifth floor of the John C. Hitt Library. The exhibit will be up through January 6, 2018.

Special Collections & University Archives latest exhibit, “Recollections of a Cartoonist: The Glenn “Marty” Stein Collection of Cartoon Art, 1955-2013,” features a selection of drawings, sketches, political cartoons, and comic strips from the “Glenn “Marty” Stein Collection of Cartoon Art, 1955-2013.” Based on Stein’s unpublished manuscript, “Recollections of a Cartoonist: Creating in Different World,” the exhibit includes examples of Stein’s work from the 1970s through 2008.

Stein, a Florida native, drew editorial cartoons from 1999 to 2008 for three Orlando area publications, the Orlando Business Journal, The Apopka Chief, and the Spanish-language paper La Prensa. Stein’s editorial cartoons tackled issues the nation and the world were debating at the turn of the millennium, including immigration, civil rights, and political corruption – many of which are still relevant today. In addition to political cartoons, Stein also created a number of gag cartoons and comic strips, several of which are included in the exhibit. In 2009, Stein gave up cartooning to focus on writing and lecturing about polar history.

The Special Collections & University Archives’ exhibit space is located on the fifth floor of the John C. Hitt Library. The exhibit will be up through July 2017.

On display in March and April at the Rosen Library is an exhibit featuring two student organizations–Transfer Knights and Tau Sigma National Honor Society. Transfer Knights is a social organization that connects transfer students with the rest of UCF. Tau Sigma is a national honor society that features the academic work of transfer students. Newsletters, schedule of events, and contact information are provided for students who are interested in joining these student organizations. Exhibit was curated by Velencia Duvra with assistance by Schuyler Kerby.

The UCF Libraries Special Collections & University Archives is pleased to announce the UCF Student Book Arts Competition Exhibit. Each year since 2005, Special Collections & University Archives invites UCF students to submit one of a kind books called artist books. Unlike traditional books, artist books are handmade to reflect personal artistic visions of their creators ranging from narrative storytelling through writing, drawing, painting, printmaking, and/or photography. The UCF Student Book Arts Competition Exhibit is a showcase of all entries created during the 2016 academic calendar year including past winners.

We are pleased to announce our winner is Jessica McRory for her artist’s book “Familiar”. The winner was selected based on creativity, craftsmanship, content, and design from our three judges – book artists Peter and Donna Thomas, and UCF Libraries Special Collections & University Archives Department Head David Benjamin. Jessica McRory won a purchase award for her artist book to be included in the permanent Book Arts & Typography Collections at Special Collections & University Archives. To celebrate the innovative work of all the participants, the UCF Student Book Arts Competition Exhibit will be on display during the month of February 2017 in the exhibition area on the 5th Floor of the John C. Hitt Library.

The Citizen Curator Project of Central Florida invites Citizen Curators to create a series of exhibitions for display at the John C. Hitt Library, the UCF Art Gallery, and online focused on the theme “Eliminationism and Resistance.” A particularly potent example of eliminationism, defined as social policies that seek to censor, suppress, exile, or exterminate others, is the recent Pulse nightclub attack, whereas the Orlando United campaign may be viewed as an act of resistance and reconciliation.

We urge participants to experiment, not only with a range of perspectives on the theme and historical source material, but also with the idea of what an exhibit can be. Anyone with an interest in affecting social change through exhibitions can be a Citizen Curator. This includes, but is not limited to, students, artists, activists, educators, and members of the community. No previous experience with curating is required.

How to Apply

To apply, email a 250-word description of your project to citizencurator@ucf.edu by February 15, 2017. Please include the type of materials you will be using, the desired or proposed location of your exhibit (UCF Art Gallery, John C. Hitt Library, online, other galleries or venues of your choice), your vision (include a sketch or image if applicable), and how your project relates to the theme “Eliminationism and Resilience.” Individuals or small groups are welcome.

More information is available at: http://www.cah.ucf.edu/citizencurator/

This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.