BGSU Zoom News

Monday, January 22, 2018

Artwork expresses College of Health and Human Services mission | Bradshaw elected to national journalism board

Artist Bonnie Cohen installs the mosaic she created for the Health and Human Services Building.

‘SEE THE DIFFERENCE. BE THE DIFFERENCE’
ARTWORK EXPRESSES COLLEGE OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES MISSION

“See the Difference. Be the Difference” is the theme of a striking artwork crowning the recent renovation of the Bowling Green State University Health and Human Services Building. All who enter are greeted by a glistening mosaic wall expressing the College of Health and Human Services’ mission of service to the community and connecting with people across their lifespans.

Award-winning Akron artist Bonnie Cohen used circles to symbolize the universe and our communities, friendships and families. The circles overlap, intersect and converge; magnified sections call to mind the view through a microscope lens or the concentric circles of a soundwave’s vibration.

“The timeless medium of mosaic art is a metaphor for our communities,” Cohen said. “Every single piece is enhanced by its relationship to the pieces around it. And each individual piece is an integral part of the big picture.”

In contrast to the circles, straight lines of bright glass tile traverse the wall and wrap around the corners, drawing the eye toward the center circles. The dimensional clay and glass pieces invite viewers to feel the textures and trace the patterns. Cohen created all of the handmade tiles from Ohio clay in her studio.

“The installation of Bonnie Cohen’s “See the Difference, Be the Difference” mosaic is much more than just artwork adorning the walls of the College of Health and Human Services,” said University Architect Barbara Shergalis, director of the Office of Design and Construction, who, with Project Manager Kristi Peiffer, served on the selection committee. “It is a statement piece in a significant location of the building that tells the story of who and what the college represents, captivating faculty, students and staff to get close and touch, feel and discover the intricate details of the piece. It is an active piece for people to contemplate while completing the architecture of the space.”

Smith on meteor – 13abc
Jessica B. Harris presentation – Sentinel-Tribune

LOOK! UP IN THE SKY! IT’S A . . . METEOR
BGSU ASTRONOMERS TAKE TO THE AIRWAVES TO DISCUSS EVENT

The meteoroid that blazed into the night sky over southeast Michigan on Jan. 16 drew the attention of astronomers and news media in the region. Drs. John Laird, a professor and chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy, and Dale Smith, professor and director of the BGSU Planetarium, appeared on local news programs to help explain the startling phenomenon, which was also visible in Bowling Green.

See the BGSU interview with John Laird.

BRADSHAW ELECTED TO NATIONAL JOURNALISM BOARD

Kathy Bradshaw during her fellowship in Germany

Dr. Kathy Bradshaw, an associate professor in the Department of Journalism and Public Relations at BGSU, has been elected to serve on the American Journalism Historians Association (AJHA) Board of Directors.

Founded in 1981, AJHA seeks to advance education and research in mass communication history. Members work to raise historical standards and ensure that all scholars and students recognize the vast importance of media history and then are able to apply this knowledge in society. Previously, Bradshaw had also been serving as AJHA’s representative to the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. “I am both honored and thrilled to have been elected to a board position,” she said.

Bradshaw came to serve on the AJHA board following a career training historians and as a broadcast journalist. Prior to her work with AJHA, she had the opportunity to participate in the 2016 RIAS Berlin Kommission Fellowship, a binational organization that promotes the exchange of people and information in broadcast journalism.

“The experience provided me with a broad, timely understanding of Germany’s politics, economics and broadcasting placed in a historical context,” she said.

Bradshaw said she is grateful for the opportunity to share her experiences with other journalists across the United States and seeks to implement this knowledge through her position on the AJHA board, where she will serve a full term.

INTERNATIONALLY NOTED PHOTOGRAPHER TO SHARE WORK

Osamu James Nakagawa, the Ruth N. Halls Distinguished Professor of Photography at Indiana University and director of the Center for Integrative Photographic Studies, will present "Kai: Following the Cycle of Life" during a Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholar Lecture. His presentation will begin at 5 p.m. Jan. 25 in 204 Fine Arts Center.

Nakagawa was named the 2015 Sagamihara Photographer of the Year and the 2010 Higashikawa New Photographer of the Year. His work has been exhibited internationally and is in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, George Eastman Museum, Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Museum of Fine Arts Houston and Museum of Contemporary Photography Chicago. He is best known for his Okinawa trilogy, a series of works that address the atrocity of World War II in Japan.