Events

CFAR Banner at 510 Oak Marisa Williamson: Welcome Back  On View: October 2026- January 2027 Location: 510 Oak Street, Eugene, OR 97401

Welcome Back is a digital collage featuring a survey of historic figures; indigenous elders, colonizers, artists, and the majestic landscapes and visual narratives they occupied, captured, and made home. “Welcome Back” buries the warm language of the new academic year under layers of shadowy history. It was created as an homage to the timelessness of confrontation. “We’ll come back!” it seems to read. It is an homage to the personae who haunt and cohabit our world and embody the complex ethos of the American west.

Marisa Williamson is a project-based artist who works in video, image-making, installation, writing and performance around themes of history, race, feminism, and technology. Williamson’s projects map the past onto geographies of the present. Her work has been featured in exhibitions throughout the US, as well as in Rome, Berlin, Switzerland, and Buenos Aires. Her work has been supported by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Virginia Humanities, The Graham Foundation, and the Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America. She was a 2012 participant in the Skowhegan School of Painting & Sculpture and the Whitney Museum’s Independent Study Program in 2014-2015. Williamson holds a BA from Harvard University and an MFA from CalArts. She is a 2026-2027 Fellow at the Warren Center for Studies in American History at Harvard University, on leave from the University of Virginia where she is an Assistant Professor of Studio Art.

This banner was commissioned under an open call by CFAR Researcher-in-Residence Jabari Zuberi. The curatorial approach was to ask how art can contribute to changing the material conditions and social relations that shape people’s lives. Drawing from dialectical materialism, its curatorial approach considers art as both a product of those conditions and a means of intervening in them. Who makes an image, whose interests it serves, and how it reaches a public are central to what that image can do. The project moves beyond representation, observation, and contemplation as the primary measures of creative success, asking what the work makes possible for the people who encounter it. Through its production, content, and public presence, the banner aims to connect visual experience to the conditions of everyday life and the possibility of collective action. At its core is a question: what does it mean for art to take changing the world seriously?

“Reminiscence” showcases five artists’ work spanning a multitude of mediums and subjects. Cate Campbell’s pieces grapple with the concept of memory changing over time. This collection combines photography, cyanotype exposures, and stitching, exploring spaces of nostalgia and distance from a life no longer lived. Chris Castro’s photographic series features portraits of Oregonians in an aim to understand Oregon through its people, encouraging the dispelling of preconceived notions. Eleanor Abbert’s collection dives into themes of familiarity, homemaking, and feminine spaces, drawing from textile patterns and interior architecture. Zorka Pataki’s pieces explore color within double cloth blocks and summer and winter weave structures. Sawyer Scott’s collection includes fragmented compositions that hone in on texture and shape, exploring the layers of the human-made and natural worlds with an influence of queerness depicted through symbols, history, and lived experiences.

Artist names:

Cate Campbell

Zorka Pataki

Sawyer Scott

Chris Castro

Eleanor Abbert

Mini-symposium and reception for launch of the new Center for Environmental Futures’ podcast, Environmental Futures.

Melody Allison (Environmental Futures podcast and PhD student in philosophy, UO) Sean J Patrick Carney (Time Zero podcast) Leah Sottile (Burn Wild and Bundyville podcasts)

Sponsor: Center for Environmental Futures 

The Landscape of Muslim Philanthropy: An Academic Review of Giving Patterns in the US

Featuring Professor Shariq Siddiqui from Indiana University

Muslim philanthropy represents an important yet understudied dimension of charitable giving in the United States. This talk examines the landscape of Muslim philanthropy through an academic review of giving patterns, exploring how religious beliefs, cultural traditions, and institutional contexts shape Muslim charitable practices. It considers the role of Islamic philanthropic traditions, including zakat (obligatory almsgiving), sadaqah (voluntary charity), and waqf (endowment), alongside contemporary forms of charitable engagement through mosques, Muslim-led nonprofits, and broader philanthropic institutions. By synthesizing existing scholarship, the talk identifies key findings of new research, emerging trends, and gaps in the literature on Muslim American giving. It also considers the implications of these patterns for understanding religious philanthropy, strengthening nonprofit practice, and advancing a more inclusive and comprehensive study of philanthropy in the United States.

This event is part of International Education Month (IEM) programming. View the full calendar of IEM events here: https://international.uoregon.edu/IEM.

Sponsored by: Al Askari Islamic Studies Initiative within the Global Studies Institute

Co-sponsored by: Arab Student Association, Global Studies, Muslim Studies Association, Religious Studies, The Schnitzer School of Global Studies and Languages, and the School of Planning, Public Policy and Management.

Michelle JaJa Chang Director, JaJa Co Associate Professor, USC School of Architecture

Tuesday, November 3 6:00pm PT Yeon Salon – “Resident Artist, Visiting Architect” Cottrell House, Portland (RSVPs closed) Zoom Meeting ID: 959 3017 1837

Wednesday, November 4 noon PT “On Obscurity” UO Portland, Highland Hall Gallery, 6410 NE 27th Ave Zoom Meeting ID: 923 2687 6177

In "Resident Artist, Visiting Architect," Chang presents recent work from her practice, JaJa Co. She speculates on a form of peripatetic practice through four projects: one completed at the Headlands Center for the Arts, another at the American Academy in Rome, and two building designs for a new artist residency. This event is the first in a new series of “Yeon Salons” hosted at the historic Cottrell and Watzek houses, designed by John Yeon and maintained by the UO. RSVPs for this event are closed, but a Zoom option is available.

Then, in the lunch talk on November 4 in Highland Hall at UO Portland, Chang discusses obscurity, drawing from her essay “Opacity” in the most recent Log, and from her book, Also Known As (MIT Press, 2024). This event is free and open to the public, and a Zoom option is also available.

Join GEO and Professor Amanda Wojick for an info session on Studio Art in Athens, a three-week faculty-led program in Athens and the islands of Greece. 

Students spend their creating and reflecting on art in response to the places they visit, with lectures, fieldwork, and daily excursions to archaeological sites, museums, and contemporary galleries. 

At the session, you’ll learn about:

• Structure of the program and the course
• How to apply and deadlines
• Hear directly from the faculty lead and learn about past student's experiences

Learn more about the program here: https://geo.uoregon.edu/programs/europe-greece/studio-art-athens

The 32nd  Annual Student Jewelry Sale will be held in the lobby of Lawrence Hall, by the dean’s office. 

Students of the Jewelry and Metalsmithing program in the Department of Art will present inventive jewelry using traditional and nontraditional materials. Each student is responsible for the design and fabrication of at least 12 pieces of jewelry including rings, earrings, pendants, brooches, etc. that range in complexity and price with most being sold starting at $30 and upwards. All sale proceeds will provide funding for guest lectures, studio equipment, and other student support within the program. 

The sale has enjoyed immense success in past years. Be sure to mark your calendar and arrive early! 

For further information, please contact Valerie Ho, Visiting Assistant Professor, Jewelry and Metalsmithing, info@uoregon.College

The Oregon Humanities Center presents a wine chat with Professor Eleonora Redaelli.

Who actually keeps American culture alive? We tend to picture artists, scholars, and museums — but a quiet, tangled web of federal, state, and local government has shaped the country’s cultural life for decades, usually without anyone noticing. Drawing on her book, Invisible Cultural Policy in America, Professor Eleonora Redaelli will trace how this patchwork system emerged, the debates that shaped how we think about arts, humanities, and historic preservation, and what it looks like on the ground — from Oregon to Minnesota, Maryland, and New Mexico.  

Join Professor Redaelli and the Oregon Humanities Center for a thoughtful discussion of this matter. Doors open at 5 p.m. Beverages and food will be available for purchase and light refreshments will be provided. There is ample parking at Banner Bank across the street. This event is free and open to the public. Please register at ohc.oregon.edu. 

Join us in celebrating the Class of 2027! 

For graduate RSVP requirements and day-of details, email info@uoregon.College or call 541-346-3631. You can also visit:  https://design.uoregon.edu/commencement