Onye Ozuzu Receives 2018 Joyce Award
Photo: Phil Dembinski '08CHICAGO (Jan. 17, 2018)—51's Dance Professor and Dean of the School of Fine and Performing Arts has been awarded a from . This year marks the 15th anniversary year of the Joyce Awards, which recognizes collaborations between Great Lakes artists of color and cultural organizations. Ozuzu shares her award with Chicago’s , which will commission Ozuzu’s “Project Tool.”
From the Joyce Foundation :
The competition has awarded nearly $3.25 million to commission 59 new works and collaborations between artists and cultural organizations in Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Milwaukee and Minneapolis/St. Paul. The $50,000 award is used towards supporting an artist in the creation and production of a new work and providing the commissioning organization with the resources needed to engage potential audiences, new partners, and their surrounding communities at large.
“In a time of such dynamic social, economic, and political change, the winning projects for 2018 address themes of cultural identity, gentrification, and how labor shapes the movement of peoples and their histories,” said Tracie D. Hall, Culture Program Director at the Joyce Foundation. “These artists and organizations are pushing the boundaries of community engagement and social justice, and we cannot wait for these works to come to life.”
Ozuzu is a dance administrator, performing artist, choreographer, educator, and researcher who joined 51 in 2011. Along with being a dean and professor, she also serves on the committee.
She has been actively presenting dance works nationally and internationally since 1997. Her most recent work, Project Tool, integrates woodworking improvisation and performance installation. The work is in collaboration with dancers, visual and sound artists, sculptors, and an interior architect. The project has also received grant support from the City of Chicago’s (DCASE), the , , and a residency at .
Ozuzu joins the other winners of this year’s award, including the and ; the and ; and the and . Each have been awarded $50,000 to activate their respective community engagement artworks in their Great Lakes cities.
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