Pamela Meister ’08, M.P.P., has been appointed as the next Harford County Council administrator. Meister most recently served as the associate executive director at the Baltimore Jewish Council after working as the director of government relations and public policy with the same organization. She also worked as the legislative director to state Sen. Paul G. Pinsky, a Prince George’s County Democrat, from 2004 to 2008. She has a psychology degree from George Washington University and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Maryland Baltimore County.

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FIFA World Cup soccer creates a lot of drama, passion and excitement. This year’s recently concluded women’s tournament was no exception.

The world #1 U.S. team earned a spot in the finals against upstart Japan who has never beat the Americans in over 20 matches. Meanwhile the Yanks hope to revive their famous 1999 title.

The game was neck and neck with final outcome favoring Japan. Tie at the end of 120 minutes of play, the game decided by penalty kicks, for a few reasons.

Had the U.S. won, they would have been the first team in the world to win the cup three times.

But in the words of Piers Morgan via Twitter, this is a great win for a country that has survived tremendous disasters in the last year.

To boot, for all you fútbol fans, this final game out-tweeted the Super Bowl and number of tweets per second records.

Check out highlights and memorable photos from the final game here.

Photo courtesy of CBS

Floundering Presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich is trying get his groove back. For inspiration, he recently he paid homage to the iconic American actor John Wayne by visiting his birthplace in Winterset, Iowa.

Hopefully Newt will be able to channel some of Wayne’s tough, western grit into his own accident-prone campaign.

Gingrich recently revealed that his Presidential campaign is more than a million dollars in debt, with almost half of those funds blown on private airfares.

Newt’s campaign suffered a hard blow last month when many of his staffers left en masse, and he has not moved to replace them.

He claims the kind of grassroots campaign he is hoping to run can function well with a lean staff.

Like John Wayne, Newt intends to stick to his guns. Still, this looks like it might be the start of an unhappy and ever-narrowing campaign trail for the Lone Ranger.

August 31 - December 21, 2011

Contact: Thomas Moore
Director of Arts Management
410-455-3370
tmoore@umbc.edu

Note: This release is available as a pdf file.

The Albin O. Kuhn Library Gallery presents Legacy of Love: Italian Memorial Sculpture, photographs by Robert Fichter and Robert Freidus, on display from August 31 through December 21.

In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, dramatic social, political and artistic changes swept across Italy. These changes found expression in some of the most remarkable sculpture ever made. In the cemeteries that were constructed all over the Italian peninsula, starting from the Napoleonic period, funerary sculpture by renowned contemporary artists developed from relatively conventional Neoclassicism through ever more astonishing forms of Realism, informed in turn by Symbolism and Art Deco.

The emotional charge of this sometimes symbolic but more commonly hyper-realistic, often erotic and always arresting work is captured in this exhibition of specially taken photographs.

In a companion book to the exhibition, a scholarly text by Sandra Berresford analyzes the iconographic, cultural and art historical background to the works. Additional essays by Fred S. Licht and James Stevens Curl introduce the funerary art tradition and the European cemetery movement, while Francesca Bregoli and Franco Sborgi discuss the parallel Jewish tradition and the complex iconography of angels. This is the first study in English of this important collection of artworks, and the most comprehensive in any language. It also includes an extensive bibliography and a gazetteer of Italian cemeteries.

Public Lecture
On Tuesday, November 1 at 4 p.m., Robert Fichter and Robert Freidus will present a public talk on their work.

Gallery Information
The Albin O. Kuhn Library Gallery serves as one of the principal art galleries in the Baltimore region. Objects from the Special Collections Department, as well as art and artifacts from all over the world, are displayed in challenging and informative exhibitions for the University community and the public. Moreover, traveling exhibitions are occasionally presented, and the Gallery sends some exhibits on tour to other institutions nationwide. Admission to the Gallery and its programs is free.

Acknowledgements
The presentation of this exhibition is supported by an arts program grant from the Maryland State Arts Council, an agency funded by the State of Maryland and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional support comes from the Friends of the Library & Gallery and other contributors.

Hours
Mon/Tue/Wed/Fri: 12 pm - 4:30 pm
Thursday: 12 pm - 8 pm
Sat/Sun: 1 pm - 5 pm

Telephone
General Gallery information: 410-455-2270

Web
UMBC Arts & Culture Calendar: http://www.umbc.edu/arts
Albin O. Kuhn Library Gallery: http://aok.lib.umbc.edu/gallery/
UMBC News Releases: http://www.umbc.edu/news

Images for Media
http://www.umbc.edu/newsevents/arts/hi-res/
Images in this release: Photographs by Robert Fichter and Robert Friedus, c. 2004: the Memorial for the Maggi-Via Family, sculpted by Giovanni Battista Lombardi (1859), and located in the Cimitero Vantiniano, Brescia, Italy; the Memorial to Tullo Morgagni, sculpted by Guido Micheletti (1921, 1930), and located in the Cimitero Monumentale, Milan, Italy; the "The Last Kiss," a Monument to Volonte Vezzoli, sculpted by Emilio Quadrelli (1889), and located in the Cimitero Monumentale, Milan, Italy. Courtesy of the artists.

Directions
UMBC is located approximately 10 minutes from downtown Baltimore and 20 minutes from I-495.
-- From Baltimore and points north, proceed south on I-95 to exit 47B. Take Route 166 toward Catonsville and then follow signs to the Walker Avenue Garage or Albin O. Kuhn Library.
-- From I-695, take Exit 12C (Wilkens Avenue) and continue one-half mile to the entrance of UMBC at the intersection of Wilkens Avenue and Hilltop Road. Turn left and follow signs to the Walker Avenue Garage or Albin O. Kuhn Library.
-- From Washington and points south, proceed north on I-95 to Exit 47B. Take Route 166 toward Catonsville and then follow signs to the Walker Avenue Garage or Albin O. Kuhn Library.
-- Daytime metered visitor parking is available in the Walker Avenue Garage. Visitor parking regulations are enforced on all University calendar days.

Image Courtesy of Daily Mail

In honor of Friday’s release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, we at Democrazy bring you a special edition of What’zup this weekend…for the magical world of Harry Potter!

Expulso!  The final installment’s midnight premiere sells over 40 million dollars, and by Sunday, the film’s box office results are predicted to be record-breaking!

Polyjuice potion?  Check out some of these look-a-likes.

Time for some Legilimency:  Reflecting and remembering on what the end of Harry Potter means and what we’ve learned from the series on NPR, Canonball, and MTV.

Tweet, tweet.  Nope, that’s not Fawkes or Hedwig.  It’s Harry Potter on Twitter!  #mischiefmanaged #pottersaga

Have you ever suffered from a “Hogwarts headache“?  You’re not alone.

And what’s next?  For the Potter crew, director David Yates, and the fans!