We have an immediate opening in our Security Department for a full time gallery officer on the dayshift; core work schedule is 9:15am to 5:15pm, Wednesday through Sunday. The individual will have responsibility for preparing the galleries for daily operation, monitoring activities in the Museum and implementing museum procedures as needed.

Duties

Baltimore’s McKeldin Fountain, an icon of Brutalist architecture, may have been demolished in 2016, but Lisa Moren, professor of visual arts, wants to ensure visitors can still experience its presence and history. On Saturday, May 19, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the former site of the fountain at the intersection of Pratt and Light Streets, she will officially launch her augmented reality app NONUMENT 01::McKeldin Fountain, a project created in partnership with James Mayhew, MFA ’10, IMDA, and Slovenian artists Martin Bricelj Baraga and Neja Tomšič. The launch event is free and open to the public.

The app, which is available for both iOS and Android devices, projects a full-scale 3D image of McKeldin Fountain onto tablet or smartphone screens, creating the illusion that the fountain is present in the surrounding environment. The fountain’s history is told through various interactive “memory artifacts,” such as koi fish and protest signs, which when clicked will show interviews with Baltimore residents sharing their memories of events at McKeldin Square. The app can be downloaded for free and used anywhere in the world, but its effects are best realized when used on McKeldin Square where the fountain once stood.

“McKeldin Fountain was a place where ordinary citizens could express themselves creatively, relax, or stand up for their values,” says Moren. “The story of its destruction, which included little public input, points to the diminishment of public spaces worldwide. In terms of public art, quality of life, and free speech, we feel a loss for the residents of Baltimore.”

Audio engineering for the app was provided by Timothy Nohe, professor of visual arts, and Lexie Mountain, MFA ’14, IMDA, with additional contributions of 3D models by Ben Shaffer ’16, visual arts, and the Imaging Research Center’s Ryan Zuber ’04, visual arts.

Following the event at McKeldin Square on May 19, participants are invited to move to Maryland Art Place on Saratoga Street for an exhibit featuring video installations of content used in the app and mixed reality media.

See here for a March 2017 UMBC News story on the development of NONUMENT 01.

For more information about NONUMENT 01, visit its website here.

Images courtesy of Lisa Moren.

The role of the Maintenance Supervisor is of immense responsibility and accountability. Is responsible for supervising and maintaining all museum facilities and grounds to ensure they are aesthically pleasing and environmentally safe. This job requires organizational and administration expertise to effectively supervise a team of subordinates.

Duties:

Doopashika Welikala
B.S., Biological Science; B.S, Anthropology; B.A, Sociology
Magna Cum Laude
Hometown: Gaithersburg, Maryland
Plans: MSPH, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

"As a first-generation college student, I did not know much about navigating college when I started at UMBC. My time at UMBC has shown me that with dedication and perseverance we can achieve anything."

Doopashika Welikala understands the importance of access to opportunity. As the first person in her family to attend college, and someone who has traveled internationally to study health care, she has a very personal perspective on the impact that having access to education, healthcare, and other resources, can have on a person and on a community. She hopes to channel that understanding into a career in public health.

Welikala is already well on her way to developing the knowledge and skills she’ll need to become a global public health leader. She has completed an independent anthropology research project on childbirth and childbearing practices in Sri Lanka.

She also traveled to Kinazi, Rwanda to conduct research on family planning and contraception use through a National Science Foundation REU Fellowship in summer 2017. While there she spoke with young women at the Maranyundo Girls School who were applying for college about her experience as a first-generation college student, and she continues to stay in touch with them, providing the kind of supportive feedback she has received in her time at UMBC.

“The professors at UMBC were always open to discuss my career options and future plans,” says Welikala. “Professors went out of their way to help me pursue research opportunities that aided me to further my intellectual interests.”

Welikala also participates in community life at UMBC as an institutional review board member, senior advisor to the Sri Lankan Student Association, teaching assistant in chemistry and sociology, and Writing Center tutor.

In the fall Welikala will attend the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health as a graduate student in the population, family, and reproductive health program. She credits her success to the academic rigor at UMBC. “At UMBC I was part of a challenging environment that stimulated my growth and I can proudly say that it has prepared me for the next steps of my life after graduation,” she says.

Portrait by Marlayna Demond ‘11 for UMBC.

[Article originally appeared on UMBC News website]