The UA Department of Art and Art History is proud to announce our scholarship award recipients for the upcoming academic year, 2022-2023. Graduates, undergraduates and incoming freshmen in studio art and art history were awarded a total of $111,500 in scholarships, thanks to our generous donors. Following is a list of the recipients with a short bio on each donor.
Our Scholarship Donors and 2022-23 Recipients
The William Garnet Anderson Endowed Scholarship was established by Mr. William G. Anderson of Shreveport, Louisiana, a longtime supporter of the University, to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Anderson, a UA alumnus, has endowed scholarships and support funds in the departments of history, geology, art and art history, as well as other programs.
- Liv Komisar, class of 2023 studio art major with a Blount Scholars Program minor, from Indian Springs, Alabama. Liv Komisar also was awarded the Art Students Endowed Scholarship Fund, established in 1981 by faculty, students and friends of the department to support academic excellence in art and art history at The University of Alabama.
The Elizabeth B. Bashinsky Endowed Art Scholarship was created by Elizabeth Crump to honor her maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Burford Bashinsky, and to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. For her lifetime of service, Mrs. Bashinsky was inducted into the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame and was awarded the Algernon Sidney Sullivan Award by both The University of Alabama and Judson College.
- Cecily Downey, class of 2024 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in drawing and printmaking, from Dothan, Alabama
- Sam Norris, class of 2023 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in ceramics and sculpture, from Hoover, Alabama
The Bradley Endowed Scholarship Fund was established by the late Mrs. Verne B. Henry (1903-1986) of Jefferson County, Ala., in the Bradley family name to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Verne Bradley Henry earned her bachelor’s degree from UA in 1925 and taught art for 23 years in the Birmingham city schools, serving as supervisor of art for eleven years. Mrs. Henry also held office in the Southeastern Art Association, the regional forerunner of the Art Education Department of the National Education Association.
- Ivy Borden, class of 2023 double major in art history major and Southern Studies (Interdisciplinary Studies in New College), from Birmingham, Alabama
- Carleigh Hall, class of 2025 double major in theatre and studio art, from Huntsville, Alabama
The Marilyn Williams Elmore Endowed Art Scholarship was established by Mrs. Mildred E. Hulsey of Birmingham to honor the memory of her mother, Marilyn Williams Elmore, and to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Mrs. Elmore (1923-2005) earned a BA in sociology in 1944. She participated in and contributed to many civic organizations including serving as a board member and then president of the Children’s Aid Society Foundation and the Leadership Board in the College of Arts and Sciences.
- Ivy Borden, class of 2023 double major in art history major and Interdisciplinary Studies (New College), from Birmingham, Alabama
The Farley Moody Galbraith Endowed Scholarship was established by Mrs. Farley Moody Galbraith, a generous donor with a long history as a friend of the department. She created this scholarship to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. The Moody and Galbraith families have been longtime patrons of the arts and loyal supporters of The University of Alabama. Mrs. Galbraith’s mother, Sarah McCorkle Moody, established The University of Alabama’s Permanent Collection in 1950, and in 1967, the Sarah Moody Gallery of Art was named in honor of her.
- Audrey Charlton, class of 2024 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and drawing, from Bentleyville, Ohio
- Gabriella Lopez, class of 2023 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and drawing, from Hoover, Alabama
- Aidan Miles-Jamison, class of 2023 art history major with a minor in Queer art and Blount Scholars Program, and the accelerated master’s program (AMP) in art history, from Oxford, Alabama
- Jasmine Nixon, class of 2023 studio art major focusing on drawing and printmaking, from Vance, Alabama
- Alyssa Serena, class of 2023 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in painting and digital media, from Trussville, Alabama
The Galbraith Endowed Art Scholarship was also established by Mrs. Farley Moody Galbraith to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA.
- Bella Guynes, class of 2025 BFA major in studio art with a minor in the Blount Scholars Program, from Tuscaloosa, Alabama
- Libby Morris, class of 2025 BFA major in studio art, from Wadley, Alabama
- Mackenna Overholt, class of 2022 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in painting and drawing and a minor in art history, from Golden, Colorado
- SK Steen, class of 2023 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in drawing and printmaking, from Nashville, Tennessee
The Angelo Granata Endowed Scholarship was established by Mrs. Clara L. Granata and other family and friends to support the education of students in the department of art and art history and to honor the memory of Professor Emeritus Angelo “Jack” Granata (1922-2009). Scholarship recipients are known as Granata Scholars. A BFA and MFA alumnus of the University of Iowa, in 1949, Professor Granata joined UA’s art faculty to teach sculpture until his retirement in 1988. He served as chair of the department and director of the Sarah Moody Gallery of Art. His sculptures have been exhibited in the Museum of Modern Art and the Forum Gallery of NYC, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the New Orleans Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, among many others. His works are held in numerous collections across the country.
- Brylane Hay, class of 2022 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and drawing and a minor in creative media, from Tuscaloosa, Alabama
The Barbara Ann Taylor Guthans Endowed Scholarship was established by C. Richard Wilkins and Jeanie Guthans Wilkins of Mobile, Ala., to honor Mrs. Wilkins’ mother, Barbara Ann Taylor Guthans, and to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Mrs. Guthans received her BFA degree in fine and applied arts from UA in 1954 and made a career as a commercial artist. She has served in positions of leadership for numerous civic and charitable organizations in Mobile, as well as on the College of Arts and Sciences’ steering committee for UA’s “Campaign for Alabama” capital campaign for UA’s Blount Undergraduate Initiative, now the Blount Scholars Program.
- Sam Norris, class of 2023, BFA major in studio art with concentrations in ceramics and sculpture, from Hoover, Alabama.
The Julie Peake Holaday Memorial Endowed Scholarship was established by Dr. John W. Holaday to support the education of students studying art and art history and to honor the memory of his sister, Julie Peake Holaday (1942-1969). Julie Peake Holaday received her BFA in 1964 and her MFA in 1966 in art from The University of Alabama.
- Sydney Tomaine, class of 2023 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and photography, from Clinton Corners, New York
- Julie White, class of 2023 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and photography, from Fayetteville, Georgia
The Paul R. Jones Endowed Scholarship was established by Paul Raymond Jones (1928-2010), renowned for his art collection, his civil rights activism and his support for art education, to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. In 2008, Mr. Jones established the Paul R. Jones Collection of American Art at The University of Alabama in order to share the works of these artists and their significance with the people of Alabama and beyond and to educate students on the importance of art in life. The Paul R. Jones Museum features exhibitions built around works from the collection, and, along with the lecture series Jones established, focuses on making art accessible to the University and the wider community.
- Drew Merriweather, class of 2024 BFA major in studio art with a concentration in digital media, from Mobile, Alabama
The Ann D Lary Scholarship Fund was established to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Mrs. Lary received her undergraduate degree from Wesleyan College and her graduate degree from UA. She was actively involved in the League of Women Voters, the Friends of the Library and the Tuscaloosa and University Women Painters.
- Abi Brewer, class of 2023 double major in studio art and international studies with a minor in Chinese, from Tuscaloosa, Alabama
The Carolyn Haddon “Julie” Matthews Memorial Endowed Scholarship was established by Carolyn M. Lowe of Birmingham, Ala., to honor the memory of her mother and to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Mrs. Matthews graduated from UA in 1961 with a BA in history and continued to be involved with the College of Arts and Sciences, most notably through her longtime support of the Society for the Fine Arts.
- Emily Rabbideau, class of 2023 double major in studio art and creative media with a minor in Spanish, from Hoover, Alabama
The Carol B. Merkle Endowed Scholarship was established to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Dr. Carol Merkle of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, is a 1978 graduate of The University of Alabama. Both she and her husband Arthur graduated from the University of Alabama School of Dentistry in 1983. Carol Merkle serves on the executive council and Arthur Merkle serves on the leadership council for the UA School of Dentistry Alumni Association.
- Julia Block, class of 2023 major in studio art major with a minor in art history, from Mason, Ohio
- Hayden Holladay, class of 2025 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and sculpture, from Montgomery, Alabama
- Liza Reid Smith, class of 2022 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in painting and digital media and a double minor in Chinese and advertising and public relations, from Louisville, Kentucky
The Myra and Jim Morgan Endowed Scholarship was established by Denise Morgan Milton, James P. Morgan, and Dennis Morgan, to promote academic excellence in art and art history at UA, to honor the memory of their parents, Myra and Jim Morgan, and, the children stated, “to recognize the contribution their parents made through art to the overall depth of life.” Jim and Myra Morgan founded the Morgan Gallery in Kansas City, Missouri, and were leaders in the art community, bringing artists from across the country to a growing audience of both corporate and private collectors in the Midwest. They collected both contemporary art and Americana. The Morgan Collection is held in the Sarah Moody Gallery of Art Permanent Collection and includes artists such as Robert Arneson, William Christenberry, Frank Fleming, Mel Ramos, Robert Stackhouse and William T. Wiley, among many others.
- Julie White, class of 2023 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and photography, from Fayetteville, Georgia
The Mary M. Morgan Memorial Art Scholarship Fund was established by Niel C. Morgan in 1978 to honor the memory of his late wife Mary Murphy Morgan and to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Niel C. Morgan founded N.C. Morgan Construction Company in Tuscaloosa and built numerous 20th-century landmarks in west Alabama including the Stafford Hotel, NorthRiver Yacht Club, Greenetrack greyhound park, and Rose Towers, as well as buildings at UA and additions at DCH Regional Medical Center.
- Julia Block, class of 2023 major in studio art major with a minor in art history, from Mason, Ohio
- Abby Gourgues, class of 2024 double major in studio art and psychology, from Mandeville, Louisiana
- Ella Smyth, class of 2022 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in painting and drawing, from Prattville, Alabama
The Vernon Rutledge and Eugenia Otwell Rutledge Endowed Scholarship was established in 2009 by Jerry Otwell Rutledge to honor his parents, Vernon and Eugenia Otwell Rutledge, and to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Jerry Rutledge, a 1963 BFA graduate of the University, is a freelance artist and artistic director. He was the original creative director for the National Humanities Series of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation at Princeton University, among other honors. In addition to his artistic and business ventures, Rutledge is an art collector and supporter of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
- Bella Guynes, class of 2025 BFA major in studio art with a minor in the Blount Scholars Program, from Tuscaloosa, Alabama
The Windgate Charitable Foundation Endowed Studio Arts Scholarship is awarded to undergraduate or graduate students who excel in the area of fine arts. Recipients are known as Windgate Fellows.
- Abi Brewer, class of 2023 double major in studio art and international studies with a minor in Chinese, from Tuscaloosa, Alabama
- Brylane Hay, class of 2022 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and drawing and a minor in creative media, from Tuscaloosa, Alabama
- Liza Reid Smith, class of 2022 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in painting and digital media and a double minor in Chinese and advertising and public relations, from Louisville, Kentucky
The Richard Zoellner Scholarship was established in 1963 by an anonymous donor in honor of Professor Richard Zoellner (1909-2003), who taught printmaking at UA for 33 years and to support academic excellence in art and art history at UA. Professor Zoellner’s works are in collections ranging from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York to the Mint Museum of Art in North Carolina. Professor Zoellner founded UA’s fine art printmaking program in 1945, one of only two in the Southeast at the time.
- Sydney Tomaine, class of 2023 BFA major in studio art with concentrations in digital media and photography, from Clinton Corners, New York
For more information about giving to one of the department’s scholarship funds, please go to our Giving page.