College of the Arts Dean Talks UAM and Christopher Scoates

College of the Arts Dean Para spoke about the University Art Museum’s plans for a new smart facility and how Christopher Scoates is leading the way.

The smart facility, Para said, will be a big bonus for the UAM as well as the university.
Right now there are three to five possibilities that are being explore, said Para. These options, he said, are primarily associated with private donors.

The UAM is still looking for a partner along with the city of Long Beach and President F. King Alexander is still in the conversation stages with people in the city such as the mayor and the development manager.

The president has “championed the idea of moving the museum downtown and has provided great leadership in integrating the university with the city of Long Beach,” said Para.

And despite current economic woes, Para remains optimistic about completing the museum in 2011.

It would be a simple construction, Para explained, since a lot of the museum would be open space.

The “cutting-edge facility with wonderful art collections” would not only provide the UAM with the space and resources it needs to grow as a museum, said Para, it would also show a link between the university and the city.

“Everybody wins in that one,” he said.

As for Christopher Scoates, the UAM director, Para said, he is “a tireless worker on behalf of the UAM.” Scoates is “good at attracting an amazing group of people from art, entertainment and technology worlds to serve on his advisory board,” he said.

Scoates, Para said, has a “unique vision for the museum. He believes art is not just stuff you hang on the wall.”