UF School of Art and Art History names new director

April 27, 2007

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Ceramic artist and art administrator Anna Calluori Holcombe has been named director of the School of Art and Art History at the University of Florida’s College of Fine Arts. She is slated to begin the position July 1.

A practicing ceramic artist whose work has shown in national and international exhibitions, Calluori Holcombe has focused her academic career on teaching, higher education administration and gallery management.

For six years, Calluori Holcombe had served as head of Kansas State University’s art department, where she is now a professor of art.

She will replace outgoing School of Art and Art History Director Marcia Isaacson, who will continue to serve as associate dean of the College of Fine Arts until her retirement in 2008.

“Anna Calluori Holcombe represents the rare combination of gifted administrator and dedicated artist. She brings years of national and international experience to the School of Art and Art History and a keen understanding of the vital role of the arts in educating students in a public research institution in the 21st century,” said Lucinda Lavelli, dean of the College of Fine Arts.

After graduating cum laude with her bachelor’s degree in art from Montclair (N.J.) State University, Calluori Holcombe attended Louisiana State University and received her master’s of fine arts in 1977. From there she pursued advanced graduate studies at Illinois State University.

Calluori Holcombe has taught on the staff of Jersey City (N.J.) State College; Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington; SUNY Brockport, where she served as acting chair from 1989 to 1990; and Kansas State University since 1998.

At Kansas State, a land grant research institution of 21,000 students, Calluori Holcombe led a comprehensive art department offering a B.A. in art history and in art education, and a B.F.A. and an M.F.A. in ceramics, painting, sculpture, metals, printmaking, drawing and all areas of visual communications, including photography from 1994 to 2000.

The UF School of Art and Art History has more than 33 faculty, 400 undergraduate majors and more than 100 graduate students. The diversity of both programs and degree offerings make the school a fully configured art school within the largest university in the southeast.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for me to work with the talented faculty and students at the University of Florida,” Calluori Holcombe said. “It is an exciting time for the School of Art and Art History and also for my professional career. I look forward to the challenges and rewards this will bring.”