The College of Arts + Architecture (CoA+A) will honor five Distinguished Alumni on Friday, March 15, in the fifth annual celebration of alumni achievement. The awards ceremony will take place in the Anne R. Belk Theater in Robinson Hall at 11:30 am. The event is free and open to the public.
Representing each of the five departments of the College, the 2019 CoA+A Distinguished Alumni are
Architecture: Jeffrey Kenoff (BA Architecture, 1992)
Art & Art History: Brandon Boan (BFA Sculpture & Ceramics, 2005)
Dance: Audrey Baran (BA Dance, 2003)
Music: Dareion Malone (BM Music Education, 2013)
Theatre: Don Castro (BA Theatre, 2000)
The Distinguished Alumni Awards were created by the College of Arts + Architecture in 2015 to recognize the accomplishments of alumni who demonstrate in their work the core themes of the College's vision: professionalism, global perspective, environmental engagement, connectivity with community, collaboration, and the emergence of new ideas, skills, and practices. Each department designates one Distinguished Alum annually, chosen by departmental faculty and administration.
BIOS
Jeffrey Kenoff (BA Architecture, 1992) has over 25 years of experience as an architect, having worked on a variety of project types in the United States, Europe, and Asia. He is currently a Design Principal at KPF in New York City and has served as chief designer on much of the firms work in Asia, including the Huamu Lot 10 project in Shanghai and a 1.4-million-sf entertainment complex in Tianjin, which was the recipient of an AIA NYC Chapter Design Award (2010), the MIPIM Architectural Review Future Projects Award (2007), and was featured in the NY lecture series “Spotlight on China.” Additional projects include One Vanderbilt in NYC; the Sequis Tower, which will be Jakarta’s (Indonesia) first LEED Platinum building; the Eye of Macau, the Dongjiadu Master Plan, and Hangzhou Qingchun Plaza in China; and the winning competition design for the SeWoon District 5 development in Seoul, Korea.
Jeff has been a visiting critic at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design; Yale University’s School of Architecture; Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP); University of Southern California; Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech). In addition, he has been a visiting professor or has lectured on his work at several institutions, including Columbia University's GSAPP, and has co-founded multiple research, technology, and social media collaborations. His research efforts have been featured in several publications, including Wired, CNN and FastCompany.
Jeff received his Master of Architecture in 1999 from Virginia Tech, where he was the recipient of the AIA Medal for Excellence in the Study of Architecture and the Henry Adams Medal honoring the school’s top graduate student. In 2002, he was the recipient of the NC Architectural Foundation’s J. Hyatt Hammond Scholarship honoring young architects. He is an active member of the National and New York Chapters of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and currently serves on multiple committees and advisory boards within the design community.
Brandon Boan (BFA Sculpture & Ceramics, 2005) is an artist living in western North Carolina. He has exhibited in many national and international institutions, museums, and galleries, including Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Museum of Art (CMOA), where his ceramic objects cast from museum maintenance tools were exhibited in the Pittsburgh Biennial, curated by Dan Byers. He has been a three-time visiting and exhibited artist-in-residence at Cose Cosmiche (Arthur Craven Foundation) in Milan, Italy, where he performed together with the I8I collective a multi-national relay of audio/video feedback loops on the topic of “the collective song voice” to excite the extraterrestrial mythos of human sorrow. Other international engagements include The National Center for Contemporary Art, St. Petersburg, Russia; Stockholm Fringe Festival, Sweden; Annuale Festival, Scotland; and The Pontifícia Universidade Católic, São Paulo, Brazil.
Brandon and Swedish artist Backa Carin Ivarsdotter have collaborated on making interactive and performative art since 2007. His artist collective, known as the “I8I,” was founded in 2007 in Venice Beach, California, and has exhibited and/or performed more 30 exhibitions with artists Abby Donovan, Thomas Hughes, and Jason Rhodes.
With partner Manya Mankiewicz, Brandon co-founded Tip Type, an art and community focused linotype and letterpress-print studio in Pittsburgh––otherwise known as a “working museum”––that considered the materiality of language, technology, and community.
Brandon received a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Delaware in 2007. Visiting Faculty and Instructor appointments include La Roche College, Ohio University; The International Ceramics Studio, Kecskemet, Hungary; and the University of Oregon.
Audrey Baran (BA Dance, 2003) is a dance performer, maker, educator, researcher, and writer based Charlotte. Audrey is the founder and artistic director of Baran Dance and the apprentice company, BD2, through which she is dedicated to broadening perceptions and accessibility of contemporary dance in the Southeast. She has presented work through the National Dance Educators Organization Conference, Bill Evans Somatic Dance Conference, North Carolina Dance Festival, Tobacco Road Dance Productions, Triangle Dance Project, Ladyfest CLT, Charlotte Dance Festival, and numerous self-produced productions.
Audrey was an inaugural recipient of the Creative Renewal Fellowship from the Arts & Science Council and has received awards and nominations for her work from the Movies by Movers Festival, the Charlotte Emerging Dance Awards, and the Carolina Arts & Theatre Awards. She is an Adjunct Lecturer in Dance at UNC Charlotte and on the teaching faculty of Charlotte Ballet Academy and Open Door Studios. Audrey is also a Registered Yoga Teacher at the 500-hour level, and thrives on sharing her love of movement and mindfulness throughout the Queen City and beyond.
She holds a Master of Fine Arts in Dance from Hollins University.
Dareion Malone (BM Music Education, 2013) has been singing and playing piano since early childhood and has performed nationally and internationally, including in West Africa, South Africa, and Europe. His stage credits include performances with Celine Dion, Dolly Parton, and other mainstream recording artists. His baritone voice has been featured in numerous ensembles as well as principal opera roles. He has appeared as a soloist with the Charlotte Symphony and Chorus as well as other regional ensembles. Works have included J.S. Bach’s St. Matthew Passion (BWV 244), Handel’s Messiah, and Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem.
As an active member of the Charlotte community and an advocate for music education, Dareion holds membership in the National Association for Music Education, American Choral Directors Association, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, Inc. He is also a board member for Charlotte Concerts and the founder and co-artistic director of Sine Nomine Vocal Ensemble. He serves as the Repertoire and Resources Chair for Senior High Choirs for the North Carolina Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association. Additionally, he serves on the board of the Choral Section of the North Carolina Music Educators Association and is an active choral adjudicator for WorldStrides Heritage Festivals.
Dareion worked for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools from 2013 to 2016, and held the position as Chorus Master and Men's Chorus accompanist at UNC Charlotte from 2014 to 2017. Presently, Dareion is the choral music instructor at Marvin Ridge High School in Waxhaw, NC. Much of his time is given to creating ways to provide access to quality music education for all students, especially those situated in areas that have been marginalized.
Don Castro (BA Theatre, 2000) is a Manila-born, American actor based in New York City. His resume includes diverse roles spanning theatre, film, and television. He has worked with many theatre companies in New York City and beyond, including Ensemble Studio Theatre, Pan Asian Repertory Theatre, Target Margin Theater, San Francisco Playhouse, and Metro Theater Company (St. Louis). Don has performed shows at La Mama ETC, The Public Theater, Here Arts Center, The Chocolate Factory, Abrons Arts Center, New Ohio Theatre, The Kitchen, Theatre Row, Theater for the New City, and many others. He has also performed internationally in Athens and Spetses, Greece.
Don has dedicated much of his career to developing original characters in new work, including lead roles in the world premieres of You Mean To Do Me Harm (Christopher Chen, Obie winner), Turning the Glass Around (Pia Wilson, Sundance Fellow), and The Tear Drinkers (Mike Iveson). Over the years, he has worked directly with several playwrights whose plays have been included in Steppenwolf Theatre’s Mix list, a new resource of plays curated by Steppenwolf “that assist in the collective effort to move toward a holistic, nuanced, and equitable approach to diversity in the theatre.”
Films featuring his work have screened at festivals in cities worldwide, such as Cannes' Short Film Corner, Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival (Seoul, Korea), and Tribeca Film Festival (NYC). Film credits include: The Wizard of Lies (starring Robert DeNiro), M. Night Shyamalan’s The Happening, and Bohemibot (Student Academy Award). Partial TV credits include: “Agent Arinori” in Marvel’s Daredevil (season 3), Blue Bloods, The Blacklist, The Affair, Louie, The Following, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. Currently, Don can be seen in Vows: The Series, a TV pilot episode hitting the film festival circuit (recently at the DC Independent Film Festival). Up next is a supporting role in The Goldfinch starring Nicole Kidman and directed by John Crowley (Brooklyn, True Detectives).