In Memoriam - Kristine Garrigan

REMEMBERING KRIS GARRIGAN
(November 16, 1939 – February 10, 2017)

Professor Garrigan maintained a busy scholarly life throughout her years at DePaul. She was the author of Ruskin on Architecture (1973), the first study of Ruskin’s writing in this area, and of Victorian Art Reproductions in Modern Sources (1991), an exhaustive bibliography that is likely to remain the standard reference work in this field for many years. She also edited a collection of critical essays titled Victorian Scandals: Representations of Gender and Class (1992) and was herself the author of numerous articles, chapters, and reviews on Victorian literature, art, and architecture. She regularly gave scholarly papers at conferences, and she served on several advisory boards and over many years as an officer in the Midwest Victorian Studies Association. She was generous in her service to DePaul as well, taking an active role in the Liberal Studies program, the English Department’s M.A. committee, and the Art Gallery Advisory Board, among other appointments. She will be remembered by her colleagues as a voice for the close study of literary works in their historical contexts and as an outspoken critic of lazy thinking and uninformed speech.


Kristine Ottesen Garrigan was an active presence in the DePaul community for more than thirty years, from her arrival as a part-time lecturer in English (1979) through her appointments as Assistant Professor of English (1981-84), Associate Professor (1984-1990), and Professor (1990-2010). In addition to teaching many courses in writing—including the writing component of Common Studies and courses in Literary Writing and Research and Composition and Style—Professor Garrigan developed and taught a number of courses in her areas of specialization, Nineteenth Century British Literature and Art, the Victorian Novel, and Women Writers. Her courses for majors and graduate students in The Brontes, John Ruskin and the Pre-Raphaelites, Charles Dickens, and Virginia Woolf were legendary for their mastery of cultural contexts and their intellectual rigor. A generous if demanding mentor, Professor Garrigan directed numerous independent studies and sent many of her students on to graduate work and university careers.


Professor Garrigan received her B. A. in English with Highest Honors from Denison University, her M.A. from Ohio State, and her Ph.D (with a dissertation on John Ruskin) from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (1971). In a time not always friendly to women in higher education, she forged an important academic career and became a standard-bearer to generations of DePaul students—and to her colleagues as well. She will be very much missed. Professor Garrigan is survived by her son Matthew, daughter-in-law Brooke, and three grandsons, Matthew, Quinn, and Graham. 

If you would like to sign her memory book, click here. 

Source: Helen Marlborough and Jerry Mulderig, DPU faculty

A. Gabriel Esteban, Named 12th President of DePaul University

Dear Members of the DePaul Alumni Community,

I am pleased to announce A. Gabriel Esteban, Ph.D. will serve as DePaul's 12th president. The Board of Trustees voted unanimously to appoint Dr. Esteban, and I had the honor of introducing him to our university community at a public announcement earlier this morning.

Dr. Esteban is a proven academic leader with extensive experience in strategic planning. In his current role, as president of Seton Hall University in South Orange, New Jersey, he implemented initiatives that dramatically increased enrollment and transformed the academic profile of the university's student population. He oversaw the development of a new health and medical sciences campus that will house Seton Hall's new School of Medicine and established a partnership with Hackensack Meridian Health. Dr. Esteban also is the first lay leader in more than 25 years at Seton Hall, a Catholic university home to nearly 10,000 students. He has a deep personal commitment to DePaul's Vincentian and Catholic values, and I am confident he will continue to protect and strengthen our distinguished educational mission.

To learn more about Dr. Esteban, please visit go.depaul.edu/newpresident. There, you can find a more extensive biography of Dr. Esteban, as well as links to a press release and a short video.

I would like to take this opportunity to extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to Jim Ryan and the Presidential Search Committee, as well as the four Vetting Committees. Every committee member devoted many hours to this search, and I am extremely appreciative of their hard work and dedication to DePaul. We look forward to welcoming the Estebans to the DePaul family.

Sincerely,

Bill Bennett
Chair, Board of Trustees

Source: University email, Alumni Relations, February 16, 2017
Photo: Newsline, February, 16, 2017

DePaul Art Museum Exhibition

Dear DES Members,

Please join Fr. Udovic at the DePaul Art Museum on our Lincoln Park Campus for a special exhibition: Many Faces of Vincent de Paul: Nineteenth-Century French Romanticism and the Sacred, Thursday, February 23, 2017 11:15 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. DePaul Art Museum, 935 W. Fullerton. Exhibit Tour and Lunch,   RSVP to Alice Farrell afarrell@depaul.edu, 312-362-8822.  

Guest-curated by Rev. Edward R. Udovic, C.M., Ph.D., as a companion to “Four Saints in Three Acts,” this special exhibition of nineteenth-century sculptures, holy cards, textiles, decorative arts, and prints from the university’s collection will explore how Romanticism impacted the iconographic representations of Saint Vincent de Paul (1581-1660), at the dawn of the modern era. Fr. Udovic will lead a tour and discussion of this exhibition, and lunch will be served in the second-floor event space. We hope you are able to join us!

Thank you,
Alice Farrell Office of Mission and Values

In Memoriam - Joseph Slowik

Joseph Slowik, 1930-2017

It is with sadness that we have learned of the death of Joseph Slowik. Joe was an alumnus and Professor Emeritus of acting and directing at The Theatre School at DePaul University, formerly the Goodman School of Drama, where he taught for 54 years until his retirement in 1997. Joe passed away on January 27 at the age of 87.

Joe began teaching in 1953, after earning his MFA from the Goodman School of Drama. He played a key role as a core faculty member in transitioning the Goodman School of Drama to DePaul University. During his tenure, he served as the long-time head of the MFA directing program at The Theatre School, and directed more than a hundred productions over the course of four decades, including The Time of Your Life, Journey of the Fifth Horse, The Rose Tattoo, A Shayna Maidel, The Good Woman of Setzuan, Camino Real, The Skin of Our Teeth, Strider, Yerma and Mother Courage and Her Children. He was the 2001 recipient of the Theatre School's Excellence in Teaching Award.

Professionally, Joe directed numerous productions, collaborating with such artists as Eugenie Leontovich, Leo G. Carrol, Alvin Epstein, Nancy Kwan, and alumni Scott Ellis and Louis Zorich. He was nominated for four Joseph Jefferson Awards as Best Director for his productions at the Goodman and Body Politic Theatres. The recipient of Kosciuszko Foundation and National Endowment for the Humanities grants, Joe studied Eastern European theatre at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York and with Jerzy Grotowski at the Polish Lab Theatre in Poland. As an actor, he played a supporting role in the internationally released Polish film Love It Or Leave It. As a cultural specialist under the auspices of the U.S. Information Agency he directed Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf for the Singapore Repertory Theatre, and returned to direct the theater's first play of the millennium.

Joe brought so many inspiring qualities to his work at The Theatre School, among them: his wisdom, inspiration, high standards, insistence on discipline, and a deep commitment to his students. He exhibited great generosity in sharing ideas and information with his colleagues. Countless directors and performers were impacted through his mentorship.

In 2007, Goodman School of Drama Alumnus and award-winning director Scott Ellis honored Professor Emeritus Joseph Slowik at the Annual Awards for Excellence in the Arts, and addressed students by creating an endowed scholarship in Slowik's name.

"What I remember about Joe was his joy of teaching and directing. The energy he brought into a room, he was always wanting to work. He pushed you, he challenged you, always to find and play the truth. Always the truth. And isn't that what acting is all about? Slowik knew this, and that is the gift he gave to me. So in return, I am now going to present and give a scholarship in honor of him. I hope that this helps you in your journey and a beginning. But I truly wish that when you leave this school and you start your life in the theatre, you will also find a Joe Slowik. No matter how many ups and downs that you will have, and there will be many, you will always have a little voice behind you saying, "Find the truth." - Scott Ellis, 2007

A memorial service celebrating Joe's life will be forthcoming.

Our condolences go to the family, friends, colleagues, and former students who mourn the passing of Joe. May he rest in peace.

Source: Mission and Values email, January 3, 2017

Bella Itkin and Joe Slowik 2010. Photo courtesy: John Bridges

John Bridges writes:

"Joe Slowik and Bella Itkin are colleagues once again. Here's a shot I took of them in 2010 at a party that the DePaul Theatre School held for them. 

Bella passed in 2011 about a week before her 91st birthday; Joe passed yesterday, less than two weeks before his 90th birthday. The Theatre School started as the Goodman School of Drama in 1925, moving to DePaul University in 1978. It's safe to say that these two theatre artists/teachers/directors/mentors pretty much WERE the school. 

I like to think that they're in heaven now, sitting at a table playing poker, drinks at their sides, with two of their favorites, Jerzy Grotowski and Anton Chekov. As each hand is dealt, Joe is thinking, "I wish these three would show more intention in the way they hold their cards!" while Bella is thinking, "I can tell by the way they're sitting and the way they're holding their cards who has the best hand!" Jerzy and Anton are thinking, 'It's nice to have these two here!'"