U of A Collaborates With FORMAT Festival to Bring Inside Out Project to Campus

Photo Submitted

Photos by Shane White, graduate sssistant on the communications team in the Division of Student Affairs.

U of A students, faculty and staff collaborated with the Division of Student Affairs by contributing their portraits to become a part of French artist JR’s Inside Out Project. Over 100 portraits were submitted and installed on Old Main plaza. Nadia Issa, teaching assistant professor of graphic design in the U of A School of Art, oversaw a group of graduate students who were responsible for carrying out the installation and documenting the process. These students also added AI generated facial expressions to each photo poster. You can view the installation in person through Wednesday, Oct. 4, or view photos online here.

Inside Out will also be creating another installation at the upcoming FORMAT Festival, held Sept. 22-24 at The Momentary in Bentonville. The FORMAT festival is focused on music, art and technology, and its organizers have partnered with the U of A in several ways this year. 

During spring 2023, Sisi Hu, assistant professor of advertising in the U of A’s School of Journalism and Strategic Media, incorporated FORMAT into her Campaigns course. Students were charged with creating a complete advertising, public relations and integrated marketing campaign for the festival. At the end of the semester, students presented their campaigns to the FORMAT leadership team.  

Bree McMahon, assistant professor of graphic design, has embedded FORMAT into her fall 2023 Human Centered Design course. Students in McMahon’s course created concepts for innovative ways to collect data about FORMAT festival attendees. Students will be carrying out this project at the FORMAT festival. Concepts include a pop-up post office, collecting voice recordings on retro phone cords and a confessional “pink-a-potty” booth. Students will share their collected findings with the FORMAT team later in the semester. 

Tickets are still available if you would like to attend the festival and enjoy the many musical and art performances, including talent from our campus community. Jake Hertzog, assistant professor in the School of Art, and percussion students Ben Wheeler and Jaxon Krueger will be performing with the artist Lesly Reynaga. Additionally, indie-pop band The Misdemeanors, made up of three U of A students along with two students from Belmont University, will perform Friday afternoon.