Arts Center Gallery
The mission of the Arts Center Gallery at the Peck School of the Arts is to serve as a teaching and professional research laboratory. It provides a year round setting for the exhibition of work by students, alumni, special guests, thesis exhibitions for the undergraduate and graduate program, the biannual Department of Art & Design faculty exhibition and the spring undergraduate scholarship competitions.

The gallery has 3516 square feet and is split into four adjoining exhibition spaces. Exhibits generally rotate on a monthly basis from September through May. All exhibitions and artist lectures are free and open to the public.

Ceramics
A well-equipped undergraduate facility is located in the campus Art building. Three classroom areas with worktables, electric and kick wheels, slab roller and extruder allow exploration of a range of ceramic work. The facility includes a clay mixing room, well-equipped glaze room with spray booth, and a separate mold making area.

The undergraduate facilities house two kiln rooms with four large Bailey downdraft gas kilns ranging from 28-48 cu. ft. in capacity, five electric kilns ranging from 7-16 cu. ft. in capacity, and a raku kiln. A course in wood firing is offered annually at the university’s collaborative wood kiln site at the University of Wisconsin-Waukesha Field Station in Waterville, Wisconsin, a short distance west of Milwaukee. The wood kiln is a 120 cu. ft. Anagama design. The kiln site also includes a small bourry box wood/salt kiln.

Design & Visual Communication
Facilities include several digital labs, a letterpress studio, and large critique and classroom spaces.

Digital Craft Research Lab (DCRL)
A 2,500 ft2 CAD/FAB LAB contains eighteen PC workstations with 3D Connexion mice, a digitizing arm, a Sense handheld 3D scanner, a Next Engine HD 3D Scanner, several Rep Rap based 3D printers, three Makerbots, a Form 1 SLA printer, a ZCorp 402C 3D printer, a Wacom tablet, a vinyl cutter, two Potter 20 ton hydraulic presses, two Shapeoko CNC routers, three mini lathes, two mini milling machines, an acrylic bender, a bending brake, a bench shear, a drill press, two flex shafts, a powder coating set-up, anodizing baths and dies, and basic hand tools.

A 625 ft2 CAM/FAB LAB contains a vertical metal cutting bandsaw, a horizontal metal cutting bandsaw, three Beaumont metal grinders, a drill press, a manual tool room lathe, two vacuum formers, a sandblast cabinet, several numeric controlled machines such an 4’x8’ CNC router, an Epilog laser cutter, and a Tormach PCNC 1100 (capable of machining aluminum, steel, and titanium), and basic fabrication equipment.

Equipment Room
Students have access to our Equipment Room to borrow gear for a variety of different projects.

Fibers
Equipment and facilities include: Fully equipped Dye and Screen Printing facilities; Structural Fibers Lab with computer-operated dobby looms, 20+ floor looms, computerized sewing machines, industrial sewing machine and access to spinning wheels, feltmaking equipment; and Computer Lab/Library equipped with Macintoshes, peripherals, and fiber reference books.

Immersive Media Lab
Located in the Kenilworth Square East Arts Research Complex, the Immersive Media Lab contains private secured 24/7 access to space for students, research staff, and faculty.  Currently we conduct immersive research with an array of 3D Modeling software from companies like The Foundry UK, Autodesk, Unity, Unreal, and Adobe among many others. We have 2 Oculus (DK2 and CV1+Touch), and one HTC VIVE. Students and researchers can use a dedicated experience computer or a powerful rendering laptop to conduct research. Large displays, multiple projectors and media players, and iPad round out our hardware options at the moment.

Jewelry & Metalsmithing
The well-equipped comprehensive undergraduate Jewelry and Metalsmithing studios are housed in the Art building. The facilities include equipment for forming, casting, enameling, etching, patination, polishing, fabrication, hydraulic forming, machining, anodizing, milling and lathwork. In addition to the main studio with 18 shared workstations, three adjacent rooms feature 20 individual stations for Jewelry & Metalsmithing concentration students. A very large array of metalsmithing equipment is available as well as many other hand and power tools. Some undergraduate courses also take advantage of the newly renovated and equipped Kenilworth facility, with a comprehensive forming studio, welding, and powder coating. In addition to the Art Department free photo documentation lab, students also have access to Jewelry & Metalsmithing Area Photo equipment.

Kenilworth Square East Gallery
Built in 1914 as a Ford Model T plant, Peck School of the Arts’ Kenilworth Square East building was acquired by in 1971 and redeveloped in 2006. In a first-of-its-kind partnership with a private developer, the university restored the first six floors for use by the students and faculty of the Peck School, including the ground level gallery space.

Painting & Drawing
Studio facilities include a life-drawing theater style studio, introductory and intermediate level painting studios, multiple purpose drawing studios, ongoing and secure display cases, slide and visual resource digital projection room, and assigned individual workspaces for students at the Advanced Painting level.

Photography & Imaging
Facilities include a traditional black & white darkroom capable of accommodating 18 students, 5 film processing rooms, a digital imaging and output lab equipped with 10 Macintosh stations and small format printers, a 44” wide-format Epson Stylus Pro 9900 printer, 3 high-resolution scanners, a multi-purpose finishing/dry space, secure display cases with rotating presentations of student work, and two lecture classrooms. In addition, the area has large-format camera and location lighting kits available for checkout by advanced photography students. Undergraduate photography facilities are located in the basement of Mitchell Hall, room B84.

Print & Narrative Forms
Studios occupy over 6000 square feet, and include specialized facilities for water-based screen printing, intaglio, letterpress, lithography, relief/monoprint, photo and digital printmaking. The shop is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for graduate students and until midnight for undergraduates. Faculty have studio/offices adjacent to the printshop and use the facility to produce their own work.

Sculpture
Our nearly 6500 sq foot sculpture facility houses a complete woodworking studio, a 15ft x 15ft spray and sanding booth, large metal fabrication and construction area, plaster, mold-making and ceramic shell areas and a foundry and wax working area, There are also several general work areas, a 800 sq ft installation and project space and access to digital media.

Studio Arts & Craft Center (SACC)
The UWM Studio Arts & Craft Centre offers engaging classes, workshops, and events within a positive studio atmosphere and is dedicated to the education, enrichment, and creative fulfillment of all members of the UWM community. The SACC provides open studio space, as well as specialized studio equipment for ceramics, photography, fibers, metals, and printmaking.

Additional Graduate Facilities

The Kenilworth Square East Building, a six-floor, 500,000 square foot artist’s warehouse located on the East Side of Milwaukee offers studio space for both faculty and graduate students at a discounted rate. Kenilworth is also home to a gallery space, a screening room, various installation sites and studio facilities. It is in a thriving neighborhood of coffee-shops, bars, restaurants and movie houses, and is next door to a graduate housing facility.

Jewelry & Metalsmithing
The Kenilworth facility, shared by the Jewelry & Metalsmithing Graduate students, features 4 individual work stations, soldering and annealing areas, basic metal fabrication tools, hydraulic die forming, enameling, powder coating, sandblasting, welding and forming equipment. In addition, graduate students have access to the comprehensive Jewelry & Metalsmithing undergraduate facilities in the Art Building.

Painting & Drawing
There are well-equipped studio facilities that offer access to a wide range of tools and equipment in each disciplinary area. These studios and labs are housed within our campus buildings, as well as within our new Kenilworth facility.

Photography & Imaging
Graduate photography facilities include a dedicated black & white and alternative process darkroom, digital imaging and output lab with 1 Macintosh station, Epson Stylus Pro 4880 printer, and Epson Expression 10000XL scanner.

The Department of Dance boasts 3 dedicated performance spaces, 7 large rehearsal studios equipped with sprung floors, mirrors and audio/video technology, and a pilates lab.

Performance Venues

Jan Serr Studio
A flexible technologically-integrated performance venue that will choreograph light and sound in as many unique ways as the diverse group of university and community artists it aims to serve. Named after artist and UWM Department of Art & Design alumna, Jan Serr, the school’s new flagship venue will provide a much welcomed home for contemporary and interdisciplinary artists. Set to unveil in four phases, state-of-the-art facility updates will include 300-capacity flexible theatre seating, HVAC-controlled sprung floor, acoustic-tempered digital sound capabilities, state of the art projection, adjustable panels, and more.

As the leading comprehensive arts school in Wisconsin, Peck School of the Arts’ Jan Serr Factory is committed to meeting the evolving needs of 21st century artistic teachings and practice.

MainStage Theatre
A 292-seat thrust theatre with variable proscenium configuration abilities, an extensive sound system, and a computer controlled 384 dimmer lighting system.

Mitchell Studio 254
A 100-seat black box theatre that doubles as a dance teaching and rehearsal studio when not set up for performance. The theatre is located in Mitchell Hall at 3203 N. Downer Ave.

UWM’s Department of Film, Video, Animation and New Genres is located in the basement of Mitchell Hall, where it was established in 1974. In 2006, the department officially expanded to the fourth floor of Kenilworth Square East, one mile from the main campus. In 2018, the department expanded again when it added classroom space, space for its internship program and space for its DocUWM production company in the Nō Studios filmmaking hub founded by Milwaukee native and Oscar winning screenwriter, John Ridley. Nō Studios is located in the historic Pabst Brewery complex near downtown Milwaukee. The UWM Union Cinema, one of the first 23 theaters recognized nationally as a Sundance Institute Art House Project theater and housed in the UWM Student Union, has also become an integral partner to the department.

Main Campus

Mitchell Hall continues to be home to most of the classrooms dedicated to the Department of Film, Video, Animation & New Genres.  Many classrooms continue to serve a dual function as classroom space and production and lab space. Mitchell Hall is available to students 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The Fine Arts Cinema is an 85-seat cinema with HD video and professional 16mm film projection equipment. The Eastman 25, 16mm Xenon-Arc projector is a perfect match for projection of new and archive film. Digital video and film are projected from a booth and through high quality glass. This cinema hosts special screenings from the Cinema Archive, of works by visiting artists and faculty and students and is consistently booked for classroom use.

The Department of Film, Video, Animation & New Genres has maintained 16mm production equipment and facilities. The Motion Picture Processing Lab continues to provide on-sight film processing in support of introductory film production classes as well as individual projects by students of all levels. The continued operation of this lab distinguishes our department at UWM as one of the few remaining B&W reversal film processing labs in the country. For a small fee per production course, students receive unlimited in-house processing for 16mm black & white reversal films. Film processing runs occur about four times per week during the fall and spring semesters. The Wet Lab was formerly a photography darkroom and is now used for 16mm experimental processes. Key post-production 16mm equipment such as a Peterson Contact Printer, a Research Products optical printer, JK/ Meritex optical printers, an Oxberry Filmmaker 16 animation stand and Steenbeck editing machines are available for production and support of 16mm curricula.

To support film acquisition and digital post production, there is a JK/Meritex Digital Optical Printer. 16mm, Super 16 and Super 8 film can be digitized to create high resolution video.

Equipment Checkout houses a large inventory of equipment available to students enrolled in Department of Film, Video, Animation & New Genres classes. Lighting, camera, sound and support equipment is available for students to check out from our Equipment Room  to produce their projects. Equipment can be conveniently reserved with Web Checkout reservation system.

The Mac Lab is home to new iMac computers with Adobe Creative Cloud Suite applications. This is a classroom by day and a lab by night and on weekends.

In cooperation with the Golda Meir Library, the department houses a Cinema Archive, a large collection of independently produced 16mm fine art films. Public Screenings of these films occur regularly in the Fine Arts Cinema and VHS copies of most of the films are available from the Media Services window in the Reserve Section, East Wing, of the Golda Meir Library for students to view and study.

The UWM Student Union houses the UWM Union Cinema. This 350-seat venue boasts DCP, 16mm (Eastman model 25) and 35mm projection. The department’s film series, Experimental Tuesdays, and department special events such as the Student Film & Video Festival, Senior Project screenings and the Zen & the Art of Filmmaking class screenings are all hosted in this cinema.

Kenilworth Square East

Kenilworth Square East was remodeled in 2006. Originally a Ford car factory in the 1920’s and 30’s, the building has been reworked into an open architectural design. Kenilworth Square East greatly expands opportunities for Department of Film, Video, Animation & New Genres’ undergraduate students and graduate student and faculty research.

KSE 408 Lighting Studio is a 2500 sq.ft. black box lighting studio. This studio is equipped with a grid, dozens of lights, ample power, grip equipment and a dolly. Lighting and directing theory and practice are taught here. During off-hours, the studio is available to qualified students for project work.

KSE 416 Production Sound Classroom/Lab is a classroom for sound production, post-production sound design and final mixing for 16mm films and digital films. Field recording, Foley and post-production audio theory/practice are taught in the room. During time free of scheduled classes, a professional voice-over booth and/or Foley objects may be used to record sound. A high-quality sound system is available to mix or monitor sound.

KSE 468 Animation Classroom is a classroom/lab dedicated to instruction and production of introductory animation techniques. Traditional techniques including drawing, cut-out and sand animation generated by hand, digitally recorded animation and animation created with Dragon Frame software and XP Pen tablets are taught here. A mirror table is available for multi-level cutout animation. The studio has drawing compounds and rotoscope projectors. “Video Lunchbox” digital frame recorders are on hand for video assist.

KSE 492 Animation Classroom is a 2000sq. ft. classroom/lab dedicated to stop-motion animation. 10 Dragon Frame computer-based animation stations, table-top sets, lights, cameras, and grip equipment are provided. Individual stations allow students to occupy a set for the duration of the semester.

KSE 563 Green Screen Studio is a 500sq. ft. studio with a dedicated green screen ‘cyc’ wall, lighting grid and lights. There are permanent light fixtures for the wall and floor lights for subjects. The room is readily available to film majors.

Nō Studios filmmaking hub

Founded by Milwaukee native and Oscar winning screenwriter, John Ridley, Nō Studios is a destination for creatives located in the heart of the historic Pabst Brewery complex. The 40,000 square foot headquarters is a fully equipped infrastructure featuring offices, co-working space, a state-of-the-art screening room, performance stage, café bar, gallery, and rooftop lounge. Our Department of Film, Video, Animation & New Genres’ DocUWM production company is located here and we have classroom space here as well.

DocUWM is a professional practice branch of the department that provides students with practical experience in all facets of documentary production. DocUWM functions like a small production company and produces short and feature-length documentary films for hire. From concept to final delivery, students work on all aspects of production.

Early Music Room
The designated rehearsal space for the department’s early music ensemble, Collegium Musicum, the room includes a pipe organ and two harpsichords.

Electro-Acoustic Music Centers (EAMC)
Several studios at both the UWM Music building and our Kenilworth Square East location support the creation of new electroacoustic works, and facilitate a broad range of activities including instrument design/development and multimedia collaboration within Peck School of the Arts. Studios at Kenilworth Square East also provide flexible, multipurpose spaces for recording, rehearsal, installation, and teaching. The spaces include a large rehearsal room, isolated control room, and 5.1 mixing / listening room.

Jan Serr Studio
A flexible technologically-integrated performance venue that will choreograph light and sound in as many unique ways as the diverse group of university and community artists it aims to serve. Named after artist and UWM Department of Art & Design alumna, Jan Serr, the school’s new flagship venue will provide a much welcomed home for contemporary and interdisciplinary artists. Set to unveil in four phases, state-of-the-art facility updates will include 300-capacity flexible theatre seating, HVAC-controlled sprung floor, acoustic-tempered digital sound capabilities, state of the art projection, adjustable panels, and more.

As the leading comprehensive arts school in Wisconsin, Peck School of the Arts’ Jan Serr Factory is committed to meeting the evolving needs of 21st century artistic teachings and practice.

Helene Zelazo Center for the Performing Arts
A state-of-the art venue, the “Zelazo Center” boasts a grand entrance, two elaborate stained glass displays, as well as exquisite molding, arches, and decorative elements. The Zelazo Center includes the 758-seat Helen Bader Concert Hall, a large ensemble practice ballroom, an intimate chamber music recital room, and six new warm-up/practice spaces.

Music Computer lab
A dedicated 20-station lab equipped with Macintoshes is available to music students on the 2nd floor of the UWM Music Building.

Music Library
Located in the second-floor east wing of UWM’s Golda Meir Library, students enjoy access to an extensive music library, including printed & digital scores, CDs, LPs, books about music, and streaming audio.

Practice rooms
More than 60 private practice rooms are located in the UWM Music Building and the “Zelazo Center”.

Recital Hall
Our main concert space for chamber ensembles, master classes, solo faculty and student performances, as well as convocations. The 300-seat hall includes an open stage, state of the art recording technology, and two Steinway concert grand pianos.

Costume Shop
A spacious 20’ x 50’ workspace that includes four cutting tables, a variety of industrial sewing machines and surgers. Adjacent to principal and chorus dressing rooms, the shop features a separate fitting room, wardrobe maintenance space, and craft areas.

Crafts Studio
A safe, ventilated space for fabric dyeing and painting, mask making, casting, and upholstery activities. Commercial dyeing equipment and a walk in spray booth are located in the 32 ft. x 38 ft. space.

Drafting Studio
A designated instructional and drafting workspace featuring 20+ drafting tables.

Jan Serr Studio
A flexible technologically-integrated performance venue that will choreograph light and sound in as many unique ways as the diverse group of university and community artists it aims to serve. Named after artist and UWM Department of Art & Design alumna, Jan Serr, the school’s new flagship venue will provide a much welcomed home for contemporary and interdisciplinary artists. Set to unveil in four phases, state-of-the-art facility updates will include 300-capacity flexible theatre seating, HVAC-controlled sprung floor, acoustic-tempered digital sound capabilities, state of the art projection, adjustable panels, and more.

As the leading comprehensive arts school in Wisconsin, Peck School of the Arts’ Jan Serr Factory is committed to meeting the evolving needs of 21st century artistic teachings and practice.

Kenilworth FIVE-0-EIGHT Theatre
A 100-seat 50’x50’ black box theatre outfitted with a facility-wide lighting grid. Manufactured seating risers provide easy reconfiguration of the performance space. Located on the fifth floor of our Kenilworth Square East building.

Mainstage Theatre
A 525-seat thrust theatre with variable proscenium configuration abilities, an extensive sound system, and a computer-controlled 384 dimmer lighting system linked by ETCNet and DMX control wiring and served by an 800 amp. The thrust stage is made up of seven individual elevators that may be used at varying levels depending upon production requirements, and a full-stage grid supports a 27-line counterweight rigging system accessible from fifty feet above the stage.

Properties Shop
A large 20’x36’ space dedicated to props production contains tools appropriate to furniture construction and carpentry.

Rehearsal Studios
Three acting and rehearsal studios outfitted with adjacent lockers and shower facilities, and sprung dance floors.

Scenery Shop
The 30 ft. x 80 ft. main shop contains professional woodworking equipment with easy access to stage and loading dock. The ventilated welding room contains MIG and stick welders. A separate storage space above the welding area contains an extensive range of rigging equipment.

Sound & Light Lab
Located in our Kenilworth Square East building, this lab interfaces elements of sound design, video, and lighting. The space features an acoustically treated recording studio and 25 foot square lighting and projection space split by a spacious control room. Maximized for use by students with laptop computers, the space features high speed digital connectivity, software synthesizers, multi-channel digital interfaces and traditional hardware signal processors. Large format displays and powered audio monitors replicate theatrical systems for cutting edge show control programming, greatly expanding the capabilities of performance and artistic flexibility.

Stage Management Studio
A dedicated studio adjacent to all production areas that provides desk and workspace for all stage management students.