Resources | Research at CTSA

The Claire Trevor School of the Arts encourages dynamic practices across the four departments of Art, Dance, Drama and Music. School-level entities including the Institute for 21st Century Creativity (21C), Beall Center for Art + Technology and Experimental Media Performance Lab (xMPL) offer opportunities for faculty and students from different departments to collaborate and engage in interdisciplinary exploration. In addition, CTSA hosts several department level entities and individual faculty led labs.

Pictured: The Meyer Sound Design Studio located in the Contemporary Arts Center on the UCI Claire Trevor School of the Arts campus.

Funding Opportunities

For faculty and graduate students, a list of helpful information for navigating the internal funding infrastructure at UC Irvine and seeking external funding opportunities.

Institute for 21st Century Creativity

The Claire Trevor School of the Arts’ Institute for 21st Century Creativity (21C) is a school-level center cultivating research projects in the arts.

Beall Center for Art + Technology

The Beall Center for Art + Technology explores new relationships between the arts, sciences, and engineering to promote new forms of creation and expression using digital technologies.

Experimental Media Performance Lab (xMPL)

Located in the Contemporary Arts Center, the Experimental Media Performance Lab which is referred to as the xMPL, is a state-of-the-art 4,000-sq.-ft. performance space has been built in the “black box” theatre genre.

Art: University Art Galleries

The University Art Galleries (UAG) serve as a laboratory that presents the creative research of art students and faculty to the public. The space is managed by the Department of Art.

Drama: Meyer Sound Design Studio

The Meyer Sound Design Studio incorporates a standard 5.1 control room, an isolation booth, a separate offline sound design/edit suite, and a large studio and technology space with a pipe grid. The space is managed by the Department of Drama.

Music: Gassmann Electronic Music Studio

The Gassmann Electronic Music Studio is a facility for production and pedagogy of electronic, electroacoustic, and computer music. The space is managed by the Department of Music.

Faculty: Speculative Prototyping Lab

The SPL pursues social practice and pedagogy at the intersection of media art and speculative design. The lab supports collaborations between artists, designers, engineers, scientists, humanists and the general public. The lab is directed by Prof. Jesse Colin Jackson.

Faculty: Emergent Media Design Lab

The Emergent Media Research Lab investigates the integration of socially engaged artmaking with emergent media and connected design, dedicated to creating compelling interactive experiences and building upon the emerging technologies of the 21st century. The lab is directed by Prof. John Crawford.

Faculty: Mechatronics Lab

The Mechatronics Lab is a 22-seat teaching lab for analog and digital electronics, microcontroller programming and electromechanics. Facilities include a stereomicroscope for SMD (surface mount) electronics assembly, a suite of small machine tools - mill, lathe, drill press, and a full stock of hand tools, fasteners and electronics components. The lab is directed by Prof. Simon Penny.

Faculty: iMove @ UCI

iMove’s Mission is to improve the lives of people with neural injuries in Orange County and the world beyond by empowering UCI engineering, science, and medical students to create innovative robotics and information technologies that enhance movement ability, personal motivation, and physical fitness. iMove is co-directed by Dr. Kelli Sharp in Dance.

Faculty: Realtime Experimental Audio Laboratory

The REALab (Realtime Experimental Audio Laboratory) is a laboratory for research and creative work in the use of computers in live musical performance, including realtime audio processing, sound spatialization, networked performance, interactivity, and alternative computer-mediated instruments. The REALab is directed by Prof. Christopher Dobrian.