OUR LECTURERS

The DaVinci Institute has welcomed outstanding speakers from across the United States and from the United Kingdom to Oklahoma in recent years.  Our speakers have addressed creativity in the arts, humanities, sciences, and education from a range of perspectives.

Recent Lectures

Dr. Elizabeth Catlos Dr. Catlos is an excellent representative of a superlative young faculty member doing nationally recognized research in Oklahoma.  Her research focuses on understanding the evolution and impact of the growth of mountain ranges. Her research seeks to discover when, why, and how the Earth’s topography is created. These simple questions have complex answers and have led her to discover new methods for understanding the Earth’s history.  Her work dating allanite and other minerals from a major fault that marks the break in slope of the Himalayas resulted in the conclusion that the structure was active more recently than thought.  The results overturned the understanding by which the Himalayas were thought to be created, and directly impacted the assessment of seismic activity in Nepal and India.  In 2006, she was awarded the Donath Medal from the Geological Society of America for best young geologist.  In 2007, Smithsonian Magazine featured Dr. Catlos one of “America’s Young Innovators in the Arts and Sciences: 37 Under [the age of] 36.”  Dr. Elizabeth Catlos is an Associate Professor in the Boone Pickens School of Geology at Oklahoma State University

---

Sir John Pendry Chair in Theoretical Solid State Physics Imperial College, London University in the United Kingdom “Invisible Cloaks and a Perfect Lens” at the following locations:   Thursday, March 8th, 2007 - Constitution Hall, University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond - 3 p.m.   Friday, March 9th, 2007 - ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater - 7 p.m.

---

Mr. Peter Donaldson The DaVinci Institute, the University of Central Oklahoma, Oklahoma A+ Schools, and the Downtown Consortium hosted Mr. Peter Donaldson on February 15-19, 2007.  Mr. Donaldson appeared as Leonardo da Vinci in his one-man presentation “A Morning with Leonardo da Vinci” at several venues.  For more information on Peter Donaldson, please visit his website at www.peterdonaldson.net .

---

Dr. Eric Maisel

On February 2, 2007 the DaVinci Institute, the University of Central Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State University hosted a workshop by Dr. Eric Maisel, an internationally known creativity coach.  His workshop was entitled “Coaching the Artist Within.”  For more information on Eric Maisel, please visit his website at www.ericmaisel.com .

DaVinci Institute   presented Guest Lecturer

University Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
Kansas State University

In a seminar,
“Nanotechnology: A New Science; A New Business; A New Environmental Concern”
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
1:30 – 3:00 p.m.

For more information, call 405.225.9134 , or e-mail davinci@osrhe.edu .

Dr. Kenneth J. Klabunde

The Art of Nelson Shanks:  Intersection of History & Personality

On Tuesday, January 31, 2006, DaVinci Institute and the Greater Oklahoma City Downtown College Consortium hosted a Public Lecture featuring Nelson Shanks , one of the world's preeminent portraitists. Described by the National Gallery of Art Chief of Exhibits as "the most talented contemporary traditional portraitist," Mr. Shanks has been commissioned to paint portraits of some of the world’s most famous and powerful individuals of recent years including Pope John Paul II, Diana, Princess of Wales, Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, Luciano Pavarotti, and numerous others. 

For more information about Nelson Shanks and his art, please go to www.nelsonshanks.com 

Nelson Shanks: A Self-Portrait

Other recent speakers include:

Dr. Bulent Atalay
Professor of Physics, University of Mary Washington,
Author of Math and the Mona Lisa (2004)
http://www.bulentatalay.com/

Dr. Jane Bonbright
Executive Director, National Dance Education Organization
http://www.ndeo.org/whoweare.asp

Ben Cameron
Executive Director, Theatre Communications Group, New York
http://www.tcg.org/
TCG recipient of 2005 Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre

Dr. Eliot Eisner
Professor of Education and Professor of Art, Stanford University
Author of The Arts and the Creation of Mind (2002)
http://ed.stanford.edu/suse/contents/elliot_w_eisner.html

Dr. David Elliott
Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions, New York University
Author of Music Matters: A New Philosophy of Music Education (1995)
http://education.nyu.edu/music/faculty/elliott_david.html

Dr. Richard Florida
Hirst Professor, George Mason University School of Public Policy and founder of the Creativity Group Author of The Rise of the Creative Class (2002) and The Flight of the Creative Class (2005)
http://www.creativeclass.org/

Camille Hardy
Popular Balanchine Project, Research Team Principal Researcher
former Professor of Dance, NYU Tisch School of the Arts
Author of the 1987 Report to Congress: "State of the Arts: Dance"
http://www.balanchine.org/03/popularbalanchine.html

Dr. Brian Lang
Principal and Vice-Chancellor, University of St. Andrews
Former Chief Executive and Deputy Chairman, the British Library

Sir Ken Robinson
Senior Advisor, J. Paul Getty Center, LA
Author of Out of Our Minds: Learning to be Creative (2001)
http://www.principalvoices.com/voices/ken-robinson-bio.html

Barbara Shepherd
Senior Project Director, The Kennedy Center
Partners in Education Program
Co-author of  An Artist's Handbook: Preparing to Lead Professional Development Workshops for Teachers
http://www.kennedy-center.org/education/partners/handbook.html