Working for the academic world is always a huge honour and pleasure for me. Especially collaborating with an institute as the University of California in San Diego and the the great team of Vitro Agency. I have been commissioned to create 6 mosaic portraits of 6 professors and the statue of Sun God, symbol of the UCSD students union, to be used in the "Non Other" campaign of this year. 
As you can read on the special website "The Campaign for UC San Diego was a historic university-wide comprehensive fundraising effort. And with more than 164,000 visionary donors, we surpassed $3 billion in support to enhance student support, ensure student success, transform our campus, connect our community, and redefine medicine and health care on a global scale."
So here are the results of our work:
The Artworks
Mari Kawamura
Doctor of Musical Arts ’22, The Ruth Epstein Endowed Memorial Fellow in Piano Performance
Department of Music, School of Arts and Humanities.
from the UCSD website:
Sounding off like non other
In music, virtuosity is everything. But what if it isn’t? That’s the question pianist Mari Kawamura poses by embracing not only the action in music, but the breaks in between. Fed by a diverse community of faculty, students and researchers — and fueled by generous donors creating a learning environment like non other — she’s free to pursue sounds like non other. Thanks to these visionary supporters, the Campaign for UC San Diego has concluded with over $3 billion raised. And its impact will continue to echo into the future.
You can find a high resolution (12800 x 15360) version of this artwork here.
Tammy Russell 
PhD ’24, NOAA Dr. Nancy Foster Scholar, Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
from the UCSD website:
Exploring like non other
From our perch on the Pacific, future thought leaders are looking at marine stewardship with fresh eyes. One of them is doctoral student Tammy Russell, who is researching the impacts of climate change and plastics on seabirds — and by extension, every living thing. Finding creative new ways to help the brightest minds improve the health of our planet is empowered by generous donors who contributed more than $3 billion as part of the Campaign for UC San Diego. And while the Campaign has come to a close, its legacy will benefit the planet for decades to come.­
You can find a high resolution (12800 x 15360) version of this artwork here.
Shyamanga Borooah, MBBS, PhD
Assistant Professor, School of Medicine
Viterbi Family Department of Ophthalmology at the Shiley Eye Institute, UC San Diego.

From the UCSD website:
Vision like non other
Vision is everything at UC San Diego. In fact, our physician-scientists are inching ever closer to preventing and even curing vision loss. Right now, Dr. Shyamanga Borooah is harnessing the power of the latest genetic discoveries to develop groundbreaking precision treatments for inherited macular degenerations, currently untreatable genetic eye diseases that prematurely rob patients of their central vision. Empowering the discovery of new treatments for devastating diseases like this is the direct result of generous donors who collectively contributed over $3 billion as part of the Campaign for UC San Diego. And, while the Campaign has closed, its waves of impact will be seen well into the future. We call that vision at work.
You can find a high resolution (12800 x 15360) version of this artwork here.
Luke Paulus
Brian M. Powers and Paula H. Powers Chancellor’s Associates Scholar
From the UCSD website:
Opportunity like non other
At UC San Diego, we believe educational access should be nonnegotiable. So in 2013, we created the Chancellor’s Associates Scholarship Program (CASP), offering students like Luke Paulus the financial and academic support that allows them to truly explore and experience a university education like non other. Fueled by visionary supporters, CASP and similar scholarships and student services ensure access, opportunity and success for our future changemakers. And while the Campaign for UC San Diego has concluded with over $3 billion raised, it will continue to empower more students well into the future.
You can find a high resolution (12800 x 15360) version of this artwork here.
Teddy Cruz and Fonna Forman
Professor of Visual Arts, School of Arts and Humanities, Director of Urban Research, UC San Diego Center on Global Justice, Professor of Political Science, School of Social Sciences, Founding Director, UC San Diego Center on Global Justice
From the UCSD website:
Connection like non other
Straddling countries and cultures, Fonna Forman and Teddy Cruz are linking up — and building up — vulnerable border communities. UC San Diego’s network of cross-border Community Stations are bringing together researchers, schools and nonprofits in an effort to expand education, culture and climate action. Mobilized by visionary donors, who collectively contributed over $3 billion as part of the Campaign for UC San Diego, these cross-border thought leaders are able to tackle urban inequality in a way that is truly boundless.
You can find a high resolution (13200 x 15760) version of this artwork here.
UCSD Sun God statue
Sun God is a monumental statue by French-American sculptor Niki de Saint Phalle located on the campus of the University of California San Diego. Erected in February 1983 as the first of the Stuart Collection of public art projects, the polyester and fiberglass Sun God has become a notable feature of the UCSD campus. 
Since the 1980s, the UCSD Associated Students organization has sponsored an annual event, the Sun God Festival, with the statue as its official mascot.
You can read more here.
You can find a high resolution (12800 x 15360) version of this artwork here.
The Applications
Some of the numerous applications of the portraits, magazine and newspaper advertisements, posters, web...
The details:
Some details of the mosaics. 
Many thanks to Wade Wagner, Ross Brodie and everyone at Vitro Agency and UCSD. 
Back to Top