June 12, 2023

2 students honored as UCLA’s inaugural Class Artists

Singer-songwriter Paravi Das and filmmaker Jahmil Eady are recognized in program launched by Chancellor’s Council on the Arts

Two promising artists, singer-songwriter Paravi Das and filmmaker Jahmil Eady, have been named UCLA’s inaugural Class Artists.

Both will earn degrees from UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television on June 16.

The Class Artists program recognizes two students each year — one undergraduate and one graduate student — whose work showcases the presence and purpose of the arts at UCLA. Each honoree receives a $1,500 prize.

“The Class Artists program is a wonderful new way to celebrate the transformative power of the arts and to recognize that they do much more than provide entertainment,” said UCLA Chancellor Gene Block. “Our two inaugural Class Artists exemplify the capacity of the arts to inspire us, challenge us with new perspectives and invite us to reflect on societal issues.”

The initiative is sponsored by the UCLA Chancellor’s Council on the Arts, and submissions were judged by a panel of alumni artists and arts educators. The panel received a range of entries spanning the disciplines of film, music composition, dance and theater performance, sculpture, photography, multimedia, poetry and fiction writing.

“Paravi and Jahmil represent an overarching vision at UCLA — that is, art and culture as a means of connection, uplift and response to societal issues that are best faced together through the lens of empathy and curiosity that artists uniquely provide,” said Eileen Strempel, chair of the Chancellor’s Council on the Arts and dean of the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music. “We are proud to celebrate these two artists among us during commencement this year and look forward to future installations of this competition.”