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ArtScapes is a project designed by MFA student Maev Dunning to assess library visitor perceptions of the art at Shields. (Courtesy of Maev Dunning)

What do you think of the art at Shields Library?

  • June 4, 2026

Did you know that there are over 300 pieces of art on view at Shields Library? With works from artists including Wayne Thiebaud, Robert Arneson, Mike Henderson, Maija Peeples and Roland Petersen, among others, Shields Library is home to an incredible collection of art by former UC Davis Art Studio faculty and alumni.

But what do visitors to Shields Library think of the art? How does it impact their experience? ArtScapes is a project through which Design MFA student Maev Dunning is seeking to find out. Dunning aims not only to gauge visitors’ interest in art, but also to prompt visitors to engage with the art more deeply by posing questions about the art in spaces students interact with every day.

A framed pink poster reads: ArtScapes -- Was Wayne Thiebaud known for being a painter or sculptor? Wooden coins dropped in glass tubes on each side of the poster represent a fairly even split between those two choices.
Three installations at Shields Library invite visitors to test their art knowledge by using wooden coins to “vote” on questions about UC Davis artists and the art collection at Shields. (Photo courtesy of Maev Dunning)

ArtScapes includes three physical installations that invite visitors to drop in a coin to “vote” on a handful of art-related questions. The project also includes an online survey, available via QR codes in several high-traffic areas of the library, to learn more about how visitors engage with the art. Through her research, Dunning aims to shed new light on the role and meaning of art outside of traditional gallery and museum spaces, and how this experience can be more impactful.

The UC Davis Library also plans to use the insights from ArtScapes to inform future efforts to provide more information about the art at Shields, depending on what library visitors want to know.

If you see an ArtScapes installation at Shields, take a look at the art around you and then share your thoughts. Or spend a few minutes to take the survey now!

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