Exhibition displays artwork from graduate students at Boston University, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts

Announcement

What is contemporary art? That is the question explored by Emerson College students in a hands-on Visual and Media Arts class. During the semester, students learn the craft of curating a public, contemporary art exhibit—from finding artists and selecting works to developing a comprehensive theme and managing the installation. The exhibit, profiles of the [dis]connected, explores “Generation C” through a variety of art mediums including photography, video, drawings, and 3D media.

“Curating an exhibition gives students an opportunity to articulate what makes their generation unique from past artists,” said Joseph Ketner, the Lois and Henry Foster chair in contemporary art theory and practice and distinguished curator-in-residence, who teaches the class.

Ketner said the class challenges students to think beyond what they like personally when choosing art for their exhibit, and to consider a number of factors including how they will display their selected artwork in a three-dimensional space, and what each piece brings to the theme of the exhibition to make it comprehensive for visitors. “I’m always excited to see the students’ visions come to life, and to invite the community to see a fully produced, contemporary exhibit from the next generation of artists.”

During the first half of the semester, students survey modern and contemporary art. Then, for three weeks, they visit approximately 75 graduate student studios at Boston University, Massachusetts College of Art and Design (MassArt), and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts (SMFA). During the final three weeks, students choose the artists for their exhibit and create the show.

“In viewing work at each of the three schools, we became interested in our generation’s ability to stay personally connected to each other, despite distance and distractions,” said Writing, Literature, and Publishing student Ariel Goldberg, a senior who’s minoring in Visual and Media Arts. “We’re obsessed with electronic communication and the Internet and live in a state of digitized isolation; but the beauty is that we are so fantastically together in this solitude, and amid the fleeting chaos of humanity, we have taught ourselves to revel in our own eccentricities. We are adventurers, Occupiers, and individuals.”

Work from the following 13 artists will be displayed at the profiles of the [dis]connected exhibition:

  • Ryan Arthurs, Massachusetts College of Art and Design
  • Amanda Brown, Massachusetts College of Art and Design
  • Sammy Chong, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • Laura Fischman, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • Helena Hsieh, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • YouJin Kim, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • Matt Kushan, Massachusetts College of Art and Design
  • Tim McCool, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • Doran Rivera, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • Katherine Romero, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • Jamal Thorne, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • Carl Vestweber, School of the Museum of Fine Arts
  • Erika Wastrom, Boston University

WHEN: Friday, December 9, 2011 through February 17, 2012 (Closed for school break from December 16, 2011 through January 17, 2012)

WHERE: Huret & Spector Gallery, Tufte Performance and Production Center, 10 Boylston Place, Sixth floor, Boston, MA. Admission to the Huret & Spector Gallery is open to the public and free of charge. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 12:00 to 5:00 p.m.


About the College

Based in Boston, Massachusetts, opposite the historic Boston Common and in the heart of the city’s Theatre District, Emerson College educates individuals who will solve problems and change the world through engaged leadership in communication and the arts, a mission informed by liberal learning. The College has 3,780 undergraduates and 670 graduate students from across the United States and 50 countries. Supported by state-of-the-art facilities and a renowned faculty, students participate in more than 90 student organizations and performance groups. Emerson is known for its experiential learning programs in Los Angeles, Washington, DC, the Netherlands, London, China, and the Czech Republic as well as its new Global Portals, with the first opening last fall in Paris. The College has an active network of 51,000 alumni who hold leadership positions in communication and the arts. For more information, visit Emerson.edu.