At the Women in Art show, artists of all ages working across a wide variety of mediums came together to celebrate each other’s work.

The opening reception in October saw 50 works by 40 artists displayed in Seton Hill’s Harlan Gallery with painting, photographs, sculpture, 永利博彩 pieces created in yarn, fabric, 永利博彩 other materials.

当艺术家和来宾们混在一起时，两名西顿山的学生特别感兴趣地看着人群。 Juniors Ashley LaRocque 永利博彩 Kenzi Rullo worked behind the scenes with gallery director Emily Franicola 永利博彩 art history faculty member Ron Hawker to put this year’s exhibition together.

“Having this class as an independent study was definitely a challenge,” said Ashley, a fine art major 永利博彩 Greensburg. “It placed a lot of responsibility on 永利博彩 shoulders as to properly representing 永利博彩 creating a cohesive experience, but Kenzi 永利博彩 I were both willing to take on the challenge!”

“Being a part of an independent study for a class like this allowed us to dive deep into what it means to be a woman artist 永利博彩 the role women play in the art world. We had great discussions 永利博彩 took time to carefully look through each 永利博彩 every submission to curate a show that feels whole,” said Kenzi, an art history major with minors in Chemistry, 2D Studio Art, 永利博彩 Data Analytics 永利博彩 Latrobe.

在整个课程中，除了独立阅读和研究历史和女性历史上使用的媒介外，两人还与霍克会面。

“Ron Hawker made the process more of a creative game rather than a required assignment,” Ashley said. “He truly allowed us to look at the art 永利博彩 a viewer's perspective, what its context was, how it was made – 永利博彩 the significance of its place in art history came naturally 永利博彩 his guidance.”

虽然Ashley和Kenzi之前都没有策划过展览，但他们都为这个项目带来了自己独特的经历。

作为艺术家，艾希礼办过无数次展览，但从来没有在幕后工作过。 2023年的女性艺术展是她第一次参加大学艺术展。 Even as an artist, she remembered the community that was built on the night of the opening – something she kept in mind while curating this year’s show.

今年夏天，Kenzi在威斯特摩兰美国艺术博物馆（Westmorel永利博彩 Museum of American Art）实习期间，为两场将于明年举行的展览进行了策展研究。

“When I started this process at the beginning of the semester I knew it would be a unique experience, but I didn't expect just how much I would learn in the face of those challenges,” Kenzi said. “It proved to me just how much I have grown as an artist 永利博彩 art historian. I can appreciate 永利博彩 learn 永利博彩 each of the pieces in the show in order to reach an end goal.”

除了从霍克那里得到的指导外，他们还与弗朗尼科拉一起设想和布置空间。

“Going into this, I was expecting to be more overwhelmed by the process of putting the artwork together in the gallery space 永利博彩 finding the connection between the pieces,” Kenzi said. “Surprisingly, Emily, Ashley, 永利博彩 I were able to see the work fall together quite quickly 永利博彩 seamlessly.”

“Working in a one-on-one style with Emily was such a blessing,” added Ashley. “Although creating a show with two student curators is definitely a big ask, she put her faith in us 永利博彩 let us take the reins.”

在开幕之夜，学生策展人能够看到他们的愿景成真，艺术家和游客在整个空间与作品互动，将展览中的女性聚集在一个空间里。

“The opening reception was truly magical,” Ashley said. “Talking to older artists 永利博彩 learning about their passion 永利博彩 experience was wonderful.”

“Getting to meet the artists 永利博彩 see people 永利博彩 the community attend the exhibition was a beautiful moment, as it reminded me of what 永利博彩 gallery is meant to do,” Kenzi said. “Listening to the artists talk about their process 永利博彩 how they feel as women artists was a truly memorable experience.”