Honors College, College of Arts and Sciences team up

The Honors College and College of the Arts have come together to showcase their students’ work in their second annual art show called Brew.

The gallery, which opened Monday, will last one month and will display the work of nine juniors and seniors who are fine arts majors. The various pieces of artwork include painting, sculpture, jewelry metals and printmaking.

Amanda Meeker, who is the student curator for the art show, said it is a great experience for the artists because they can showcase their work, which can be hard for a young artist.

“The show gives the artists exposure, which is important because it gives them a chance to get their work out there,” the junior fine arts major said.

Meeker is also one of the artists in the show and will be displaying a metal sculpture she created called “The Steward.” She said this will be her first college art show and she is excited to show off her work.

“I’m a little shy about my work because I haven’t had a lot of exposure yet, so this is a good experience for me to get in the groove of showing people my artwork,” she said.

The show is open every Tuesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. until March 28. It is being held in the main lobby of the honors college located on the lower level of the Stopher-Johnson complex. In light of their theme, they will be serving coffee along with finger foods.

Friday night there will be a reception for the artists from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., where two judges will choose the best two pieces of art. The judges are curators from the Canton and Massillon museums of art. The reception, which is open to the public, offers free food and gives people a chance to meet the artists. The reception will also include a continuous video presentation of several student performances from honors dance and theater majors.

Victoria Bocchicchio, the Honors College coordinator of curriculum and coordinator of the art show, said last year she collaborated with the College of the Arts to create a show that would display the work of the honors college students.

“Our students are all students in another college, so we are always looking for ways to pair with different colleges to celebrate our students’ work in their college,” Bocchicchio said. “So this show was one more opportunity to make a connection with the degree-granting college and highlight students in their program.”

She said last year was successful and about 150 people came to the reception to see the artists and their work. She said since the art show is in the main lobby, many people will get to see it every day, which will benefit the artists.

“I think for the College of the Arts, any opportunity for a chance to show their work is an advantage because students in these professions really depend on people to recognize their work,” Bocchicchio said.

Meeker said coming to see the art show is a great way for students to just enjoy a variety of artwork and see what their peers can do. She said some people avoid coming to art shows because they think they need to be experts on what is art.

“I think some people are intimidated by art shows, but they shouldn’t be because art shows are open to anyone and there aren’t any guest lists,” Meeker said. “You can come for free with your friends, eat the food and just look at art.”

“I think it’s important as a citizen to be a patron of the arts,” Meeker said. “If you were to imagine life without art, you would be taking out huge chunks of your day without even knowing it. So it’s important that art is continually nurtured.”

Contact honors college reporter Christina Thomas at [email protected].