On Saturday night in Buller Hall, AUSA hosted Art Night. This event featured many different artists around campus. It allowed them to show- case their talents whether it be through photography, Photoshop, graphic design, paint or pencil.
I had the chance to speak to Courtney Saunders (junior, engineering), the winner of the design/illustration section. She explained how her and her brother bounced ideas off of one another. Together, they came up with the theme of progression. Progression reminded her of evolution, like the evolution of man. Saunders then decided she would specifically depict the progression of blackness in America. She pulled inspiration from the song “Agape” from If Beale Street Could Talk. Any time she tried to create and draw she listened to the song. Saunders was moved by the idea of love and wanted to portray something peaceful and hopeful.
Then I interviewed Olivia Woodard (senior, design), who was in charge of Art Night.
What inspired you to put this on?
The main drive for the project was my love and appreciation for art.
There is an unspoken stigma behind art and its value so I wanted to put on this event to show that art clearly does have an effect on people and can be used as a tool of visual communication which is important and needed in all walks of life.
What was its purpose?
Last year at the Town Hall there were many students who had concerns about how art (specifically visual art) on campus seemed to be overlooked. I strongly agreed with the statements about it and was personally affected by it. Rather than just complain I felt that with my position on AUSA, it was my duty to do something about it because I have access to resources, administrators and a wonderful team. The
purpose of the exhibition style experience was to serve as exposure to all the underground artists we have.
Was it hard finding artists to participate?
It was not. I was actually very surprised at how many people signed up. We had 54 artists with about 90 pieces. About a third were not art majors, which was nice to show that there are art- ists across all areas on campus.
How much time did it take you to plan it out?
I don’t think I could calculate how much time was put in. Ale Pineda, the Executive Vice President of AUSA, and I originally started planning the event last March when we revisited the idea that the former EVP, Sharyl Cubero, started before she left. After the art department took hit after hit, we felt that we needed a revival of what art means to people so we pursued her idea again and didn’t rest until it was done.
Did you have any help?
I did have a lot of help!
I wouldn’t have been able to pull it off without the help of quite a few people. Ale worked very closely with me to help me with the business side, meetings with administrators and budgeting. A huge help was the involvement of all the admin from professional opinions, monetary donations to time. They all were important factors in making this event a success.
What kind of artist do you consider yourself? I am a designer. I am pursuing a BFA in Design and have been passionate about art for a long time. I think graph-
ic design is a very important part of our culture and it’s almost every- where we look. The challenge is to recognize it and to appreciate the learned skill of the faces behind the work.
How do feel about the turn out? Are you proud?
I feel great about the turn out. Anyone could tell you that was my biggest worry. But it was a great feeling to see that it was packed.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.