Olivia Drake
(more…)
During the spring semester arrival period, Feb. 5–8, volunteers from Wesleyan's Campus-Community Emergency Response Team (C-CERT) assisted with welcoming students to campus, checking them in, and ensuring they had a COVID-19 test within five days of arriving on campus. Members also shoveled snow to keep paths clear and delivered students' suitcases, via an ATV, to their residences. Joe Fountain, director of athletic injury care, loaned the Athletics Department ATV to C-CERT for this purpose. Wesleyan's C-CERT group consists of staff, faculty, and student volunteers. (Photos by Olivia Drake and Roseann Sillasen) (more…)
Light snow dusted campus Jan. 26–27, while students were away on winter recess. (Photos by Olivia Drake) (more…)
This winter, the Gordon Career Center is hosting four "fireside chat" style Winter Alumni Career Conversation events between prominent alumni and current students. Guests include Kimberley Martin '03, NFL reporter for ESPN; Jon Turteltaub '85, film/TV director and producer; Jesse Greenspan '06, director of supply chain and logistics, Partners in Health; and Dana Peterson '98, chief economist, The Conference Board. (more…)
During the Center for the Humanities Lecture Series, nine scholars explored the theme of "Dirt" throughout the fall 2020 semester. The theme explored the material ecologies and symbolic currencies of filth, waste, toxicity, and contamination alongside ideas of purity, hygiene, and cleanliness to address and reframe a range of contemporary environmental and cultural urgencies. Through various topics, the scholars discussed uses and abuses of dirt and its various political, religious, sexual, ethnic, racial, and ecological significations. The topics and speakers included: "Projected Resonances: Intersections of Sound, Performance, and Tourism Underground at Mammoth Cave" by Paula Matthusen, associate professor of music;…
In South Asia, particularly in India, people are born into a caste system that determines their social status, career, and access to resources and opportunities. Under Brahmins (priests, intellectuals), Kshatriyas (military, warriors), Vaishyas (merchants, farmers), and Shudras (laborers, servants) are Dalits, also known as the "untouchables." Those in the Dalit caste group struggle with oppression and discrimination and are considered "dirty" and spiritually polluting. On Nov. 21, Wesleyan's South Asian students' association Shakti presented a conversation titled "Caste Conundrum and Identity Politics." Panelists included Hari Krishnan, professor of dance; Indira Karamcheti, associate professor of American studies; Manjula Pradeep, a human…
During the COVID-19 pandemic, most of Wesleyan's musical activities and classes were canceled, drastically adjusted, or moved to virtual platforms. Fortunately, for Wesleyan's Javanese gamelan classes, students were still allowed to meet in-person as long as they followed strict guidelines: wear a mask and disposable gloves, social distance, and frequently use hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes. "The university made all of these available to the students in the World Music Hall, where the gamelan meets," explained Winslow-Kaplain Professor of Music Sumarsam. "The gamelan instruments were set up six feet apart, and the students were required to maintain that distance while…
(more…)
As a dancer and choreographer, Wesleyan's Visiting Dance Artist-in-Residence Eiko Otake spent the past 45-plus years of her career presenting her work in theaters, universities, museums, galleries, outdoor sites, and festivals worldwide. But like other artists navigating through the crisis, Otake was forced to find creative ways to re-focus, re-imagine, and share her work during the ongoing pandemic. In March 2020, the Center for the Arts invited Otake to begin a Virtual Creative Residency, during which she began shifting her performance-based art to an online venue named Eiko Otake’s Virtual Studio. Here, Otake posts her new creations, dialogues, and reflections.…
(more…)
