Olivia DrakeOn Oct. 14, Forklift Danceworks will present WesWorks, a performance that celebrates the skilled movement and tells the often unheard stories of the people whose work sustains the daily lives of the Wesleyan campus. In this Q&A we speak with Gretchen LaMotte '18, choreographer and programs manager for Forklift Danceworks. At Wesleyan, LaMotte majored in science in society while working for the Center for the Arts’ Creative Campus Initiative, Zilkha Gallery, and the Institute for Curatorial Practice in Performance. Q: Hi Gretchen! In October, Forklift will host the performance of "WesWorks," featuring members of Wesleyan’s Physical Plant staff and campus…
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.…
Lauren RubensteinIn this recurring feature in The Wesleyan Connection, we highlight some of the latest news stories about Wesleyan and our alumni. Wesleyan in the News 1. The Washington Post: "How One College Is Helping Students Get Engaged in Elections—and, No, It’s Not Political" President Michael Roth writes about Wesleyan's initiative to engage students meaningfully in work in the public sphere ahead of the 2020 elections, and calls on other colleges and universities to do the same. He writes: "Now is the time for higher education leaders to commit their institutions to find their own paths for promoting student involvement in the…
Inspired by Fête de la Musique (also known as Make Music Day), the eighth annual The MASH festival on Sept. 6 highlighted Wesleyan's student music scene, with multiple stages on campus featuring everything from a cappella ensembles to student and faculty bands. More than 15 musicians or groups performed, including gonzo, sweetburger, Jackie Weo, g.flores, Mattabesset String Collective, Quasimodal, audrey mills, the basukes, Rebecca Roff, la media chulla, Lopii, Baby Leelo, livia wood, Pablo lee-davis, iris olympia, Philippe bungabong, ian etc., and Lily Gitlitz. Photos of The MASH are below: (Photos by Preksha Sreewastav '21) (more…)
Wesleyan's Center for the Arts recently received a $15,000 Art Works grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support the presentation and residency activities of dance artist Netta Yerushalmy, who will perform the work "Paramodernities" in October. The Center for the Arts is one of 977 nonprofit organizations nationwide to receive an Art Works grant. "Support from the National Endowment for the Arts is central to our ability to fulfill our mission to be a vibrant center for dance in the state, and to bring contemporary dance to audiences who might not otherwise be able to access it," said Sarah…
Works by seniors in the Art Studio Program of Wesleyan's Department of Art and Art History are on exhibit through April 28. Exhibitions change each week. The Ezra and Cecile Zilkha Gallery is open from noon to 5 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday; noon to 7 p.m. on Thursday; and noon to 5 p.m. on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The show is free and open to the public. The exhibit includes the following artwork on display April 2 through 7: Cayla Blachman presented "Where To." Shirley See Yan Fang presented her exhibit titled "做得好." (more…)
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The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded Wesleyan a $250,000 grant to implement an innovative artist residency model to deepen engagement with the arts on campus and expand their impact in the community. The grant will be spent over three-and-a-half years, in a period ending in June 2022. Wesleyan has a long history of hosting artist residencies, in which visiting artists offer master classes and give talks based around a single performance or art installation. Most residencies have been relatively short-term, with a few notable exceptions. Under the Mellon grant, the University will establish an expanded version of the artist…
Wesleyan's Center for the Arts announces the highlights of the 2018–2019 season, including two world, two New England, and four Connecticut premieres. "This season we are taking a cue from CONTRA-TIEMPO, whose new work 'joyUS justUS' posits that the expression of joy is the greatest act of resistance,” said Sarah Curran, director of the Center for the Arts. "During the 2018–2019 season, we claim joy and expressive freedom, through which we represent, create, and expand our community. We are particularly excited about presenting the first solo exhibition in New England by up-and-coming multimedia artist Kahlil Robert Irving, including a number…
This summer, students seeking a master's degree in performance curation from Wesleyan's Institute for Curatorial Practice in Performance (ICPP) are working on six performing artist case studies funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. On July 16, the ICPP Entrepreneurial Strategies class discussed their first artist — Becca Blackwell, an award-winning trans actor, performer and writer based in New York City. Blackwell is working with consultants and mentors at ICPP to develop a strategic framework for the next two to five years of their career. Blackwell will also be presenting their work at Wesleyan on October 5. Photos of the class are below: (Photos by…
On May 27, seven students graduated with a Master of Arts in Performance Curation through the Center for the Arts Institute for Curatorial Practice in Performance (ICPP). Since being introduced as a pilot initiative in 2011, ICPP has graduated 16 students from the ICPP Master's program (including this year's class). ICPP encourages emerging curators to enrich their understanding of intellectually rigorous, innovative, and artist-centered curatorial models. Through a low-residency model, ICPP asks its students to not only engage with ideas but also to simultaneously put those ideas into practice in their professional lives, developing responsive curatorial practices that address the interdisciplinary nature…