If you're looking to expand your understanding and appreciation of modern art, you can forget about taking the T into Boston. The MFA is now right here at Tufts. Well, sort of. From now until Oct. 1, eight Master of Fine Arts degree candidates in the joint Tufts/Museum of Fine Arts program will be displaying their thesis exhibitions at the University Art Gallery in the Aidekman Arts Center.
This year's works feature a wide variety of artistic styles that will capture the interest of any type of person, from the photographer to the sculptor, the musician to the golfer, the film critic to the Internet guru. Sure, those descriptions may seem a bit random, but many of these gallery pieces seem more avant-garde than what one might expect to find at MOMA.
"Art is more than Monet and John Singer Sargent," said degree candidate Jonathan Goldman. "Contemporary art is a very real, relevant, and hands-on experience." His exhibit, entitled "Stereotypical Evidence: Documentary Portraiture," offers a glimpse into our all-too-common world of stereotypes and aims to change the narrow-minded ways in which we view others.
Goldman's approach to his project is of particular note, as he documents the lives of twenty-five residents in his apartment building by scanning each resident's everyday objects - keys, toothbrushes, watches, for example - and superimposes the images onto a three-page questionnaire his subjects fill out about themselves. Goldman bases his project on the fundamental question, "How do you think people stereotype you?" and uses each subject's answer to the question as the title to that particular piece. The titles, "Way-Too-Happy White Guy" and "Bitch" particularly stand out. In a summary of his work, Goldman writes of his intention to show that "stereotypes and connotations are one-dimensional - people are not."
On a similarly contemplative note, Scott Alberg's display, comprised of plasticine (a popular type of modeling clay) sculptures and acrylic paintings on canvas, delves into the complexities of adolescence and identity formation. He states that his work conveys "moments of identification that both form and limit one's identity." The introspective quotes hand-written on the canvas are particularly effective in relaying such a theme. So at a time when we college students are shaping our own identity (some of us seemingly regressing), this exhibit is well worth your time. And don't forget to look underneath the table displayed in his show. You might be a tad surprised.
For the moviegoer in you, there is Mia Rosenblatt's two-part exhibit, entitled "Film Frames: Found Footage and Cyclocinema." The former part consists of a series of still shots taken from home movies; the latter involves an interactive bicycle-powered filmmaking and projecting device whose rate of film exposure and projection speed alter according to how fast one pedals the bicycle. What's more, chances to actually ride this device, dubbed "the cyclocineprojector," will be available to all next week.
Sarah Wentworth approaches her work, "Surreptitious Installations," by juxtaposing her own picture postcards with those of the prominent art world. "Daily Doorstep" is a piece featuring nearly 600 pictures Wentworth took each morning as she stepped out onto her doorstep to, as she phrases it, "check the day." She began the project in February of last year, snapping one shot per day of a particular image she felt was symbolic in her everyday life as an artist/mother.
The show isn't limited to visual art. Most people probably do not associate painting a landscape with the use of sound, but if you're the least bit intrigued, stop by Seth Barger's exhibit featuring "sonic landscape projectors" intended to create an imaginary place for inward solace and contemplation. The sound chamber, a fairly large, enclosed chamber, is a hands-on, or rather ears-on, must.
Picture postcards, cyclocine projectors, sound chambers - what could offer the gallery a little extra variety? How about an interactive web site? www.clickonmyheart.com is Daniel Hamilton's creation, which uses the computer as an extension of our bodies. It examines the nature of communication, relationships, and the struggle between finding a deep connection within the machine and existing in the real world.
"Art should be an experience," explains Hamilton. "The gallery should expand its walls, and that is what I am trying to do with my work."
Justin King's playful sculptures, from miniature toy cars to a Magic-Eye-esque creation made of golf tees, are also in store for you, while Amy Morel presents a series of cross-shaped models - including a bed and a half-bath - that demonstrate the role of religion in her everyday life.
By now, the word "random" might be ringing in your ears. Maybe so, but taken separately, each artist's work is a culmination of careful thought, effort, and skill. The exhibit contemplates everything from meditation and religion to bicycles and films, adolescent hardship to the Internet to toy cars - something of significance to everyone. Best of all, it's right here on campus. And it's free. Give it the chance-you just might find that it's more than you'd would expect.
