In the wake of Brandeis University's decision to close The Rose Art Museum, a debate about the role of art in university education has perhaps never been more timely. A panel entitled "The Value of Art: The Place of Art in the University Today," moderated by Eva Hoffman, an associate professor of art history, took place last Thursday evening in the Remis Sculpture Court at the Tufts University Art Gallery. Panelists included professors and administrators from Tufts University, and an artist and professor from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (SMFA).
After Professor Hoffman introduced the event, each of the panelists addressed the topic from their perspectives.
Not all of the panelists approached this discussion from a visual arts background, however, and Jamshed Bharucha, provost and senior vice president and professor of psychology, music and neuroscience at Tufts said, after commenting on the cultural and educational importance of music, that "given how fundamental music, and by extension all of the arts … is to humanity and our humanity, it's, of course, absolutely essential that it be very much a part … of education of the university … because at a university we are repositories of culture … [and] places where creativity is fostered."
Mary Ellen Strom, video artist and faculty member at the SMFA and the only artist on the panel, felt concerned about the economy's impact on the arts in her introduction, but expressed her "hope that as part of the countless inevitable shifts that are occurring so rapidly right now that there will be a new and dynamic relationship between institutions and artists."
After the panelist introductions, the audience was allowed to ask questions of the panelists and Mindy Nierenberg, senior program manager for the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service and a graduate of Brandeis University, posed the question that seemed to be on everyone's minds: "How can we make it that so that every college student at any university views the museum and the gallery as a part of their education that is not a frill, that it's a basic part of students' education?"
However, as several other heated questions and comments from the audience made clear, this discussion is far from over, and to that end, a comment thread has opened on the Tufts University Art Gallery's blog (tuftsartgallery.wordpress.com), and a video of the event will be posted on its Web site in the near future so that community members may share in and continue this vital conversation.
