An exhibition of art by students at Yale and four other New Haven colleges and universities will open at Artspace on Audubon Street on Friday, Feb. 7, with a reception to be held 5-7 p.m.
The show, titled "Student Art at Artspace," features works by students at Yale, Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU), Albertus Magnus and Quinnipiac colleges, and the University of New Haven (UNH). It will remain on view through March 8. Gallery hours are Tuesday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
The exhibition is the culmination of a year of planning by a group of deans and provosts who established the Five College Arts Collaborative to expand the relationships among its member institutions and enrich the community through the artistic talents of the city's students and faculty. In addition, the consortium seeks to encourage students to see New Haven as their college town, and to promote the city as an arts center. The Artspace exhibition is expected to be the first of many cooperative ventures.
"Those of us who have worked on the Five College Arts Collaborative from 'Day One' are thrilled to see this student exhibition take place," says Diana E.E. Kleiner, Yale's deputy provost for the arts. "Such an exhibition could only happen in a city like New Haven, with its vibrant and diverse student population and its excellence in the arts. I am optimistic that the kind of synergy that has been created here will grow and result in exciting future collaborations."
"We see this as a chance to celebrate a community of shared enthusiasm," says Richard Lytle, professor of painting at the Yale School of Art.
Eve Ingalls, a board member of Artspace and Yale alumna B.F.A. 1960, M.F.A., 1962, is artistic director of the show, which was coordinated by Jerry Zinser, associate professor of visual arts at UNH. Each school has its own coordinator for the art show, and each is accorded equal space in the gallery. Professor Lytle is Yale's coordinator.
The Yale exhibitors will be Dimitry Chamy, graphic designer; Jason Cuvelier, painter; Todd Knopke, sculptor; Kevin Piscitello, sculptor; and Scott Peterman, photographer.
Edwin V. Selden, director of the Community Development Collaborative at SCSU, conceived the idea of the Five College Arts Collaborative. The other founding members of the collaborative were Sister Charles Marie Brantl, dean of Albertus Magnus; Nancy Carriuolo, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, UNH; Ms. Kleiner, Yale; Mr. Selden; J. Philip Smith, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, SCSU; and David Steinbeck, dean of the School of Liberal Arts, Quinnipiac College.
Artspace is a private, not-for-profit gallery "established to provide professional, technically equipped space for the presentation of new work in the visual, literary and performing arts," says Barbara Webster, executive director. "Serving the community and the audiences of this region is another important part of our mission. Those audiences certainly include the college-age youth, faculty and staff."