Summer 2018: Christine Cole

       
          The Rollins College Department of Art and Art History rewarded me with a travel grant to the Open Engagement Conference in Queens, NYC. My trip was May 10-14th, 2018, and the conference lasted the three-day weekend. Open Engagement explored art practice through the lens of social engagement. This opened up art into a world of social issues and activism, combining art with cultural movement. At the conference, I was able to meet with past Rollins students living in Queens, participate in workshops, and sit in on lectures, delving into a community of artists, students, scholars, and organizations who believe in art as a way to change the world. This year’s conference focused on sustainability—a significant passion of mine—but also covered topics like gentrification and consumerism. I found these areas of discourse to be applicable, not only from the perspective of an artist, but especially as a citizen who wants to be a part of change.


          Some of the most fascinating talks came from the keynote speakers: Lucy Lippard and Mel Chin. I also distinctly remember a workshop called “Mirror/Echo/Tilt,” where we learned about using acting as a form of recalling the memory of the incarcerated, and a discussion called “The Attention Economy & Cultural Capitalism of the White Savior Art Market.”


         The aspect of my trip to New York City that I enjoyed the most was the exposure to art veiling the whole town. From the Whitney to the Met, I was inspired by the curatorial genius and breadth of art from classical to contemporary. These museums set a tone for the rest of my summer travels, setting me up for many more museum-visits to come. Not only did I get to see fantastic exhibits of significant works, but I also got to experience the greatness of a big city all on my own. Traveling to and navigating New York City by myself was a growing experience that tested my limits.


            The greatest lesson that I learned from this trip is that true travel will always teach unexpected things. My intention was to bring back social practice to the Rollins campus and my senior studio experience, but what I came out with was a greater empathy for those that can be affected by social practice and of the cultural enclaves in Queens, a passion for museum practice, a hunger to see and study more art, and the interest in a double major in both Studio Art and Art History.