Author: Lucy Wadsworth

Title of Event: Fall Dance Concert
Date & Time of Event: Friday, December 6th, 7:30 pm
Location of Event: Harvey M Powers Theatre: Coleman
Type of event: Dance Performance

I am so glad I went to this Fall Dance Concert – the dancers, choreographers, and stage design were so creative and I was truly inspired by their work. Two performances really stood out to me – the first one dancers laid their backs on the ground a projector reflected with movements on a screen. You could see the dancers lying on the ground but also what they looked like from a bird’s eye view – it was fascinating. During the middle of the performance, another screen came down and the performers played with light and shadow as some were in front of the screen and some were behind. The second dance, which is photographed very blurry below, was inspired by Degas ballerina paintings. There was a clear tension between beauty and strength displayed through the outfits, the gestures, and the music. I liked that the choreographer referenced another type of visual art through her use of Degas.

Title of Event: Driftpoints: The Gleaners by Maggie Cardelùs
Date & Time of Event: Thursday, November 14th, 1:15 pm
Location of Event: Holmes Gallery
Type of event: Exhibition

This was such an incredible exhibition in Holmes Hall! One rarely sees needlepoint or stitch highlighted in the Fine Arts so it was special to see a feminine medium and artist supported by Bucknell. What drew my attention was that each of the needle points depicted almost the same scene but with different stitches, sizes, color palettes, and interpretations. She reinterprets an iconic scene by Jean-Francois Millet the Gleaners. The painting depicts 3 peasant women doing backbreaking farm work – responsibilities that often go overlooked and underpraised. Choosing this specific subject matter and recreating it into needlepoint creates an interesting dialogue between materiality, identity, and womanhood. It is also incredible how much detail she was able to get into the needlepoint to replicate the painting – I can only imagine how difficult it is to translate from one medium to the other.

Title of Event: Slow-Looking Exhibition
Date & Time of Event: Friday, September 27th, 1:15 pm
Location of Event: Samek Art Gallery
Type of event: Exhibition

I really enjoyed visiting the new art exhibition at the Samek! The artwork displayed was donated by a Bucknell alumnus and centers around deep observation and careful looking – something that is very rare in today’s social media culture. I enjoyed the gallery wall-style curation in which multiple works of art took up a smaller space. It created a very interesting phenomenon where you never saw the same thing twice while looking. One of the pieces that didn’t initially catch my attention but after a glance or two really stuck out is the third picture I posted. The work itself is quite small but the deep maroon velvet mat helps bring attention to the piece without overpowering it.

Title of Event: Carlos Barberena – Artist-in-Residence
Date & Time of Event: Wednesday, October 2nd at 3pm
Location of Event: Hislop Family Auditorium
Type of event: Artist lecture and reception

This was such a powerful talk! I really enjoyed learning about the ways that Barberena used his art to connect with and advocate for his communities. The raw and vulnerable themes discussed in the presentation were quite moving – the two pictures I posted were specifically interesting to me. The first is a print of a 15-year-old boy killed by police during a peaceful protest and the second image is his mother holding the poster. I look forward to learning more from this artist through his residency at Bucknell!