Ripon College Days

Media Credit: Photo courtesy Office of Marketing and Communication Ripon's newest curators. The students in Professor of Art Evelyn Kain's Art Management class coordinated the recent acquisitions show. The class consists of, in front, from left, junior Annette Schliepp, junior CJ O'Reilly, junior Shane Ebel, [Click to enlarge]

Media Credit: Photo courtesy Office of Marketing and Communication Russia to Ripon. This painting by Russian artist Leonid Sokov is one of several that will be on display in Caestecker Art Gallery until August. Sokov exhibited at Ripon with Oleg Sohanievich, who displayed his steel sculptures, during a show in the [Click to enlarge]

"From There to Here," an exhibit of art recently added to the college's permanent collection opened last Friday in the Caestecker Art Gallery.

The exhibit, in addition to displaying works from several artists who have displayed at Ripon during the past five years, was coordinated by a group of students from Professor of Art Evelyn Kain's arts management course.

The course, which was offered for the first time this semester, required students to plan and prepare everything for the exhibit.

"It's much more than pictures hanging on the wall," says junior Shane Ebel, a member of the class.

Junior CJ O'Reilly explains, "It's everything from scratch."

The class selected which pieces of artwork to hang from those acquired by Ripon College over the last five years, as well as matting and framing each piece, hanging the artwork, creating pamphlets and distributing advertisements for the gallery opening.

Essentially, the class has learned the level of work involved in running a museum through direct experience.

"Everything you do is a learning experience," Kain says, describing the course.

The students had many acquired artworks to choose from when coordinating the exhibit, as the Caestecker Gallery generally hosts four visiting artists during each academic year.

The college's permanent collection benefits from visiting artists, as the college acquires a new piece of art from each show.

The arts management course, although offered for the first time this year, is expected to continue in the future and eventually be part of a museum studies minor.

This semester's course got off the ground thanks to the ideas and insight of Kain, 2001 Ripon graduate Jessica Berger, Professor of Anthropology Emily Stovel and Director of the Business Administration Program Mary Avery.

Kain hopes the art management course will become part of the requirements for a future museum studies minor, which is still in the works.

However, an entry-level course for the minor will be offered this fall, listed as "Introduction to Museum Studies" in the course catalog, under the anthropology department.

The minor would be interdisciplinary in nature, Kain says.

Kain and Berger have been working together to develop this semester's arts management course, as well as the future minor.

According to Berger, the course is based on what she learned while working as a curatorial assistant at a contemporary art museum.

Sophomore Katie Prellwitz is currently enrolled in the arts management class.

"We've had a chance to learn every angle of the business," she says of her experience so far this semester.

This course is not only appealing to students interested in art, but also helps provide some real-life options for those interested in working in museums after they graduate, Berger says.

"I think students will be attracted to taking a course that will actually help them discover actual career options while gaining tangible, practical skills that will help them move forward into some of those options once they graduate," she says.

Berger also points out, "Getting a degree is only helpful if you know what to do with it once you've earned it."

Many of the goals and lessons involved in the art management course are ones students of any major or minor could benefit from, as the course teaches students skills and habits that are advantageous in many careers as well as hobbies, Berger says.

"Regardless of major, a student in this class will learn about and practice basic project management, develop and execute a specific project, form important collegial and professional relationships, hone written and verbal communication skills and conduct research," she says.

Berger notes several areas of study directly involved with the course. Among others, she points out business management, communication, anthropology, global studies, as well as performance and music arts.

The arts management class is not run as strictly as many classes are stereotypically thought of. The students meet in a classroom, though they do not always stay there.

"The nice thing about this class is we plan it as we go," says Kain.

She explains time is used as it is needed in the areas of behind-the-scenes museum work found to need more focus.

Specific museum-work focus is involved in shipping, preparing, hanging and keeping artwork.

The exhibit is open through Aug. 27.

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