Finding an Art Community at Tufts University Art Galleries (TUAG)
Ever find yourself near Talbot Ave on our Medford/Somerville campus or on our Fenway campus at The School of The Museum of Fine Arts (SMFA)? When I encountered the Tufts University Art Galleries (TUAG) on both campuses during First Year Orientation, I was thrilled to be surrounded by a rich art community! We host contemporary shows each semester featuring SMFA alumni, community artists, students, and creative collectives that are working within various disciplines anywhere from: sculpture, performance, textiles, painting, and drawing.
There are lots of different ways students might engage with our galleries, whether for an art history or archaeology class, walk-in visit, exhibition programming and reception events, or being a student worker and intern. My favorite class field trips were for my Visual Material Studies (VMS) course, “Reassessing Museums”, where we touched and learned about Latin American and Mexican artwork with the guidance of our Head of Collections. My friends in a SMFA sculpture class visited the Beverly Semmes exhibition, as Semmes was an alumna that utilized large dress-like sculptures for her practice.
In my first year, I ended up networking with professionals such as a curator from the Rose Kennedy Greenway in a book making workshop for the Ulises Show. You never know, you might find yourself sitting next to an awesome creative at one of TUAG’s events! Additionally, as a member of the Student Programming Committee, a group of 5-6 students across all majors and schools, we led initiatives such as guided walking tours of our shows, while visiting amazing places such as the TUAG collections warehouse, the Brandeis Rose Museum, and the Boston Center of Arts. I am still shocked today that during the collections warehouse visit, I handled a miniature Minoan female sculpture with our collections manager. If you ever find yourself writing a history, archaeology, political science, or really any academic paper and would like access to the collections, it is available to all students.
Lastly, have you ever noticed that big acorn head in the Medford/Somerville campus or mural on the SMFA building? Make sure to enjoy our public art collection on campus too.
The skills, friendships, and experiences I’ve made at TUAG are unimaginable. Don’t turn a blind eye if you want a creative getaway nearby, it’s right in front of you.