Pitt course offers students chance to curate museum exhibit

“Making Faces: The Depiction of Women in Japan from Edo to Today”

University Art Gallery,… “Making Faces: The Depiction of Women in Japan from Edo to Today”

University Art Gallery, Frick Fine Arts Building

Closes Dec. 4

10 a.m.- 4 p.m.

While Pitt frequently emphasizes laboratory research in its science courses, it can be hard for the liberal arts to find ways to give students hands-on experience. A new History of Art and Architecture class, however, allows aspiring art students to set up their own gallery.

Eric Shiner, the Milton Fine Curator of Art at The Andy Warhol Museum, teaches the Museum Studies Exhibition Seminar. Shiner’s colleague at The Warhol and HAA faculty member Terry Smith spoke with him about teaching a class.

When they discovered the Asian studies department was chosen to host an anniversary party for the Toshiba International Foundation, the two knew they had the grounds for an interactive class.

“We decided to design the course around both Japanese art and curatorial studies,” Shiner said. “Originally, we were going to use woodblock prints gifted to the Special Collection section of Hillman Library by philanthropist and collector Barry Rosensteel.

“Then we learned that he had many more prints, so I flew down to Arizona [where Rosensteel lives] to see the rest of his collection. He offered us the opportunity to borrow more, which we ultimately took him up on.”

In addition to Rosensteel’s prints, Brooklyn-based Hiroki Otsuka created original art for the exhibit. The Japanese artist decorated the walls of the gallery with languid swirls. He also painted a portrait of a ghost-white girl onto a large room separator to welcome visitors into the exhibit.

Shiner explained that the class was split into three teams: curatorial, text and installation. The curatorial group made the executive decisions for each room, while the text team wrote and edited the captions for each piece. The installation team worked on the furniture and lighting.

“The course allowed them to study about, and then actually take part in, all the many things it takes to put an exhibition together from square one,” Shiner said. “They learned how to install works of art, how to critically explain the work on display in wall labels, how to adjust the gallery lighting and how to give tours and discuss the works on display with an audience. I think it provided them with the chance to experience what being a curator entails, and hopefully it will benefit them in their future careers.”

During the days of setup, students pondered the placement of pictures and perfected the lighting. They worked together, embodying the role of curators.

Adrienne Rozzi, a senior studying art history and studio art, appreciated Shiner’s willingness to leave decisions up to the students.

“He treats us like professionals; we do it our way. For doing something so formal and complicated, he keeps it light and upbeat in class,” she said. “He tells us stories. He lets us lead. He edits, but lets us be ourselves. We learn so much better that way.”

Rozzi, who said she has always had interest in being a curator, learned the difficulties of the job.

“You have to be really nice to people. You really have to exhaust all your resources. It opened my eyes to how stressful being a curator can be. You need a lot of connections. It’s a challenge, but a fun challenge,” she said.

Over the course of the semester, students attended field trips to local museums and read about the artwork they were featuring. Each student was responsible for writing a caption for one of the gallery’s pieces.

“I feel flattered because our professor treated us like adults,” Erin Holmes, a senior studying art history and film studies, said.

Liz Speicher, also a senior studying art history and English writing, had similar sentiments.

“I feel proud — it really was us who put this together,” Speicher said.