The first time I ever set foot in the Dittmar Memorial Gallery in Norris was during New Student Week, determined to see as much of my home for the next four years as possible before classes started. I, for one, am an enthusiast of all things artistic; while I can’t even draw as much as a stick figure, I was raised to appreciate art in all of it’s many mediums. And still in the hazy beginnings of those first few days of college, with tons of new numbers thrust into my fashionable BlackBerry and the stress of navigating CAESAR for the first time (“Seriously, who is this Caesar guy?”), I was excited to find myself surrounded by art as easily accessible as a Starbucks mocha.
But that first time, I was not overcome with the relief I automatically anticipated. For some reason, I found myself alone beneath the methodically lit lights and before pieces of art generously displayed by talented artists. I expected, with a student body as intelligent and eclectic as Northwestern’s, the quaint and cozy room to be frequented by normal, everyday students like myself also looking for a splash of culture in their constantly booked schedules. At the very least, I thought some hipsters, some film majors, some scarf wearing, dark coffee sipping, bilingual students would be chillin’, claiming this room as their own.
This was sadly not the case. No students. No faculty. No one. Perhaps I visited the gallery at an inopportune time, seen it’s usual glory dismantled by it’s lack of residents. But each time I consequently visited Norris, I was sure to investigate Dittmar’s effect on the student body. And, after rarely seeing more than a couple graduate students discussing lesson plans, I was able to make a general conclusion regarding Dittmar Memorial Gallery: What’s the point if students don’t take advantage of it?
Should the university automatically make the assumption that college students, barely able to make it to their 9 a.m. classes, will pass up an irresistible Norris couch for a less comfortable chair in a generally empty room? Would the typical young adult, scarf-wearing or not, ditch their friends indulging in crepes just a floor below? Probably not.
But if not in our student center, literally several steps away from a relatively high-tech television, what are the odds that we would take a trip to our own world-renowned Block Museum or, even worse, hop on the El for a day at the Art Institute? “In essence, the goals of Dittmar Memorial Gallery coincide with the philosophy of providing well-deserved exposure to those who would not necessarily get exposure in the mainstream art world,” asserts the gallery’s Statement of Purpose. Dittmar is the most accessible way for students to have a little art in their lives.
While taking the time to step inside Dittmar’s bright walls last week, I found myself particularly intrigued by Eduardo De Soignie’s current exhibit. In “Ex Vivo: Out of the Living,” Soignie portrays life through bright and conflicting color and shapes. His work illustrates the very human struggles that may be under the surface in one’s appearance and grace, but truly overwhelming in everyday reality. See? All that from a couple minutes.
Especially in college, where any extra time is spent sleeping rather than looking at art, where most do not know the difference between Chagall and Picasso, where we would rather lounge on a Norris couch than in an art gallery, we’re too busy to dedicate an afternoon or coffee break to fully enjoy art. But we also live in an age where art, by and large, seems to be put on the backburner in schools and regions throughout the country. Our own university is donating much time, money and effort in fostering appreciation for something finer than the periodic table, correct grammar and keg stands. We, as students at one of the finest institutions in the world, should take strides in reciprocating this effort and learn to appreciate a side of oil pastels with our morning latte.