Click the names below to view the Art & Society Projects from the Fall 2020 students:

• Fivos Chalkiopoulos, Greece
• Tana LaKale, Spain
• Vasilina Papadimitropoulou, Greece

Instructors’ comments:

The Art & Society course allows students to develop substantive projects to further their portfolio development, and to have numerous opportunities to deepen their understanding of contemporary art practices and the various roles that artists can play in a broader social context.

The students of the Fall 2020 semester worked on their artistic projects in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has required teachers and students alike to re-think their approach to art-making and the notion of travel and cultural exchange.  We have navigated the challenges and complexities of daily life in these tumultuous times, and re-examining societal structures in this new context.

At the start of the semester we had an excursion to San Gimignano, exploring the historic city center and the exhibitions of contemporary art at Galleria Continua.

Guided walks in Siena’s historic center included the contemporary interventions of the Tempo Zulu project, led by instructor Bernardo Giorgi.

We visited the Fonte delle Monache, the Sator Print studio, the museum of the Tartuca Contrada, the Fisiocritici Museum, the Briganti Library, and the museum of Santa Maria della Scala.

Students participated in the EternoPresente project at the Pinacoteca Museum, together with poet-in-residence Donna Stoneciper and the young musicians of the Franci Academy.

In October a mid-term group critique offered students input on their work underway.

As restrictions increased in the second half of the semester, students were able to focus on their individual studio projects at the Siena Art Institute.

The interdisciplinary Art & Society course is central to the mission of the Siena Art Institute (“SART”), and is required for all students.  The Fall 2020 course is co-taught by Lisa Nonken, Irene Lupi, and Bernardo Giorgi, and dove-tails with the other coursework taking place this semester in Digital Multimedia, Creative Writing, and Photography.