Author: alicemvarghese

Fall for Dance was my first experience of observing dance as an art form. Each dance was categorized by different styles, music, costumes, and mood. The Dorrance Dance Company especially stood out to me, and was my favorite performance of the night. The jazz music, the tapping of tap shoes, and the energy of the audience created and added to the impressiveness of the music used in the Dorrance Dance Company’s performance. The nuances of the movements of the dancers, was music in and of itself. I thought the jazz music added to the overall energy and aura of the dance moves, and evoked in the audience feelings of excitement and curiosity. Thus, I thought the music was extremely emotionally evoking and was a major reason as to why this specific performance was my favorite of the night.

The Rauschenberg exhibit was our first Macaulay seminar trip, and it was a great experience in order to start off the seminar. The lecture on the artist and his work by Alexis was very helpful, and it gave us an introduction before viewing the art pieces in person. The overall atmosphere of the museum added to the allure of the pieces it inhabited.

I found it very interesting how the artist used simple materials, even things we found on the street to create art. Although not everyone accepted Rauschenberg’s work to be art, his vision and overall purpose of creating art that was not mainstream for the time is significantly important when observing his pieces. When viewing this exhibit I was reminded of how random art is, and how art can be created from literally anything, as long as you have the imagination to do so.

Rauschenberg’s nonconformity to typical art pieces also helped me recognize art does not have to fit a certain mold in order to be accepted.

Calming, evoking, frightening, curiosity, peaceful, and impressive are a few words that instantly came to mind as I reflected on our trip to the Rubin Museum and though about what the fluidity of sound means in reference to the exhibit we experienced. Similar to the fluidity of sound extending from life to death in Tibetan Buddhism, the fluidity of sound we experienced seemed to transport us into new realm, a new unknown. The “Oms” voiced by various individuals, the sounds of the river, the wind, and the reflecting piece we analyzed on the 1^st floor and the Buddhist mantras heard throughout the space created such a natural and harmonious atmosphere for the art on display. The various sounds were manipulated in a way that was far from overpowering or distracting, and instead fluid, free, and comforting.

We presented our work on Chorus of Stones at the STEAM festival a few weeks ago. The chapter my group and I chose was Denial. We depicted Denial’s many forms with various photos and quotes. We used jail bars to depict the various political and social forms of denial as well.

In my opinion, the STEAM festival was a very nice ending to an amazing semester of observing and appreciating art in our city. It was so nice to see fellow Macaulay students we met at orientation once again, and the overall mood of the day was very encouraging and had a communal sense to it. I felt this festival was a great way to incorporate different projects, ideas, and different types of student under the banner of Macaulay. There were many interesting and stimulating conversations and it was really nice to see students from other campuses and share our experiences as Freshmen. Being able to observe the projects of the 3^rd seminar was also beneficial as it allows us to look forward to what is to come in our future seminar classes.

Turrandot was an interesting and exciting experience for me. As my first opera, it was everything I hoped it would be: grandiose, confusing, unreal, and spectacular. The music especially, drew my attention, as its intense beauty added to the already intense story. I found myself watching the orchestra in multiple instances throughout the opera, observing as the musicians quietly, yet powerfully captivated us with the sounds of their instruments.