Dartmouth does not usually attract a student body that is especially artsy. Located far from major galleries and museums, our College certainly does not claim to be an oasis of visual art. Some students, faculty and administrators, however, do work hard to elevate the role of art at Dartmouth, connecting the College to contemporary art currents and thereby saving Hanover from becoming an artistic wasteland.
This summer, the Dartmouth community is home to Wenda Gu's "united colours" and "the green house," two artworks recently commissioned by the College, which are made mostly of human hair.
"United colours," which is on display in the Berry Corridor, is a multicolored braid of human hairwith metal plates inscribed with the names of all members of the United Nations. "The green house," which hangs in Baker Library's Main Hall, is composed of panels of hair with the words "education" and "advertises" rendered in bright green.
The highly visible works have elicited numerous responses. According to the book of visitor comments, some thought the work was "really great." Others lauded it as "a very new and different idea." The most popular reaction, however, seemed to be "disgusting!!!" Gu's works have even inspired a Facebook group called "Students for a Bald Baker."
But what Gu's installations may lack in popular appeal, they deliver in impact. They are prominently placed, thought-provoking and expand engagement with art from small circles of enthusiasts to the general campus population.
In choosing the site for Gu's work, the College has avoided the same pitfalls that have overcome Orozco's "Epic of American Civilization." The famed murals, considered one of the great artistic accomplishments of the twentieth century, are unfortunately stuck in the empty, inhospitable and permanently dark reserve corridors of the Library.
The Hood Museum chose to showcase Gu's art in one of the highest-traffic locations on campus, forcing students to see and interact with the work.
Daily, about 150 people visit the Hood, but about 4,000 enter the Library.
Juliette Bianco '94, the assistant director of the Hood, emphasizes that "art outside of museums has a real role to play in the intellectual education of the campus. You shouldn't have to seek art out" ("Gu project is College's first commission since Orozco murals," May 30).
The installations are site specific, with placement, size and form all carefully integrated to craft the work's message by manipulating the space around it. Students have no choice but to notice and interact with the art, passing under the panels of "the green house" while heading to class and circumnavigating the colorful braids of hair on the way to the Berry corridor BlitzMail terminals.
According to the exhibit's information brochure, the installations are intended to "spark transformative moments in our audiences, specifically around the making and presenting works of art." The Dartmouth community was engaged in both of these processes. The hair for the project was gathered through campus- and community-wide hair drives, attracting the attention of the students as well as providing them with an opportunity have part of their body turned into art.
The thought-stimulating nature of the work reinforces its impact. When Orozco's work was commissioned in 1932, President Hopkins "hoped that the unsettling Orozco murals would represent the first in a long line of provocative, outstanding works of public art at Dartmouth College" ("Gu project is College's first commission since Orozco murals," May 30). Gu's art, which meets all of these goals, is an improvement on the idea that fueled the Orozco mural.
At first sight, the unusual choice of medium strikes a visceral reaction in the viewer and challenges him to consider the significance of the medium and, subsequently, the underlying message of the work. The viewer is then likely to communicate his response to fellow students, thereby generating dialogue on contemporary art. As human hair installations go, Gu's artworks offer students important exposure to less-mainstream art forms and alternative media.
Considering all the great ways to spend time in the sun, spending time at the library is probably not a priority for most of us this summer. But if nothing else, it is a good place to come cool off from the heat and ponder -- if not necessarily admire -- the new art.
