Dartmouth can be a very busy place throughout the school year, but balancing academics with extracurriculars and other activities can help provide a bit of relaxation. One of the most popular ways to spend free time at Dartmouth is taking advantage of the many fine art opportunities available to students.
The biggest and most obvious attraction is the Hood Museum of Art, one of the largest college art museums in the United States and the oldest continually-operating museum in North America. In 1985, the award-wining postmodern museum building was completed, giving a permanent home to the College's large collection that dates to as far back as 1772.
The Hood currently has a collection of over 60,000 objects, including paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures, mixed media and other cultural pieces from an expansive range of regions and historical eras. The various departments include Asia and Near East, Africa, Americas, Europe and Oceania collections, as well as a contemporary art collection.
The centerpiece of the museum's permanent collection is the Assyrian Reliefs, taken from the Northwest Palace of Ashurnasirpal II at Nimrud. The massive panals date back to the ninth century BCE, and were given to the museum in 1856 through the efforts of a Dartmouth graduate and professor of the College.
Other highlights of the permanent collection include a painting from the Italian Renaissance painter Perugino, titled "Virgin and Child with Saints." The museum also boasts a contemporary painting by abstract expressionist Mark Rothko named "Orange and Lilac over Ivory."
The Hood also offers many other works by world-famous artists such as Pablo Picasso, Georgia O'Keeffe, Rembrandt, Albrecht Drer, Francisco Goya, Claude Lorrain, Pompeo Batoni, Elisabeth Vigee-Le Brun and Alfred Sisley. There are also extensive collections of African art and antiquities from Asia and the Near East.
On top of its fabulous permanent collection, the Hood also holds approximately eight special exhibitions throughout each year, as well as two teaching exhibitions each term. This year's exhibits will include shows on both Egyptian Antiquities and Native American Art at Dartmouth, as well as an exhibition featuring Jose Clemente Orozco and Jackson Pollock.
The Hood also places a heavy focus on its position as a teaching museum. You will most likely visit the Hood for a class at some point during your four years here, but if you don't, take advantage of the programs and events such as gallery talks, workshops and lectures.
Other places on campus to enjoy the visual arts are the Jaffe-Friede and Strauss Galleries, and the AREA Art Gallery.
The Jaffe-Friede and Strauss Galleries are located in the Hopkins Center and function as an exhibition space for guest artists, faculty members, students and alumni. The exhibitions tend to be more modern, featuring a variety of media including painting, drawing, sculpture, printmaking, photography and installation. The galleries' vibe is casual and accessible it's easy and enjoyable to stop by to admire the art for a few minutes.
The AREA Art Gallery, a student-run art gallery located in the Top of the Hop, was established in 2002 as a way to enable and encourage Dartmouth student artists to display their art in a professional and public setting. The group usually holds one exhibition each term, displaying works based on selected themes. The exhibitions often focus on issues facing Dartmouth, as well as the wider world. Past shows have included "Secret Societies Gender Show" and "Art and the Politics of Oppression."
There are also many places where you can make your own art, which include the Claflin Jewelry Studio, the Woodworking Shop and the Davidson Ceramics Studio. All of these student workshops can be used by Dartmouth students, require no previous experience and are available on a drop-in basis during studio hours.
The Claflin Jewelry Studio is located in the basement of the Hopkins Center. The staff consists of professionals as well as trained student instructors who provide assistance. Several times per term, the studio also offers short classes taught by guest artists.
The Woodworking Shop is located next door to the Jewelry Studio in the basement of the Hopkins Center. The shop is run by professional craftspeople and offers instruction in all aspects of woodworking including furniture design, cabinetmaking, wood turning and carving. Some students use it for studio art and engineering classes, while others use it simply to build furniture for their dorm rooms.
The Davidson Ceramics Studio is located off campus, across the river in Vermont. Students can work with clay or porcelain, and all skills such as hand building, using the potters' wheel, glazing and firing are taught and completed on site.
If you have too much homework to participate in this opportunities, study in the reserve corridor in the basement of Baker Library, where you will be surrounded by Jose Clemente Orozco's famous mural "The Epic of American Civilization" while you hit the books.
