As a painter with no time to paint, I’ve always felt a fascination with the works of others — the realism and intricacy of landscapes right next to the abstractions of modern art. I love being able to see the brush strokes and hours poured over canvases to capture a story. Even though I had passed the Hood Museum full of those very works so many times, I had not gotten the chance to go inside in my first couple terms at Dartmouth. I took it upon myself to learn more about the works and opportunities for involvement Dartmouth’s museum has for students and the local community.
Hood programs and events manager Sharon Reed discussed the museum’s approach to outreach programming and the efforts the Hood Staff takes to connect meaningfully with the community.
“We had an exhibition and program that focused on food and how that brings people together. [It] all ties back into culture, communication, history, social activism,” she said. “Our collection is more than 72,000 objects, and it’s very encyclopedic in nature. So it spans several continents and everything from ancient to present day.”
Along with the exhibitions geared toward outreach, individual staff members of the Hood are dedicated to fostering relationships with the community in their roles. Reed said museum educator Katie Coggin and assistant curator of education Brooke Friday work closely with K-12 teachers in the Upper Valley.
“[Friday] will go out, visit schools, and meet with educators where [she] tells them about the resources that are available at the museum for them to use, and how [the Hood Museum] can work with their classrooms,” Reed said.
Reed particularly values these school programs — ArtStart for grades 2-3 and Images for grades 4-6 — because of the longevity of the relationships built with individuals and the Hood Museum.
“When students start at a young age to come into the museum, they are more likely to feel welcome and familiar at a museum as … adults,” she said. “They will continue to be museum visitors and patrons and learn how to ask questions when they come across a work of art.”
Similarly, Dartmouth courses also offer interactions with the museum. For the first time this winter term, the College offered “Exploring Culture and Connection” as a wellness class, facilitated by the Office of Pluralism and Leadership. OPAL assistant director, Angelique Bouthot is teaching the course, which delves into the various components of food, art and tradition and what it means that they have cultural significance.
One evening, I ran into Bouthot’s class at the Hood Museum. I listened to the museum presenter’s speech about the painting they were observing — “Standard Station” by Edward Joseph Ruscha in an exhibition on American Pop. As part of a multimedia project that brought the class to the Hood, students must present in-class, students were encouraged to find a piece they liked and hone in on the details and its purpose.
For Zach Campbell ’22, the class was appealing due to the vast amount of topics covered over the course of the term. According to Campbell, the class’s experiential component also included guest speakers that range from farm workers in the Upper Valley to participants in Lunar New Year who have shared the traditions associated with the holiday.
“I definitely got the variety I was hoping for, which I’m very excited about,” he said.
For Bouthot, the Hood is an avenue to go beyond just class assignments. It serves as an opportunity for her to create something new with her students.
“Something that I really love about the Hood is that it’s personal … I can go with my friends, or I can go with a group of students as an event and work with them,” Bouthot said.
I experienced this personal aspect of the Hood Museum firsthand. Viewing the art in the museum is a uniquely personal and intimate experience for everyone — to be up close to another person’s creation and learn about their background.
On one of my visits to the museum, I met Lila Brown, a visitor from upstate New York who initially came to Dartmouth for a music concert. Each month, she goes to an art museum, often spending at least an hour looking through exhibits. The Hood Museum happened to be a stop on her itinerary that evening. She said she admired the digestibility of the Hood as a smaller, but impressive collection in the Upper Valley.
There is “not an overwhelming amount of stuff in any exhibit, I feel you can really pay attention to each piece, and they’re all really worth looking at so you don't sort of race by anything,” Brown said.
She said that her favorite section of the museum’s collection is the ancient exhibits on the first floor.
Beyond just exhibitions and curriculum, the Hood Museum is a home for varied events and visitors of all sorts. In collaboration with the Hood, the Museum Club has hosted “Alumni in the Arts,” a panel discussion geared towards students interested in careers in the arts. The event has featured guest speakers including Megan Fontanella from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
Similarly, Fashion Et Cetera., a student organization that aims to highlight diversity and sustainability in Dartmouth’s fashion community, hosted a runway show based on the American Pop exhibition in the Hood featuring student fashion designers and models.
Max Miller ’28, a newer member of Fashion Et Cetera., described the process of the club’s collaboration with the Hood. According to Miller, running a fashion show in a museum is not an easy feat. The club coordinated walkway length, timing of each model’s strut and technical specifications, with the Hood to ensure it respected the space and stayed true to both the Hood’s and club’s visions for the event.
“We had to stay under certain decibel ranges [so] as to not affect the art and the sculptures that were in the museum,” Miller said.
For Janessa Yan ’26, one of the four executive members of the organization, the event was a space for her creativity to flow and work with others sharing that same passion.
“It sort of gave me the creative space to imagine myself in the fashion design world,” she said.
While most Dartmouth students have visited the Hood at one point or another, many don’t know of all it has to offer. Next time you’re walking through the Hood’s lobby to go to the dining hall, take a stop. You never know what you may find.
