Sights And Sounds: Explorations In The Arts
Sights And Sounds: Explorations In The Arts
By Amy Chmielewski
The word research generally evokes images of lab coats and petri dishes, or archives filled with musty volumes. Rarely would one associate research with the final creative product—a polished musical performance, finished script, or exhibited work of art. But research plays a vital role in the fine and performing arts, as demonstrated by the recent activities of five professors in the College of Fine Arts. The fruits of their labor only appear effortless. Careful scholarship, planning, and practice are needed to ensure that a finished work of site-specific art suits its environment, for instance, or that the performance of a long-unheard baroque composition sounds exactly as the composer had intended.
- Art Meets Computer ScienceAs scientists hasten to assess the impact of climate change on our physical environment, scholars in the humanities and the arts have begun to ponder how global warming will affect human culture. Such is the inquiry posed by Surge, a collaborative multimedia artwork by Deborah Cornell, associate professor of art in the School of Visual Arts, and her husband Richard Cornell, associate professor of composition in the School of Music.
- Bringing Baroque Music to LifeWhen Martin Pearlman joined the faculty of the College of Fine Arts as professor of music and director of the Historical Performance program in 2002, he offered the College more than his expertise as a renowned conductor. Boston Baroque, an acclaimed orchestra and chorus founded by Pearlman in 1973, also joined the School of Music as a resident professional ensemble. This innovative collaboration allows graduate students in the Historical Performance program to work alongside professional musicians.
- Beautifying the BU Campus: Site-Specific ArtObservant visitors to the Boston University campus will notice works of art in surprising places: a painting of a swimmer in the hallway of the Fitness and Recreation Center, pinhole photographs dotting the Photonics Center. For these unexpected touches of creativity, we can thank Hugh O'Donnell, professor of painting in the School of Visual Arts, as well as the students in his Site-Specific Art class.
- Theatre as Laboratory: Developing New PlaysAccording to Jim Petosa, professor and director of the School of Theatre, students of all disciplines might view the University as a large laboratory—a place where new knowledge is gained through experience and experiment. “Works of art have to gestate,” he states, “but not in a library.” When creating a new play, a writer should ideally have an opportunity to see the work-in-progress staged. Just as researchers in the sciences refine their hypotheses through repeated experimentation, playwrights can best revise their works after seeing them performed. Petosa hopes to make the development of new plays a major part of the School of Theatre's mission by working closely with emerging playwrights.
