STASH This!

The Crimson sat down with four artists featured in STASH, to hear their thoughts about contemporary art, porno magazines and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers underwear

Sarah Ramer ’03

Folklore & Mythology

THC: What was the object you chose to put in the bag? Why?

SR: Actually, I put two fortune cookies in the bag, still wrapped. Truthfully, they were something I knew I could give away and not mind not getting back. And my sister used to paint fortune cookies, so she would approve.

THC: Are the visual arts underrepresented on campus?

SR: Yes—the performing arts are definitely more visible. I don’t feel like there aren’t many opportunities on campus—people have complained that if you’re not a hardcore artist, you can’t get into a lot of VES classes, and there are such huge time commitments, like in the photo lab.... With performing arts, there’s a set time and place, but with visual arts you can just wander in and browse around.

Brian K. Lee ’03

Anthropology

THC: What did you think of the show? What were some of your reactions to the objects that other people put in their bags?

BKL: I really liked the show a lot. I think it was fascinating to see what others put, stuff I would never have chosen myself, like filling the bag with water, or Mighty Morphin Power Rangers underwear, for example. It was really interesting to see what other people found stimulating, like what they chose on a fancy almost, or a whim; it may have been just a momentary decision to put something in the bag.

THC: Are you active in the arts? Describe your experience being part of this show.

BKL: It was definitely a first-time experience for me...I only consider myself an artist in the loosest sense, since I play violin and piano, so this was the first time I’d even been asked to act as an artist in that capacity, to find something visually stimulating. It’s was a very interesting concept, and different mode of thinking for me. It was a really unique, original concept—there’s never really anything like this on the Harvard campus.

Julie S. Wecsler ’03

VES & East Asian Studies

THC: What did you place in your Ziploc bag?

JSW: I put in an orchid that had fallen...I also squeezed out two different colors of paint from tubes that were lying on my desk close by, that I thought would make the most visually stimulating point...I also do Chinese watercolor painting, so that’s where I got the idea.

THC: Do you think that the objects in Ziploc bags, arranged in a room, constitute art?

JSW: Absolutely. I think it’s totally legitimate.

THC: Why?

JSW: This is a hard question. It’s a good way to involve a lot of different people that might not necessarily participate, and it’s interesting to bring everyone together in that sense. The show also challenges what you would usually want to look at. Especially when it’s abstract art, not immediately recognizable; it’s definitely easier to recognize skill when looking at life-size portraits, for example, but it’s a much tougher call when you’re looking at something without feeling confident that you know exactly what you’re looking at.

THC: Do you think that anyone—artist or amateur—could go to the show and appreciate it equally?

JSW: There are definitely problems with making art approachable, especially with contemporary and conceptual art like STASH. It helps to have a...base [of] knowledge, a reference to what you’re looking at and what has previously been done in the area. So I think it’s harder for someone who’s completely unfamiliar to look at the exhibit with an open mind, and I think it’s a more unusual show for Harvard.

J. Cody Carvel ’03

Afro-American Studies and Social Studies

THC: What did you choose as your “visually interesting” object?

CC: I had these three rocks in my office at The Advocate, and one day I just glued this picture that I had ripped out of a magazine onto them. I mean, I was just playing with glue.

THC: What was the picture of?

CC: Actually, I’m pretty sure it was taken from a porno magazine, but you can only see the person’s face. When I was deciding what to pick, I just thought, “this is weird, you can have it.”

THC: What did you think of the arrangement of the exhibitit?

CC: I thought it was cool, different. It was fun. Its layout was really cool—you know, crap all over the place. It liked the way it was more interactive than a regular art exhibition; you’re not just walking around the room looking at paintings. It was a much more explorational experience.

THC: What’s your opinion on the “negative” premise of STASH? Is attempting to exhibit student art it is a frustrating process?

CC: I think the negativity is a commentary on student artists’ perception of their own work, and the reluctance to put their emotions on the line. That’s why it’s so hard to get submissions to students’ shows and exhibits.