Arts Office Sponsors Pop-Up Workshops to Alleviate Stress

The Office for the Arts aimed to alleviate mid-semester student stress—some caused by dining hall closures and the strike of dining hall workers—with a series of free "pop-up" events this weekend that included workshops on subjects ranging from pottery to dance.

The series comprised of four events. The first three—“Pinch Pot Pop-Up!,” “Get your KNIT Together,” and “Expressive Motion!”—took place on Friday and attracted more than a dozen students each. Saturday’s scheduled event, “Cardio Dance Plus!,” did not occur because of low attendance. Each workshop, which also had free food, featured a trained instructor who offered students the opportunity to experiment with crafts or performances.

Cathleen D. McCormick, the Director of Programs at the OFA, said she organized the pop-up series with the aim of creating a creative common space for students affected by the ongoing strike of dining services workers.

“A lot of the dining halls are closed, and students aren’t seeing each other as much as they normally are,” she said. “It seemed like a good idea to put together some sort of community-building event.”

Thomas Lee, the OFA’s Director of Learning from Performers and Communications, also hoped the events could “foster community” in a time of stress.

“We hope this would help students at a time that is really stressful, not just with the dining hall situation, but with coursework and exams and the election,” he said, referring to an ongoing strike of dining services workers.

McCormick said she wished to give students who lacked exposure to the arts in high school a chance to try something new while also making sure that more experienced artists were still engaged. She emphasized the importance of the arts as an outlet for personal reflection.

“[Students] have so many things going on all the time that I think it’s actually good for the gray mass to focus on one thing, even if it’s just for an hour,” she said.

Amy G. Zhao ’18, who attended the pinch pot event, described the event as a chance to participate in activities that are not typically offered on campus.

“I’ve always been interested in ceramics since middle school, so my blockmate and I decided this would be a fun event to go to,” she said. “I really did appreciate that the OFA is trying their best to host these sort of mini workshop events for students during this time of strike.”

Zhao expressed a desire to see more of these arts events throughout the year.

“It’s something I would continue even after the strike period has resolved,” she said.