Libba Smith
A&E Editor
What makes something beautiful will always be a hotly contested debate, but a new organization at the College of Wooster is adding another voice to the mix. Project Gallery, a completely student-run non-profit organization, is opening its first show next week with a focus on changing perceptions of feminine beauty.
Project Gallery was started by Karlena Luz ’15 with the simple goal of initiating dialogue about social issues through art. The organization has big dreams of becoming an international non-profit, but operations are first taking off here at Wooster. Modeled after other successful student-run groups, Project Gallery hopes to build a following among the student body here before eventually spreading to other campuses, taking on company sponsors and launching around the world. In addition to its goal of fostering honest dialogue, the organization hopes to help students develop skills and connections that will help them find jobs after graduation.
Project Gallery’s first photograph exhibition, “Differing Perspectives on Beauty,” focuses on societal conceptions of beauty. The mainstream media give us one notion of beauty, yet the concept varies drastically around the world. Luz believes that true beauty is conveyed through honesty in emotion.
“I wanted to give light to the concept of beauty,” said Luz. When the face is honest, you see it in the facial expression. If the emotion you’re presenting is real, and you are being true to yourself, that’s beautiful.”
In order to capture this “honesty,” a typical photography session to capture images for this exhibition is more than simply taking photos; it is also an interview between artist and subject. The photographer asks questions in order to prompt a variety of emotional responses from the subject, from happiness to sadness, capturing honest emotion in the subject’s expression. The photos focus on the emotional weight of a variety of experiences, from childhood to life at Wooster, and show the beauty in honest emotion and reflection. Luz has worked with a team of three other photographers to create this exhibition, which captures a variety of Wooster students.
The gallery will open on Monday, April 15 at noon in Babcock Dining Hall. In order to facilitate dialogue among students, Project Gallery will be hosting several discussion panels to talk about viewers’ responses to the photographs. There will be a Men’s Discussion Panel on Tuesday, April 16, which will allow male students to convey their reactions to the photographs, followed by a Women’s Discussion Panel on Wednesday, April 17 and an Artists’ Panel on Thursday. All panels begin at 7 p.m. in the Babcock Lounge. The gallery will be taken down on Friday, April 18 at noon.
In its early stages, Project Gallery is looking for any and all students to simply bring their talents and interests to the table and find their niche within the organization. Email KLuz15@wooster.edu or EDonato16@wooster.edu to become involved.