Emilie Eustace
Features Editor
Introduce yourself!
Hi, I am Etta DeMartino. I am a senior studio art major, communication studies minor. I am from Brooklyn, NY. As a Leo and middle-child, I have been waiting for this attention my entire life. It only took one week short of four years here to get the recognition I deserve!
What activities, clubs or organizations are you involved in on campus?
I am on the rugby team and also a member of Delta Theta Psi.
What has been your favorite event held during your time at Wooster? What is your favorite memory from your time here?
My favorite event has been Lip Sync. It has been very fun to book-end my experience at Wooster, as I had the chance to attend the event my freshman year from the audience’s perspective and then to participate in it during my senior year. It is fun to see the Greek groups excited to show off all of the work that they put into this event, from choreographing their performances to practicing and performing them in front of their peers. It is nice to see the bonds and siblinghood that all of the groups have had the chance to create through events like this. My favorite memory here was my opening reception for my I.S. exhibition. It was very special to see friends and family from on and off campus interacting with the project that my education at Wooster has culminated in; it is not often you get to have so many of the people you love in the same room showing up to support you.
Tell me about your I.S.
My I.S. is titled “HONK FOR MILK! A Nod to My Nostalgia for Not-Nowhere, Ohio.” It is inspired by the Ohio landscape and the nostalgia I feel driving through it. Although I grew up visiting my grandparents in Ohio, as someone born and raised in New York, I was not used to having constant access to the views of corn fields, cows and barns. Moving to Ohio for college allowed me to further explore my relationship with Ohio and what I find intriguing about the rural scenery. I have found a fascination with the landscape surrounding us here in Wooster, so I used clay and photography to translate my admiration for that landscape into art that opens others’ eyes to the beauty I see.
Who or what has been your greatest inspiration during your four years here?
Adele. During my sophomore year, there were rumors she would release music, so I held out hope that I would be surprised with a new song on a random Friday. Finally, during the fall of my senior year, she released an album that got me through my senior year. I will continue to blast it in my car wherever life may take me.
Amazing. What is your favorite Adele song?
This is my least favorite question to be asked. Before the new album, my answer would have been either “One and Only,” “Make You Feel My Love” (which was not written by Adele) or “Don’t You Remember.” But now, after the new album was released, “I Drink Wine” and
“To Be Loved” are tough competitors. Also, “Can’t Be Together,” which is a bonus track on Target’s exclusive CD, is a favorite.
What advice would you give to young studio art majors or people coming into Wooster with an interest in art?
Don’t see projects as strictly graded assignments or as something that someone else is telling you to do, but instead as opportunities to see what you are capable of as an artist and expand your artistic knowledge. Not everything that you make will be your most favorite piece of work, but you can always learn from the process.
How are you feeling about graduation happening so soon? Do you have any post-grad plans yet?
[Insert long pause on Etta’s end] Lots of mixed feelings. I thought that I was ready to be done with school, but now that there is a week left of classes, I do not know what I will do without school structuring my life. I am excited for what I can do next, but am hesitating to take the next moves because then reality will sink in. Although nothing is set in stone, I am hoping to move to Boston and work at an art center for adults with developmental disabilities or for an advertising agency where I would be able to exercise my interest in graphic design. Right now, I am just enjoying every moment of the to-be-unnamed-time left on campus where I am in close proximity to so many friends here in beautiful Ohio.
