Dartmouth students are probably not aware that the Night Security Guard at the Hood Museum creates art in his spare time. Or that the Kiewit Computing technicians have a country/blues/bluegrass band that rocks out, or that the Development Office has its very own improvisational comedy group.
College employees from all over campus had a chance to display various forms of artwork at the Employee Arts Festival yesterday in Collis Common Ground. Dartmouth faculty and staff showed another side of themselves as they put their various works, from intricate beaded jewelry to striking digital photographs, on display.
The exhibition came about through the efforts of the Office of Human Resources, who coordinated the event as a way to bring the Dartmouth community together. The Office sent out BlitzMail messages to campus employees, offering them a chance to submit their artwork and exhibit it in the Festival.
There will be an ongoing exhibition online throughout the year for employees who were not able to submit their work.
More than 35 employees contributed to the festival, which lasted from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Students, faculty and employees milled in and out, enjoying live music, short films and improv comedy as well as the various artwork.
James Burger, the Communications Manager of the Office of Human Resources, said that it was a great chance for Dartmouth community members to learn about the talent of their co-workers.
"Everyone who has participated has said that they have been overwhelmed and awed with the works of their peers," he said, and added that he hopes to make the event a multi-day, multi-location event in the future. "Hopefully we will be able to incorporate students as well," said Burger.
Although the works that were exhibited were not for sale, each artist could be contacted individually by interested patrons.
The response from the audience proved very positive. "It's great to see my co-workers here and see the work that they've been producing," Stuart Lopez '81, who works in Administrative Computing, said. Two employees who work in the Sciences commented that they were extremely impressed by the works they had just observed.
Caitlin Potratz '07, after studying a digital photograph of water lilies submitted by a medical professor, remarked that it was interesting to see how each artist could "specialize in one area and be an artist in another."
The exhibit can be seen online at www.dartmouth.edu/~hrs/artworks.
