On Friday, April 27, guests and students entered the Arcade Gallery at 618 S. Michigan Ave., where the typically stark white walls were transformed by the vibrant creativity of women and nonbinary artists featured in this year’s For Women, By Women exhibition, showcasing a rich array of artistic disciplines and forms amidst the lively sounds of greetings and live music.
Founded by photography faculty member Diana Vallera and photography alum Corinne Pompéy, the FWBW Art Gallery had its inaugural exhibition in April 2022, which featured only photography pieces about fashion and cinema.
Three years later, they have grown to work with 104 student artists across 25 disciplines, showing their dedication to expanding the exhibition’s scope and scale over the years.
Vallera emphasized the importance of spaces like the FWBW Art Gallery and building a community, especially since women and women-identified voices are not often seen in galleries.
“This is to lift our voices,” Vallera said. “Art always reflects different social contexts, the challenges, and it’s really powerful.”
Senior music business major and DJ Ayu Eini serenaded the guests with a live violin performance just before the program started. A long line was also formed to get a free live portrait session from junior illustration major Amaya Gusman, who is also part of the FWBW team.
Interim President and CEO Jerry Tarrer was present during the program and shared a message with all guests.
“I’m quite overwhelmed by the level of creativity and the caliber and quality of the work that comes out of our student bodies,” Tarrer said. “I hope you all have a deep appreciation for the commitment, the passion, of all of these young people as we celebrate women, the pillar of our societies.”
Vallera shared that this is the first year they have been able to run it with the support of the president’s office and have 15 student interns work alongside her.
“Usually, it’s run as a class or an independent study,” Vallera said. “We had over 200 students that applied to 15 positions, so it just recognizes the need for it.”
Vallera said that there’s a wonderful mentorship within the team, and it is also reflected in the show, where graduating students can get the same community mentorship before they set out into the real world.
Junior photography major Katia Jackson is one of the interns in charge of social media and outreach.
“I’m just really grateful to have been a part of it because these shows for women and nonbinary artists and folks that are not really as represented are so important, and they’re so needed,” Jackson said.
Jackson, who is also a contributing artist, said that it is important to keep spaces like this going at Columbia and beyond.
“Now is not the time to be discouraged,” Jackson said. “We got to keep going, and we got to keep taking up space and showing that we’re here and we’re not going to back down.”
Ana Lara, a junior fine arts major, was in charge of the exhibition’s logistics and event planning and also a contributing artist.
“It was amazing working with all these ladies,” Lara said. “I absolutely loved this experience, bringing happiness and creating a safe space for women and nonbinary artists.”
Lara said that this exhibition is a great opportunity for women of all backgrounds to have the creative freedom to express themselves.
“We all need a start, and some of us don’t have the resources that other, more successful people have, and we want to get there. So this is a good platform for people to do that,” Lara said.
The art installed in the exhibition is a collection of submissions they’ve received since the beginning of the semester.
“I think each year, even I’m surprised at what each group of artists brings,” Vallera said. “Each one of those artists is pushing us to think about something new, think about, ‘What does this art reveal? What do we need to consider to change?’ It’s always pushing us.”
Junior photojournalism major Maizie Hummel-Logee hopes that the people who see her work at the exhibition will see a little bit of themselves in it.
Hummel-Logee‘s photograph “Reaching Out,” which shows a hand holding a sign during a rally, is showcased in the exhibition.
“I think community building is a big part of a lot of what I do, and I see those protest spaces and rally spaces as a wonderful way to build that community and see the people there to support you in your immediate community,” Hummel-Logee said.
Hummel-Logee said that it was important for her to have a space to explore before having her work shown at other places outside the school.
“At least for me, it was important to have that experience in a place where I felt safe and like I could make mistakes and have support,” Hummel-Logee said.
With her grandmother and other family members present, junior illustration major Ella Sharba proudly showcased her works about culture and femininity.
“I chose the place where my Lola is from, who is here tonight, and I wanted to do something that was really playful and nostalgic and just happy,” Sharba said, talking about one of her pieces, “Tinikling,” a traditional Filipino dance.
Sharba said that what fuels her art is the sense of happiness. “I just want to convey a sense of, like, you see something, and it makes you happy,” she said.
In addition to visual art, the exhibit included many written pieces, one of which was by Aunna Beranek, a graduate student of strategic communication.
“Writing is something that you know you’re looking at words on a page, but it’s a medium that lives in your head,” Beranek said. “It’s the kind of creativity as a way to figure out what I’m feeling in the moment and express that to myself, and then it’s cool when I get to share that with an audience, and they get to feel the emotion alongside me.”
Beranek came to last year’s exhibition as a guest and left wanting to be part of it someday.
“I decided a year ago I would apply to be in this year’s. And here I am today. So, it is very full circle for me,” Beranek said.
Beranek emphasized that women play a huge part in society, but “they’re often the second thought,” so it was important for her to be part of spaces and to design spaces that put women in the center.
As the opening reception wrapped up, Vallera told the FWBW team that she is proud of the artists who courageously refuse to be silent during a time when there are attacks on basic human rights.
“You created this space and held it in the face of resistance to divisiveness,” Vallera said.
The exhibit is available for viewing through Manifest, May 16.
Copy edited by Trinity Balboa
