Self-Expression As Community: The GS Arts & Research Collective

Founded by Assistant Dean of Students Kristy Barbacane during the 2021-22 academic year, The GS Arts & Research Collective showcases GS-student created art and research across an impressive range of media and topics. This diversity is reflected in the 2022-23 selections, currently on display at the GS Lounge and Academic Resource Center (ARC), which feature a plethora of music compositions, films, and performance-based submissions. Three GS students shared the stories behind their artwork and their thoughts on the value of the Collective as individual artists and members of the GS community.

Victoria Daylor ‘23PBPM

Postbac Premed

I have been a dancer since the age of two, eventually leading me to study contemporary dance performance at the Boston Conservatory. Dancing has been a constant in my life, an outlet for processing ideas, emotions, and sensations. In recent years however, I started dealing with chronic injury and illness. This made my career increasingly difficult, but also brought me closer to my other lifelong passion for medicine.

I found out about the GS Arts & Research Collective in the weekly GS newsletter. The call for artist submissions caught my attention. When first joining the GS community, I felt my life was divided in two: my new peers know me through science, equations, and an academic environment, but anyone prior knew me for my insatiable love of movement and dance. The opportunity to merge these defining features of my life felt incredibly important, not only for people to (hopefully!) enjoy the art, but to remind myself to bring my movement knowledge into my future.

I submitted three short dance films, each created in Acadia National Park, Maine: “Angelina” is a dreamy queer romance film that may simultaneously break and mend your heart, “See You When You Appear” follows the relationships we cherish as they come and go along our path, and “Juniper” is a sequel film reflecting on sisterhood, memory, and land. These films are from Wilder Project, which I have been working with for about seven years as a dancer and assistant director. Wilder Project's pieces are centered in nature and deeply cherish humanity. Collaborating with Holly Wilder has been an integral part of my life, and I am thrilled to share these pieces with the GS community. Truly, the exhibits in the GS Lounge activate the vibrancy of the space and remind me how brilliant GS students are. Seeing how my peers incorporate their passion for medicine, painting, photography, etc. with the demand of courses is inspiring to say the least!

Jessica Roman ‘24GS

Undergraduate

I am a first-generation transfer music student, and at GS I have had the opportunity to participate in many artistic things. From being involved in Columbia musicals, to having my music compositions premiered, GS has helped me grow artistically. The GS Arts & Research Collective is also a part of that. When I learned about the GS Arts & Research Collective through the GS newsletter, I was just finishing my composition "Invisible Strings" and I felt called to put that piece out there. When learning that work could be exhibited, I knew I wanted to participate in the initiative to share my message with the community and have the experience of being part of an art exhibition.

"Invisible Strings" is a piece about the moment a woman wakes up to realize she's been captured in a place where Strings control their prisoners. Inspired by a poem by Fernanda Carvalho—my collaborator and fiancée—-the piece essentially talks about the experience women go through when realizing everything they might be told they should do comes from a patriarchal agenda. Some were eight years old, and others were 59 when it happened. No matter the age, that experience is liberating and yet overwhelming. I wanted to compose a piece that brings a spotlight to that specific moment in life and creates awareness of the inequality and the overall struggle that the label "woman" can carry on a human being.

When it comes to sharing my work, I struggle a lot. After all, everything artistic I do comes from a vulnerable place. I decided to participate in the Collective because I wanted to get out of my comfort zone and put this piece out in the world for people who can relate to it. I think the initiative of having these exhibitions for students gives a voice to emerging artists at GS, and it is an amazing opportunity to prepare and gain the courage to submit to more exhibitions.

Kerianne Liebman ‘24GS

Undergraduate

I found out about the GS Arts & Research Collective because I saw it posted on the Columbia GS events page. It seemed like a great way to share work and connect, and I was impressed with the open call for various works and mediums. 

I specifically chose to submit all travel photography. I am not someone who has traveled extensively but I am very grateful for the places I have been. One of the photographs was of a mountain in Washington State. It was a lucky moment to be able to capture it. I find it really grounding and centering to revisit the moment and wanted to share it. I also included polaroids taken in Minneapolis. The photos I took were actually with a borrowed camera from someone I had just met at a conference I was attending. The emptiness of the city on a Sunday was surprising to me and I wanted to show how quiet it felt. Somehow these photos just worked and were hopeful in themselves, especially after a few years marked by isolation. The song I wrote and submitted is also in-part about the opportunity and longing for travel.

I feel that this kind of initiative is important because it provides a space for students to connect and collectively share a diverse body of work. It's a great way to get involved on campus and to share personal projects and research. For myself, I found that it also encouraged me to go through old photographs, songs, etc. most of which are several years old and had not been shared, and it gave me the opportunity to share them. The sense of community that comes from creating and sharing something is valuable in itself. I feel a lot of care went into putting this together by the organizers and I appreciate being a participant.

For more information about the application cycle for the next round of the Collective, opening this spring, stay tuned to the GS Newsletter!