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the U-m Arts Initiative

Behind the Scenes at the Smithsonian
LSA arts.umich.edu LSA arts.umich.edu

Behind the Scenes at the Smithsonian

The telling of United States history is an interminable task. Whose voices speak the loudest? Conversely, whose stories are buried in the archives? For history students Madeline Wise and Jewell Mason, and history alum Christopher Wilson (A.B. 1989), these questions form the backbone of their professional work. 

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The Visible World
LSA Gina Balibrera LSA Gina Balibrera

The Visible World

In his “Ways of Seeing” course, Professor Rattanamol Singh Johal introduces students to images of great works of art and architecture—the Parthenon, the Córdoba Mosque in Spain, Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Diptych, to name three. But before delving into materials, history, context, or technique, Johal asks students to note what they see.

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A Meditation in Blue at the Arb
Gina Balibrera Gina Balibrera

A Meditation in Blue at the Arb

An artist and American culture alum returns to Ann Arbor to focus on “a place within the place” that is her creative foundation.

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There Is Joy in the Woods
Gina Balibrera Gina Balibrera

There Is Joy in the Woods

Students transform the Arb into an art exhibit, guiding visitors with poetry and connection, and reminding us that “the earth is a living thing.”

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The Last Darkroom
Gina Balibrera Gina Balibrera

The Last Darkroom

In LSA’s Residential College photography program, students develop new perspectives, different approaches to academic inquiry, problem-solving skills—and, of course, powerful images.

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