Art students looking to open gallery

By Richard Nieva

For now, art students keep their work stored away in lockers or the painting room of the Art Building. But a few students are doing everything they can to get their art up in a gallery -- even if they have to open one themselves.

Santa Clara's Art Club is trying to find an unused space close to campus to convert into a permanent student art gallery, said Kelly Detweiler, chair of the art and art history department.

Hundreds of pieces are produced by students each year that are certainly sellable, he said, adding that many don't get the exposure they should.

The student gallery would be a valuable asset to Santa Clara's aspiring artists, who would learn through experience they cannot get in a classroom, said senior Brittany Storey, who got the idea to start the gallery after reading an article in ARTnews magazine about a woman who opened a similar gallery in New York.

At the gallery, students can learn how to hang pieces, publicize their work and present themselves to the community, said Storey.

"It's getting their name out there, because it's so hard to do," she said. "To become an artist is almost impossible now, and you need all the help you can get."

Giving students the chance to sell their work is a major advantage of the project, said Detweiler. The retail element is an important part of the art world, he said, pointing out that art is a commodity.

"It's a really healthy thing for them to be willing to get rid of something because it implies that they have a future of making more," said Detweiler.

Storey's idea is actually modeled after a one-time gallery held in 2006 in a university-owned property on Franklin Street next to Henry's Fresh Mexican Grill.

Santa Clara students exhibited and sold their work to a crowd of more than 100 people at the gallery's opening.

The property, nicknamed "the yoga studio" because of its former use, serves as a storage unit and external work space for Information Technology, which uses it about once a year to replace around 700 computer systems, said Carl Fussell, director of IT.

IT helped out by moving out of the building while the one-time gallery occupied the space, which was no easy task, said Detweiler.

Storey and Lai-San Malmquist, who heads the computer replacement operation, are talking about possible dates for another student gallery opening in the spring. At this point, nothing permanent can be arranged.

Fussell said IT will probably use the property for one more year before they leave.

"We may not have a choice in the matter. Those are rental properties that are owned by the university, and we've had folks trying to move us out of there in past years," said Fussell.

And though Storey's main goal is to have a gallery open year round, she also remains realistic, and said she would be happy if the Art Club could start something that holds events a few times during the year, or even once a year.

Storey said the impacts of a student gallery are beneficial to everyone involved.

"Santa Clara could get more recognition for what their students are producing. And students could get more recognition for what they're doing," she said.

When the art department held the gallery two years ago, it tried to work out a way for students to pay a commission to the university when a piece was sold, as a form of payment for using the space.

But complications arose because many of the art students were seniors, and things had to be straightened out after they graduated, said Detweiler.

"At this point, it's better off not trying to see it as a money-making venture for the university or the department, but as an avenue for the students to sell their work," Detweiler said.

One benefit of making the gallery a long-term project would be having the time to figure out a good system, he said.

The student gallery would also draw more attention to the hidden-away art department, said Storey.

Art students are looking into alternative routes for opening the gallery, which would entail fundraising and writing proposals for grants.

Contact Richard Nieva at (408) 554-4546 or rnieva@scu.edu.