On Jan. 28, The Painters Society held a gallery night, showcasing Tufts artists’ visual work alongside performances from student-formed bands. The event was an extraordinary circumstance for student artists who were able to keep 100% of the profits gained from selling their art. This is rare, which makes it difficult for students to sell their work or pay for supplies to continue practicing their art forms. The event was held at a student's off-campus home and was filled wall-to-wall with beautiful art, jewelry, prints and encouraging students. This was The Painters Society’s second event, and as a club with only six members, the visible turnout was astounding.
The space featured a combination of both a creative and nurturing energy brimming through each artist and student present. The walls of the house were covered in student work covering various mediums of art, from oils to paint. Students were walking around viewing jewelry and buying printed tote bags and crocheted beanies. The space was filled with chatter about prices of handmade earrings and how each artwork was made, along with the inspiration behind each piece. One room was dedicated as a makeshift stage for bands to set up and perform covers and original pieces, and there was a congregation of students which had squeezed together to cheer on their peers who were singing and playing various instruments. Performances included cover bands and soloists. Regardless of what was played, the audience was always left wanting more. The energy was alive and well, and the support for Tufts’ artists was clearly flourishing.
Marisa McCarthy is a fourth-year student in Tufts’ SMFA combined degree program majoring in environmental studies and studio art, and the founder and president of The Painters Society. McCarthy found that the COVID-19 pandemic left the art community at Tufts disconnected and left a distance between student and faculty, along with lower- and upperclassmen. She established The Painters Society with Quinn Hoerner, a third-year BFA student at the SMFA after discussing some of these concerns.
The landscape of art education nationally has also been widely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Educators needed to adapt and learn how to teach online, but the traditional learning of visual art has been limited with a lack of materials and the inability to socially distance. Across the country, schools strangled by budget cuts dismantled their arts departments while emphasizing their core subjects.
Creating art is a highly interactive process, and we can’t look past the negative impact imposed by the virtual format of classes. Additionally, safely maneuvering in a studio is an important skill in the world of visual art; this practice was lost during the pandemic. Tufts’ initial COVID-19 restrictions also forced campus musical groups to find new methods of performance, or to stop performing altogether.
Even though The Painters Society is a visual art club, the intention behind the group is to amplify and connect student voices, according to McCarthy. The group reached out to multiple Tufts student bands to showcase their work.
In a message to the Daily, McCarthy reflected on this decision, writing about the importance of intersecting “their interests and talents” in the event. McCarthy exemplifies this in her studies at the SMFA, where she incorporates her interests in environmental studies and environmental justice into her artwork. This highlights the integrative and collaborative approach that McCarthy feels the art space at Tufts spotlights.
McCarthy also talked about the positive effect including student bands in the event had, noting how they “drew in a lot of people who might not have otherwise come to a gallery show,” and how it was an exciting way to expose both musicians and artists to the others’ work, truly making this a multidisciplinary event.
One band featured at the gallery night was Shooting Blanks, a cover band at Tufts that consists of sophomore Vince Kihaa on guitar and seniors Henry Kates on the drums, John Pender on guitar, Zach Lowenstein on cello and bass, and Mitch Brown as the lead vocalist. The band formed in the beginning of the fall 2022 semester, and — as a newly formed group — have found it difficult to find gigs. The Painters Society event was a great way to continue putting their name out there and express themselves through music.
The Painters Society is a club that truly wants to bridge the lack of community between student artists at Tufts. McCarthy remarked that her goal for the group was to create a community and space on campus where “students can share their work and collaborate freely.”
The group hopes to build on this momentum, with the end goal of hosting regularly occurring art sales and gallery nights around campus as well as branching out to collaborate with other student groups.
