Final semester exhibition at The National University of Arts

Final semester exhibition at The National University of Arts 

In The National University of Art, at the end of each semester, all of the studios are organizing an exhibition showcasing the artworks the students have been created during the entire semester.

The exhibitions are open to the public too 

In all of this period, most of the ateliers are open and not only the art students can visit the exhibitions, but everybody is welcomed to enjoy and explore the university's studios to get a glimpse of what's happening in each faculty and department. Speaking of that, Unarte has 3 main different faculties:

• The Faculty of Fine Arts

• The Faculty of Decorative Arts and Design

• Faculty of Art History and Theory

which are also divided into smaller departmens such as Painting, Sculpture, Graphics, Photography, Textile Design, Fashion, Ceramics, Restoration and so on. 

Until now I had the time and chance to see what's been happening in the painting, graphics and textile design studios, thus, the photographs included throughout the article show the exhibitions of these particular departments. 

When the exhibitions can be visited?

According to the university's website the semester exhibitions of The National University of Arts are open for visiting during the period 03.02.2020 - 14.02.2020. 

The master and the bachelor painting studios

I am currently doing a master degree in the Painting Department at the Faculty of Fine Arts and now, at the end of january, we cleaned the studio up and put together an exhibition, displaying most of the paintings we have been making throughout the semester. In "Atelier 34" we are only master students, thus our artistic concerns are directed towards the development of an own creative subject. 

In another thoughts, the workshop themes of the students following a bachelor degree are heading towards two main directions: studies after the human body or after a still life created in various techniques like charcoal, pencil, acrylic, oil colors or mixed media and creative compositions.

A very fun and interesting studio I've been in is the atelier of my former bachelor degree teacher. Here all of the walls have been the walls and ceiling have been upholstered with aluminum paper, which creates a very appealing and catchy effect to the studio.

The students were given the task to create a painting after various parts of the aluminum paper, thus looking at the wall displaying these images gets quite confusing but in a good way. The artworks are reflected on the ceiling, making the studio to appear even bigger. Plus, even if this is normally a painting studio, the students have been creating sculptures or objects as well. 

The graphics studios 

In the graphics studios, especially in those where are teaching the bachelor students, I notice that the main themes are focused around the human body: there are either elaborated drawing studies made of charcoal, pencil or watercolor or colorful quick sketches. It is known that in the first years of art studies, at our university, the students are practising drawing after the model, this being considered an important skill that needs to be trained and developed. 

On the other hand, the students who are in the second year or in the final years can work more on the creative parts, exporing different techniques, either traditional such as lithography or linogravure, or current ones belonging to the new medias. 

A very interesting theme that I have been seeing all the time graphics students working on has to do with a "primitive" technique of taking photographs, with a "stenopa" which is a a pinehole camera made from a shoe box or soda can, without a lens but with a tiny aperture - the pin hole - through which the light is entering in, projecting an upside down image in the box that also can be than capture on light sensitivity paper. I remember that is very funny to spot all of the graphic students when they are taking the photographs with the stenopa. 

The textile department exhibition of the master students 

In the Textile Department I am kindly impressed by the wide variety of the art creations and ways of using and working with different materials, textures, colors and arrangements. As far as I understand from my closest friend, which is also a student belonging to the Textile Design Department, the works that you can observe in the above images have been created by the students following a master degree and which are in the second year of study, so, more precisely, by those who are now focusing on developing their own ideas, meanings of representation, technique or use.

A plesant aspect of exhibiting the works by showing the process too

In the large screen printing studio are on display, I like how the displaying of the creations introduces me further more into the process of execution by showing, not only the finished products, but also plenty small samples of the materials which have been used sketches, mood boards, different possibilities of pattern’s printings, the behind research and sources of inspiration.

Everything seems very organized, clean clarified and well thought, a fact that, a fact that, in my opinion, matters when it comes to art.

Beauty or use?

Even if the field belongs to the decorative arts, I notice that the artworks are centered around the fine art part, this, the beauty, the concept, the harmony or the appearance seem to matter more than the utilization of the artistical objects. Now, I am not sure if this aspect is completely appropriate or not, but I guess it depends on each student intention or point of view, however, I can say from my experience, that in our university, talking in consideration every department and section, the reliance of the work should be also discuss.