The trip that my high school French class took to the Pulitzer expo of Gordon Matta-Clark’s artwork with the French students was amazing. Not only was the art eye-opening and interesting, but the French tour guides were just awesome. As we walked through the modern building looking at Matta-Clark’s work, the tour guides were speaking very rapid French to us, asking us occasionally “Tu comprends?”, you understand? I think my favorite piece of artwork was the Garbage Wall, made of trash from the city to show what kinds of things people do and do not throw away when their resources are limited. The tour guides asked us “Qu’est-ce que vous voyez dans le mur?”, what do you all see in the wall? And we would reply with the French words we knew of objects we could identify like “une bouteille”, a bottle, “une télé cassé”, a broken television, and “des chaussures”, shoes. I couldn’t quite get the word “chaussures” out and instead kept saying “chaussettes”, socks. Our French tour guide just giggled at me and made me “répétez”, repeat after him. Between the fascinating art that focuses on depopulated, impoverished areas in inner cities, and the fast-talking, friendly tour guides that gave me a much more real idea about what traveling to France would be like, my day was made at the Pulitzer Art Museum.–Kelly Hainz, High School Senior

The Gordon Matta-Clark exhibit gave my French IV students a new perspective on man’s impact on the environment.  We were able to discuss recycling efforts within our homes and community, the boundaries of socio-economic factors on our urban communities and how racism can impact negatively a struggling urban environment.Humans love to build, sometimes without forethought and planning.  Matta-Clark challenges us to look back in retrospect at abandoned buildings and then contemplate the future fate of urban communities.  Not having been exposed to many genres of art at their young age, my students loved this non-traditional exhibit and were able to make an immediate connection to the artist and to his work.Having Lindenwood’s French students and instructor there to explain the collection was an added bonus.  Talking to the exchange students was a highlight for my class. In preparation for the visit, we had spent the previous week learning the vocabulary and viewing the artwork. The actual visit went smoothly, and I could tell that my students were able to understand most of the explanation as well as follow the discussion.  Nancy Durbin provides a wonderful community service with this project and I hope that more high schools take advantage of this opportunity.–Jane Zeiser, French teacher at Francis Howell Central High School

I am a student from France studying at Lindenwood University, and I am participating in the French Program at the Pulitzer this January as part of an intersession course. We learned to give tours, in French, of the Gordon Matta-Clark exhibit. We then give the tours to area high school students and their teachers. When I chose this class I did not know who Gordon Matta-Clark was but I was really interested in the idea of working with American high school students. It was a chance for me to meet new people and also share our knowledge about art. At first I was scared—I did not understand all the meaning of Matta-Clark’s work and I didn’t think I’d ever become confident explaining it to students.  With time and discussion with my partner, Emma, I learned new things and I also changed my view point about his art. Read the rest of this entry »

Nancy Durbin, Professor of French–This is the fourth time that a group of my French majors has participated in the Pulitzer French Project. Every time, I’m delighted with the results. This is such a unique opportunity for my students to use their French in a real-life setting, and through the program they learn to speak in French about something new and different-art and art history. I love watching them, through the training, evolve into a position of confidence in talking about the works in the show. It is charming as well to see them interact with the younger students to whom they give the tours. This is a particularly rich experience for those of my students who are planning to become French teachers. Future French teachers or not, though, they all love participating in the program and grow so much from it, both linguistically and culturally.

Rebecca Bernhardt, student–I am a senior at Lindenwood University, studying French and International Studies. I had the opportunity this January to take a class at the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts. The course involved learning about the current exhibition in English and in French, and giving tours in French to local high school French classes.  This is the third time I have taken this class, and I love it more every time. Every time I am given the opportunity to learn about art history, one of my favorite things to study, in French, a language I love. I always look forward to being at the Foundation.  Every time I come to the Foundation, the play of light on the walls and reflections on the watercourt fascinate me.  The current exhibition is wonderful, using the natural lighting in the Foundation to show Old Masters’ works. Having just come back from a semester in France, I could easily visualize the original settings in which these works were created to be shown–old castle halls, ancient chapels in cathedrals, grandes galléries of palaces and mansions.  I love spending time at the Foundation and interacting with the art culture of St. Louis. I look forward to continuing to bring my friends and family to the Foundation to share this experience with them. 

Beth Doyle, student–I am in my fourth year at Lindenwood and studying to become a French teacher, so I have really enjoyed participating in the French Program for the past few years. It has been a way for me to improve my French and learn about art, while also meeting local French teachers who can give me advice. It has given me the chance to teach a group of high school students and a taste of what I have to look forward to in my future career.

Raissa Machado, student–Having the opportunity to participate in the French Project is great! I not only got to know more about art but also was involved with this great foundation. Before taking this course (we take this as a class during our January intersession at Lindenwood), I had never heard of the Pulitzer Foundation and now, I have had the chance to be part of it, even though it was just for a short time. It has been a great opportunity to practice my French. I feel very blessed for having this opportunity and I wish I could do this again.

Emma Odenwald, student-I really enjoyed the opportunity in January to participate in the Pulitzer Foundation of the Arts French Program. It was a nice change from the usual French grammar classes. I also really liked the overall exhibition of Old Masters. It was nice that there was a lot to say about all of the works. Since they weren’t abstract works, it was easy to talk about them in French. This was a great way to practice my French while enjoying art at the same time. All of the high school groups that came were nice to give tours to. Giving these tours reminded me of my high school French class getting a tour of the St. Louis Art Museum. I would definitely consider participating in the Pulitzer French program again.

Under the supervision of Dr. Nancy Durbin, Professor of French at Lindenwood University, students are trained to give tours in French of the Pulitzer’s current exhibition, Portrait/Homage/Embodiment. This training culiminates in a series of French tours with area high school students. It is a rich experience for both the university and the high school students, as they learn to talk about something new in French, and have an opportunity to use their language skills. The high school students also get a chance to ask the university students about majoring in French and studying abroad.

While training for the tours, the Lindenwood students have compiled a substantial vocabulary list, as well as short descriptions of the works, in French. Groups that participate in the project will receive these materials, as well as the exhibit catalogue, well in advance of their visit so that they will have a chance to familiarize themselves with the works and expand their “champs de vocabulaire” before the tour.

The project will also include a Soirée française, open to all adult St. Louis area Francophiles and university students. The Lindenwood students will be on hand throughout the Pulitzer’s galleries to engage guests in French about the works.

Rebecca B., student – I recently participated in a Lindenwood University French class involving the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts. The class is called Speaking of Art.

The Speaking of Art class is a wonderful experience! The current exhibition at the Pulitzer, Portrait/Homage/Embodiment, is the most intriguing and moving exhibit I’ve seen at the Pulitzer in the last year. The French class came and learned about all the artwork in English, and then we discussed it. Then, we visited again for a tour in French, while asking questions and taking notes. After more tours and more discussions, we started to formulate our own tours in French. Finally, we gave tours
in French to high school French classes and our own fellow students from Lindenwood.

The Pulitzer Foundation is always a wonderful experience, whether it involves big thinking about minimalist art, or walking through the exciting torqued spiral of Joe, or musing about a 300-pound ball of steel that is said to be a self-portrait of someone. I always love the mood of the building itself, whether it’s snowing, or sunny, or at sunset, or pouring rain and storming. The light, the cool walls, and the atmosphere is so relaxing and provides a lovely setting for philosophizing about art.

In the Portrait/Homage/Embodiment exhibit, I especially was affected by Doris Salcedo’s work. As a woman who cares deeply about her country’s healing from the constant wounds inflicted by civil unrest, Salcedo ingeniously and gracefully depicts the pain and fear, along with healing, in her vivid art. She takes everyday objects and turns them into unsettling, sorrowful, or peaceful works of art that serve as witnesses to what is happening in Colombia.

Sometimes I shy away from such straightforward depictions of tragedy. My parents came to see the exhibit, and my mother wisely said, “That’s the power of art, that it helps people understand things in themselves that they don’t even know are there.” After I realize my fear of seeing others’ pain, I learn to open up, whether it is in my own art becoming a witness to life, or my support of wonderful people like those at the Pulitzer Foundation, who open up the such a place to the public, sharing with the world the beauty and moving power of art. Thank you for such a wonderful experience.

Andrew Morgan, student – This unique experience has given not only Lindenwood University French students the opportunity to expand their knowledge of French art vocabulary while learning how to guide a group through these truly remarkable pieces, but at the same time it allows for the francophone group to truly benefit as well by experiencing this exhibit from a different perspective.

One thing that is truly admirable about the Pulitzer’s method of presenting art is the focus on a personal experience. I really like the absence of wall cards with the name of the artist or the title of the work. It allows the viewer to draw their own conclusions first, then be guided to additional information from the handout or by one of us. I feel this program really highlights the Foundation’s desire to have these works of portraiture, homage, and embodiment seen in a different light and, in this case, heard in a different language as well.

Lauren Moran, student — I was incredibly pleased with how well our tours went last Friday. The students were engaging and all the tour guides were excited. You could feel the nervous energy emanating from us as we were anxious to share the amazing Pulitzer experience with others. It was so neat to hear the other students contribute their thoughts and open our eyes to things we never noticed before.

It is one thing to share facts, but it is something altogether different sharing an experience. That is why these trips have been so meaningful to me. Not only am I experiencing these works with those around me, but I also feel a connection with both the artist and the model. I find myself asking, “What is the artist saying?” “How did the model feel?” “In how many different ways is this work a portrait or a self-portrait?” With these various insights and perspectives, I discover myself digging deeper and even finding out more about my own “portrait” or identity.