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.