Matteo Malinverno
Off The Beaten Track
why art history students choose to study abroad
PrintEvery art history major dreams of standing beneath Michelangelo’s “David” or pushing through crowds of tourists to catch a glimpse of the “Mona Lisa.” Going abroad has become a rite of passage for art students—and though the current financial climate poses many obstacles to travel, plenty of students are still packing their bags and saying goodbye to old New York.
But why would anyone want to leave the city? Columbia students go to school in one of the world’s foremost art capitals, a metropolis teeming with famous museums, galleries, and venues where new artists can make a name for themselves. Yet globalization and international awareness have become an important component of almost every field, and the art world is no exception. If art students truly want to get a well-rounded education, they have to venture beyond our small island.
Professor Joan Snitzer, Director of the Barnard Visual Arts Program, agrees. As she says, “The art world is now global. When you go abroad, you realize there are subtle differences in the way other cultures see the world, and it is very important for an educated person to be sensitive to these world values.” Apart from being able to witness artworks in the flesh, studying abroad allows students to learn about art in the context of a different culture. Snitzer points to Andy Warhol as an example of the discrepancy between art perceptions in different countries. “Whereas here [the U.S.] Warhol was known as a pop artist, in Germany, he was read as a political hero,” she explains.
New York has art from all over the world, but there is no substitute for viewing art in its place of origin. Barnard College senior Alberta Wright, who went to Paris through Columbia’s Reid Hall program, was thrilled to finally see the many paintings and cathedrals she had been studying for so long. Even so, Wright notes, “In terms of art, I’m not sure that my Paris experience afforded me anything that was qualitatively better than what I have here in New York.” Wright found that her exposure to a different lifestyle was more enriching than her exposure to art. “The main value of my time in Paris was the perspective it gave me on a different way of living, a different attitude towards how time can and should be spent,” she explains.
Professor Anne Higonnet, acting chair of the art history department at Barnard, will teach a travel seminar next semester that takes students to Paris during spring break. As the course description states, participants will be able to “see everything they have been studying: buildings, boulevards, sewers, tombs, paintings, prints, sculpture, fashion, photographs, and theater.” The trip is also completely free—except for the cost of meals—thanks to a generous donation.
Barnard College sophomore Jessica Ruby, who is applying for the course, has always felt studying abroad was off-limits due to financial reasons. Ruby has taken several other courses on French culture, but traveling to the country itself will allow her to experience things that before were only words or images on a page. “Sure, you can go to Balthazar in New York, and then to see the French art in The Met and the MoMA, but it’s not the same,” explains Ruby. “It’s detached from its home and I’m pretty sure all things French make more sense actually in France.” That being said, Ruby also feels that “the amount of people who go abroad is absurd.”
Professor Snitzer’s long list of students who have studied or are planning to study abroad clearly shows that the practice has become as common as going to graduate school. “When I was in college, studying abroad was a luxury. It was much more exotic,” says Snitzer. It may be that many students are going abroad simply because everybody else is doing it.
Art students tend to go to the same three places: France, Italy, or the UK. Exchange programs in these countries often focus on traditional Western academia, educating students about major art movements like the Renaissance and Impressionism. Visual art students find conventional schools that teach techniques invaluable to budding artists, but also exclude the possibility of exploring more avant-garde styles. Options are limited for students who want to study the contemporary art of their chosen country, which may be overshadowed by the classic pieces and periods study abroad programs emphasize. Snitzer recommends that students “take some initiative to move off the prescribed track” and explore more current art scenes while abroad.
Some of her students are even making an effort to search for non-European programs. Tyler McCormick, currently a second-semester senior at Barnard College, chose to go to a public arts school in Buenos Aires after spending some time in Latin America. McCormick had to petition twice to get her program approved, but the struggle paid off. “The painting and drawing classes I took were not traditional but much more about using imagination and figure distortion,” she says. While not as established as Rome or Paris, Buenos Aires—a city that’s evolving into an important center of contemporary art—still has a lot to offer students.
No matter where students choose to study, going abroad will no doubt provide a life-changing experience. Art students may always favor European cities, but going against the norm might help them truly participate in the new, global world of art. Above all, they can return knowing what else is actually out there.
19 November 2009
vol. 7, issue 10
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