With the opportunity to immerse themselves into a space where art, culture, and dialogue intersect, students participating in this year’s ArtLab at the Lowe—an upper-level seminar hosted by the Lowe Art Museum in collaboration with the College of Arts and Sciences’ department of art and art history —spent a week this spring in Kyoto, Japan, alongside Japanese curators and artists, to understand the inner workings of art preservation and interpretation.
On view from April 25 through March 3, 2024, the exhibit, “Art Lab: Spirits of Time: Netsuke from the Joseph and Elena Kurstin Collection,” highlights miniature masterpieces carved from a variety of media and spanning several centuries. Initially conceptualized as toggles to secure inro boxes to kimono sashes, netsuke—miniature sculptures from 17th century Japan—were created from materials, such as ivory, wood, and metal, and depict a wide range of subjects from flora and fauna to mythical creatures and historical figures. What began as utilitarian objects donned by Japanese men has evolved into ornately sculptured fine works of pocket-sized art that are valued internationally by collectors.
“From writing and researching to picking out wall colors for the exhibit itself, there is a lot more to the process than I originally thought,” said Divya Srinivasan, a second-year undergraduate student majoring in art history. Srinivasan plans to attend law school and eventually work within the intersection of fine arts and the legal field with the goal of one day providing legal counsel for galleries, museums, and auction houses. Her participation in ArtLab has provided a practical, hands-on experience in curatorial aspects of the art industry.
Photos by Mariana Espindola and Alyssa Wood. Courtesy of the Collection of Dr. Joseph and Elena Kurstin.
Led by Nathan Timpano, associate professor and chair of the art and art history department, and Jill Deupi, director and chief curator of the Lowe Art Museum, the trip to Japan involved in-person visits with local artists and artisans, museums, and historic sites.
“ArtLab at the Lowe exemplifies the value of academic art museums,” noted Deupi, Beaux Arts director. “Institutions like the Lowe function as true laboratories for learning, where students balance practice and theory and learn by doing.”
Throughout the trip, the students went on several tours to learn about temples, shrines, historical castles, and monuments, with each representing a piece of Japanese history and culture.“Being able to visit Kyoto contextualized the information I spent the first half of the semester learning about,” added Srinivasan. “It was an exceptionally valuable experience to understand the ways in which art and visual culture are considered within the city itself.”
Photos courtesy of Mariana Espindola
While in Kyoto, the students engaged in transnational, transcultural exchanges with students enrolled in the University of Kyoto's curatorial studies program, providing a transformative student experience. “I learned the most about the cultural differences, which I found in the minute details,” said Gavin Galiardo, a third-year undergraduate student majoring in art history who made his first trip to Asia with this program. “The hands-on learning and professionalism of this course is unparalleled.”
“Now in its 15th year, ArtLab is our most innovative art history seminar in the Department of Art and Art History, and continues to thrive because of our strong commitment to curatorial studies in collaboration with museum professionals at the Lowe,” said Timpano, who in spring 2019 accompanied ArtLab students on their trip to New York City.
Several sponsors, including the generosity of six Lowe Advisory Council members, provide annual funding for ArtLab at the Lowe. Among the program’s supporters, Stella M. Holmes, University alumna and namesake of the Lowe’s Art Research Center, noted the value of the program. “I have always been interested in art as communication—not only from artist to viewer, but also as a bridge between different cultures,” said Holmes.
While in Kyoto, the ArtLab students met with Japanese artist Kondo Takahiro—a unique experience in which students connected with the youngest member of the Kondo family of renowned artists. “Art Lab: Spirits of Time: Netsuke from the Joseph and Elena Kurstin Collection” will complement works on view in the Lowe's Taplin Gallery for Asian Art as well as Transcendent Clay: Kondo/A Century of Japanese Ceramic Art, which features works by three generations of the Kyoto-based Kondo ceramic dynasty.
Learn more about the Lowe Art Museum.
