Department of Visual Arts

SMart Space to Take Student Artwork beyond HFAC

By Daniel Ng

Performing groups from Brigham Young University have long shared their talents abroad while gaining publicity for the university and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Whether it’s the ballroom team embarking around the world or Living Legends being featured on national TV in China, BYU's College of Fine Arts and Communications has been well represented around the world.

But one department in particular has been left out of the international mix over the years due to the logistics of their work.

It’s never been easy for students in the Department of Visual Arts to haul their creations around due to the fragility and size of the art pieces they produce, and the need for suitable galleries to properly display their work.

“In other parts of the college we have dance, music and choir teams that travel all over the world,” said Jason Lanegan, the gallery manager at the Harris Fine Arts Center (HFAC). “But art doesn’t travel that well.”

For years, the department has displayed and managed quality galleries throughout the HFAC for visitors and students to enjoy with the hopes of one day expanding beyond the confines of the facility. These dreams may have finally come true with the advent of Student Managed Art Space, or SMart Space for short.

Looking for a solution to their dilemma, Lanegan and the gallery committee of the HFAC decided to go with a revolutionary, ‘small’ idea. By creating a project consisting of compact, volumetric galleries which can change according to different variables of the display, the HFAC now has galleries that can travel easily from place to place.

“There are no other satellite galleries that are extensions of campuses elsewhere. Most student-run galleries are on campuses,” Lanegan said. “But our whole thought behind it was the only way to get our art to travel was through making small galleries that can travel and house the art. It’s kind of our visual arts way of doing what everyone else does all throughout the world.”

According to Lanegan, the goal for SMart Space is to get students' work outside of Utah county, which would gain credibility not only for BYU but the students themselves.

“We want SMart Spaces in the Salt Lake International Airport. We want them at BYU-Idaho, at BYU-Hawaii,” Lanegan said. “We want them at Snow College, at Dixie. We want our students to be able to show their work and have conversations through their art outside of this area.”

Lanegan went on to say that many people, even within the state, not only do not understand how brilliant the department’s students are, but they also do not understand the curriculum the students are taught ─ something he hopes SMart Space can remedy.

“Our students produce work that is of exceptional quality, yet we’re the biggest unknown thing in the whole state,” Lanegan said. “Also, every time we do our annual student show I hear the same thing. It’s always that [jurors] don’t realize what our students are dealing with on a conceptual level. They just have this assumption that our work deals with the Church. I want others to notice that BYU allows people to have a voice, that we teach dynamic things.”

The idea of SMart Space seems simple enough. But true to its title, students are the one’s managing these miniature galleries.

“We want the students to learn how to manage a space on their own,” said Fidalis Buehler, an associate visual arts professor and the HFAC’s gallery committee chairman. “We want them to have a hands-on approach independent of another voice saying yes or no. They’re in charge which gives them the responsibility.”

Lanegan noted that it would be easier for him to run Smart Space and get the galleries going off-campus. But that would leave the students out to dry.

“I could probably go out there and get it all figured out but that doesn’t teach our students anything,” Lanegan said. “I want them to figure out the logistics of putting them up, how to maintain security, what it’s going to take, all of that.”

As crazy as the concept of mini-galleries operated by undergraduate students may sound, both faculty and students have embraced the ingenious idea.

Robyn Draper, a ceramics major who runs the SMart Space blog, likes the practical side of gallery work that she is learning through the experience.

“I think a lot of artists are drawn to art because they like to create and enjoy art making. But a lot of times we don’t think about the practical side. It’s a job like any other discipline,” Draper said. “You have to learn how to do paperwork or how you’re going to run yourself as a business. With SMart Space its very practical knowledge. Now, if I wanted to work at another gallery I already have the gist of how they run.”

Davey Hawkins, a sculpture major, and the woodshop manager who designs the portable galleries, agreed with Draper and added one other benefit of SMart Space.

“It’s the idea of reaching out and making art accessible to a larger audience,” Hawkins said. “We’re trying to make it more inviting. You can very causally walk up to the art without being intimated to walk into some space.”

With the numerous advantages SMart Space has to offer, the new program has faculty such as Buehler anxiously looking forward to its future.

“It would be really interesting in my mind to see Smart Space in China or Europe as our students share and collaborate ideas across the board at various locations and universities,” Buehler said.

Buehler already knows the idea can easily work. But ultimately, the success of the project will depend upon the students and their motivation.

“Will the demand from the students be there? How will these galleries affect how students are able to manage their time with this and their studies?” Buehler said. “That’s what we are going to learn. That’s what we’re dealing with right now.”

The students have already answered Buehler’s question in part through their efforts in obtaining an Office of Research and Creative Activities (ORCA) grant, which will allocate more than $1000 in financial help to the project.

“We pitched the facts that we have already brought people here, that students are learning how to bring in artists and that we are learning how to format shows and line up who is coming next,” said Buehler, who helped the students write up their proposal to ORCA.

With the increased cash flow, the actual step of expanding outside of campus is coming to fruition as the students are currently trying to place three galleries in locations around the state by this fall. Lanegan said he does worry about the project but acknowledged that his excitement at the current moment trumps any wandering doubts.

“It’s like saying, are you nervous that these group of five-year old kids that you’re coaching in soccer are going to get hurt?” Lanegan said. “Sure that’s in the back of your mind. But you’re more excited about them going out and having fun. Any part of me that is nervous is outweighed tremendously by the potential this has and the experience the students can gain from it.”

There are currently two Smart Space galleries up on display in the HFAC. The first is by gallery 303 on the third floor while the second is located on the fifth floor of the building next to the Department of Visual Arts office.