This fall the DiMattio Gallery is hosting I Wish That I Had Spoken Only of It All, an exhibition of Sheryl Oring’s social practice project I Wish to Say and related works. Part of our programming will be a teach-in series from MU faculty about topics related to themes that intersect with Oring’s project as art reaches across disciplinary bounds. These teach-ins will be free and open to the public.
Since 2004, Oring has traveled with her typewriter to different public spaces and colleges and universities, asking community members to dictate and mail postcards to the US President. To date, she has typed over 4241 postcards in her attempt to use art as a catalyst for social change. With her project, she encourages civic engagement and dialogue in our society (https://www.sheryloring.org/i-wish-to-say).
Our teach-in series will be held in the DiMattio Gallery and currently includes:
Wednesday, September 25, 2024, 4:30-5:15pm
Dr. Katherine Parkin (History)
“Native American Reproductive Lives in the Archives”
Tuesday, October 1, 2024, 6-7pm
Dr. Kristin Bluemel (English)
“Green Worlds in Black and White: Feminist Readings of the 1930s Wood Engraving Revival”
** Presented as part of the annual lecture series “Ink and Electricity: Advancing Liberal Learning in the Digital Age,” hosted by the Wayne D. McMurray-Helen Bennett Endowed Chair in the Humanities.
Wednesday, October 16, 2024, 1:15-2:15pm
Prof. Kimberly Callas (Studio Art)
“Socially Engaged Drawings” (an opportunity to create your own postcard drawings)
Monday, November 25, 4:30-5:50pm
Dr. Jason Fitzgerald (Education–Curriculum and Instruction)
“Fostering Students’ Civic Voices”
Monday, December 2, 11:40am-1pm
Dr. Johanna Foster (Sociology)
“Changing Systems, Not Just People: The Sociology of Social Justice Work”
In addition to the Teach-In Series, these other events will be taking place in conjunction with the exhibition.
Oring performs I Wish to Say: Thursday, September 19, 2024, 11am-1pm, Rebecca Stafford Student Center Patio
Artist talk: Thursday, September 19, 2024, 4:30-5:30pm, Great Hall Auditorium
Opening Reception: Thursday, September 19, 2024, 5:30-7:30pm, DiMattio Gallery, Rechnitz Hall
For more information, contact the exhibition curator, Prof. Corey Dzenko at cdzenko@monmouth.edu.
