Raise a glass to freedom
[[{"fid":"772256","view_mode":"default","type":"media","attributes":{"height":"134","width":"166","style":"float: left;","alt":"US Capitol","class":"media-element file-default"}}]]On inauguration day, Harvard Arts Blog reporters talk about standing strong for the arts during a new presidential administration. We asked them: What will you do for the arts?
By Isa Flores-Jones '19, Cherie Hu '17, Ian Askew '19, Jake Stepansky '17, Samantha Neville '19 and Alicia Anstead NF '08
During an editorial meeting on Nov. 11, 2016 – Veterans Day – the Harvard Arts Blog student team talked about election news that had been delivered on Nov. 9. Most of our colleagues were off that day, and we sat in a low-lit room talking about Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump, American values, the Harvard community, the arts and our futures. The range of emotions was broad, but one thing was clear: Each student passionately expressed committment to standing strong for the arts – a theme that often arises in uncertain post-election days and months. At the end of the meeting, the students spontaneously broke into an a cappella version of The Story of Tonight from the musical Hamilton. They sang: "Raise a glass to freedom, something they can never take away."
[[{"fid":"772286","view_mode":"default","type":"media","attributes":{"height":"664","width":"346","style":"float: right;","alt":"Avenue in the Rain by Childe Hassam","class":"media-element file-default"}}]]
In the last two months, we have shared many thoughts about the role of the arts in activism, government and American life. During a compelling farewell address on Jan. 10, President Barack Obama HLS '91 offered the best advice possible for the American public and for our next gen of arts leaders: "Show up. Dive in. Stay at it." In that spirit, we asked our bloggers: What will you do for the arts in the coming years? Their answers follow. But they are not the end of the story. In some way, they are, like today's inauguration, the beginning of the story. We hope you, too, will ask our question for yourself. We echo President Obama's final challenge: "I'm asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change — but in yours."
*******
"I will fight for honest storytelling. I will support friends and strangers, here and far, in expressing their version of the truth. I will oppose, at all costs, attempts to limit expression. Because narrative is a form of resistance." –Isa Flores-Jones ‘19
“Art is a counterweight to passivity and ignorance. This does not necessarily mean that art is ‘correct’ or ‘unanimous.’ Indeed, the act is highly personal and subjective. Yet, art is the most emotionally authentic form of communication we have, and gives both individual and collective voices a powerful space for criticism, reflection and imagination. The nation needs such a space now more than ever, as it frantically tries on different pasts and futures for size to make sense of its own identity. I hope to use my artistic practices not only to keep myself and my audiences emotionally honest, but also to reveal pasts and futures that we never even considered.” –Cherie Hu ‘17
“Over the next four years I want to remember and defend the central role that art-making can play in resistance. On the other hand, I don't want to operate as though that art-making is, by itself, fighting. My art is not truly fighting if it is not built by and for a community. It is not truly fighting if it is not accessible for those it claims to fight with. I want to make and support art that listens as much as it speaks, but that is willing to scream.” –Ian Askew ‘19
"What does a child gain from acting in a play? Beyond improvements in self-confidence, reading ability, clarity of speech and critical thinking, children learn empathy from the theater. Is it not the job of an actor to walk in a character's shoes until his or her feet blister and ache? This election cycle has made it remarkably apparent that in our country, empathy is quickly losing its value as a value. How do we move forward? How can we as artists and as concerned citizens help other adults - on both sides of the aisle - relearn the empathy we so need to heal the venomous rift that has emerged along racial, gender and class lines? For me, the answer is to work to draw resources for art-making - specifically community-driven art-making - out of the big cities and into the Midwest and South. How can we integrate the creation and consumption of the performing arts into the lives of every American? That is the challenge I task myself with answering in the years to come." –Jake Stepansky ‘17
“I promise to create with words even when when I don't want to, even when I'm busy, and aspire towards beauty and richness. I promise to use love and kindness as my mediums, thread and paint my days and the people around me with them. I promise to always use my words to spread understanding.” –Samantha Neville ‘19