Keene State’s Carroll House Gallery has entered a spring 2024 season, beginning with the “Working Hands” exhibit featuring student sculptures and prints.
The opening reception for “Working Hands” was held on Wednesday, Jan. 31, at the gallery, located on Main St. next to the Alumni Center. Guests could come by from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and see student works of various mediums displayed in four rooms, as well as partake in refreshments from the table in one of the rooms.
Many of the pieces on display were assignments from Keene State’s sculpting and printmaking courses, according to the event’s coordinator Professor Lynn Richardson.
Lauren Kohm, a senior who had multiple pieces featured in the exhibit, said one of her pieces, a print of a tarot card, was made at the end of the printmaking course for fun and to use up some leftover ink.
The gallery had been inactive during the fall 2023 semester, according to Richardson. This new season marks the start of an effort to make the space more student-run.
“[This semester is] us getting our feet back on the ground and getting it going,” Richardson said. She described the art department staff’s dream of shaping the gallery into a space for student artists to have greater freedom.
Richardson said the Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery was once run by a director outside of the Art Department, but restructuring several years back led to the department staff taking over that role.
“Since we have [the Thorne gallery] now, we are … encouraging the students to take over the Carroll House a little bit more,” Richardson said.
In collaboration with Richardson is Kris Wilczak, a junior work-study student who operates as gallery coordinator of Carroll House.
“I help [Richardson] with organizing shows, putting up prints, making sure everything’s in working order because the place is clean,” Wilczak said. “Every day we’re figuring out new things to kind of liven up this space and make it feel more in function than it was previously … make it a little more jazzy, a little more homey for all the art students.”
Wilczak had previously worked at the Thorne Gallery and said the Carroll House felt more “relaxed” and “comfortable” as a student space.
“I want more people to feel more confident with their art and I feel like the Carroll House is going to be a really essential part of that for artists who are maybe a little more shy in showing their work,” Wilczak said.
Keene State Art & Design Department staff is planning to display exhibits at Carroll House throughout the spring semester, including an upcoming graphic design exhibit and a first-year art showing. Students interested in exhibiting art at Carroll House can contact lrichardson2@keene.edu.
Charlotte King can be contacted at
cking@kscequinox.com
