Nine Phillips Academy students, including several from Andover, curated an exhibition titled “The Art of Opposition,” now on display at the Addison Gallery of American Art.
Considered to host one of the greatest collections of American Art in the United States, the Addison Gallery possesses more than 28,000 pieces, including works by Winslow Homer, John Singer Sargent, James McNeill Whistler, Edward Hopper, Georgia O’Keeffe and Jackson Pollock.
The students worked with teachers and museum staff to design the exhibition as part of their “Art 400 Visual Culture: Curating the Addison Collection” course. Their exhibition “explores how creativity becomes an act of defiance, questioning power structures and reshaping narratives,’’ according to the exhibition’s website.
Students said they want visitors to not only leave with a greater understanding of resistance but also feel motivated to engage in activism.
“I hope people take away how they can consider resistance in their own life,” said Andover resident Suvir Virmani, one of the student curators and a high school senior.
The exhibition, which runs through July 31, showcases 17 pieces by local and international artists.
The exhibition includes works from Danny Lyon, American photographer and filmmaker; Yinka Shonibare, British-Nigerian artist; and Tabitha Soren, an American fine art photographer. One piece by visual artist Lyon shows a sit-in by Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee staff and supporters at the Toddle House diner in Atlanta, GA during the 1960s.
Angela Parker, who is one of the two course instructors and an educator at the museum, said the course is in its first run since the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in 2020.
“This is a great opportunity for students to have available to them again,” said Parker, at the opening event on Tuesday, March 4.
The course allows students to receive mentorship from their instructors and museum staff. Students had the freedom to take the exhibition in the direction they wanted, with feedback and support from their instructors, they said.
The students chose a theme for the exhibition, carefully selected artwork to feature, and wrote descriptions for each piece. They also planned the layout of the art in the exhibition space, and presented their project during the opening reception, Parker said.
Addy Zorrilla, a senior at Phillips Academy and Andover resident, organized a creative activity that allows attendees to pick up information cards linked to a website that provides more details about the artwork.
“I’m so glad to see how this all came together,” said Parker.
Andover resident Jason Kokones, another student who helped curate the exhibition, said the process that went into deciding the exhibition’s theme and artwork was thorough.
“We wanted to pick works that would resonate with teenagers and work with a lot of things that they’re learning about in class,” said Kokones.
Virmani highlighted a piece by visual artist Sandow Birk that Virmani said resonated with him because of the theme of revolution in a modern society. The piece is a monument to the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights in 2008.
“Aside from its message, it has a visual appeal for me being so large and interesting,” said Virmani.
One of the standout pieces from a visual collection by Moroccan photographer Lalla Essaydi caught the attention of many viewers opening night due to its striking portrayal of defiance. The piece features images of a Moroccan woman lying covered in writing that criticizes the historical objectification and misrepresentation of Muslim women in Western culture.
“It’s an interesting intersection of art history and different cultures and traditions, but because of its composition and everything, I think it accomplishes the facets of our theme very well,” said Lucy Heyd, student curator and Andover resident.
Tuesday’s opening reception included refreshments and a hands-on art activity led by students. Visitors also discussed the resonance of the exhibition’s theme and gratitude for youth involvement in the community.
“This is incredible for them to have this opportunity,” said Sonia Virmani, mother of Suvir Virmani.
The other curators of the project are Rohan Agrawal, Antonella Lecca, Lauren Montgomery, Justin Puno and Wendi Ying.
The Addison Gallery of American Art is a free museum open to the public in Andover, on the Phillips Academy campus, at the corner of Main Street (Route 28) and Chapel Avenue.