Art Students Visit Phillips Collection Exhibit

On Thursday, September 12, a group of Gonzaga art students travelled to the Phillips Collection in the district’s Dupont Circle neighborhood to see an exhibit called, “The Warmth of Other Suns: Stories of Global Displacement.”

The exhibit showcases the work— installations, videos, paintings, and photographs—of 75 contemporary and historical artists from the United States as well as Algeria, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Egypt, Ghana, Iraq, Lebanon, Mexico, Morocco, Syria, Turkey, UK, Vietnam, and more. The art is meant to raise questions about the experiences and perceptions of migration and the global refugee crisis.

Art teacher Matt Duffy said that in addition to challenging students’ perceptions of displaced persons and their experiences, the exhibition presents artwork that is very "conceptual" in nature and questions the idea of what art can be.

"Parts of this exhibition were included in the Venice Bienniale, which has been at the forefront of contemporary art from around the world for the last 123 years," says Mr. Duffy. "It is great that our students can go to a small museum here in DC and see cutting-edge artwork from around the world addressing a crisis we as a Catholic community take very seriously. In many ways seeing a show like this can take students out of their comfort zone, or, in the very least, show them a different perspective or way of thinking they might not have considered. And it is often an unusual experience like this that will make a lasting impression."
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