Pitt\u2019s University Art Gallery just launched its 2025 student-curated exhibits, featuring an emphasis on local art and community.<\/p>\n
The UAG<\/a> is the largest collection of art at Pitt, housing over 3,000 works of art in its permanent collection and rotating student-led exhibits. Located in the Frick Fine Arts building, the UAG offers an opportunity for students interested in art, museum studies and other professions to engage in experiential learning<\/a>.<\/p>\n The UAG provides opportunities for students to get involved in career building early on, according to Dessa Zekic, a first-year history of art and architecture major and gallery attendant at the UAG.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s really awesome to engage with the public and engage with art so early in my college career,\u201d Zekic said. \u201cIt\u2019s not just a job \u2014 it\u2019s a community.\u201d<\/p>\n On Oct. 16, three new exhibitions were launched \u2014 \u201cWavelengths<\/a>: deRoy Gruber \u2014 Filkosky \u2014 Fuller \u2014 Haskell,\u201d \u201cRethinking the Rotunda III<\/a>: Jos\u00e9 Santiago P\u00e9rez\u2019s \u2018As Above\u2019 & Charmette Young\u2019s \u2018It Keeps My Hands Busy\u2019\u201d and \u201cEarth & Ether<\/a>: The Art of Lucille and Virgil Cantini.\u201d<\/p>\n The \u201cEarth and Ether\u201d exhibition was curated by students in the HAA 1019, \u201cCuratorial Development,\u201d and HAA 1022, \u201cExhibition Presentation\u201d classes. The process of putting together an exhibit teaches students creative thinking skills and the ability to work around obstacles and limitations, according to Alex Taylor, an academic curator at the UAG and associate professor in the department of history of art and architecture.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cExhibitions are always shaped by constraints,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cOur classes help students understand that these constraints can actually be productive, triggering creativity that none of us imagined when we begin.\u201d<\/p>\n The three exhibits launched on Oct. 16 will be up until Jan. 30, 2026. The work that goes into curating an exhibition \u2014 from initial research, to developing a show\u2019s title, concept and structure, to finally presenting and giving tours of the exhibit \u2014 teaches students skills including research, collaboration and creative thinking, according to Sylvia Rhor Samaniego, director and curator at the UAG.<\/p>\n \u201cI always say to our students that curating an exhibition involves many years of work before you\u2019re installing it,\u201d Samaniego said. \u201cEven after the exhibition is installed, it still has a life of public engagement or use.\u201d<\/p>\n The \u201cEarth & Ether\u201d exhibit showcases pieces by Pittsburgh artist Virgil Cantini<\/a> and sheds light on the work of his wife, Lucille Cantini<\/a>, whose contributions to the Cantini legacy<\/a> often lack recognition.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe hope that the research [on the Cantinis] will continue, so this shouldn\u2019t be the end of the story \u2014 it should be the start of a new story,\u201d Samaniego said. \u201cWe\u2019ve opened up this door on Lucille, for example, and we hope some students will take that even further.\u201d<\/p>\n Isabel Beames, a sophomore mechanical engineering major, said showcasing art and artists is an important aspect of social movements<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that it brings awareness to a lot of issues,\u201d Beames said. \u201cArtists definitely delve into different topics that are hard to express in words.\u201d<\/p>\n The goal with these student-led exhibitions is to expose students to real-life experiences that could prepare them for their future careers, according to Samaniego.<\/p>\n \u201cThe students have actual hands-on experiential learning in putting together a professional level exhibition,\u201d Samaniego said. \u201cThey learn all of the ins and outs of what goes into putting an exhibition together. That\u2019s an invaluable experience.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Beyond future career experience, students still learn many valuable skills, according to Taylor.<\/p>\n \u201cStudents who choose other careers still gain, I think, valuable experience working as part of a collaborative team to manage a complex, public-facing project involving a range of stakeholders,\u201d Taylor said.<\/p>\n The art exhibitions at the UAG serve students across many disciplines, including STEM and non-art-related disciplines, according to Samaniego.<\/p>\n \u201cWe engage with public health, math, science, social sciences, all disciplines across the board,\u201d Samaniego said. \u201cThese artworks and these exhibitions can be touchstones for learning across the curriculum.\u201d<\/p>\n Beames, who works as a gallery attendant at the UAG exhibits, said that she grew up around art, which is what initially drove her to work at the UAG.<\/p>\n \u201cWorking here is like a compliment to my STEM side,\u201d Beames said. \u201cThe UAG gets me out of the \u2018science world\u2019 and into the creative world. It\u2019s a beautiful break.\u201d<\/p>\n The impact of the UAG goes beyond Pitt academics and into the larger Pittsburgh community.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are lucky enough to be surrounded by great museums in Oakland,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cBut the University Art Gallery does something different and special \u2014 it is a place where our students get to engage directly with works of art and tell new stories through these objects.\u201d<\/p>\n The UAG aims to uncover more of the community and regional story, according to its mission and vision<\/a>. According to Samaniego, much of the Pittsburgh region\u2019s history has not been valued enough \u2014 which is something the UAG is trying to change.<\/p>\n \u201cWith our exhibitions and with our permanent collection, we\u2019re really leaning into telling the stories of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh artists, and this region in a way that they haven\u2019t been told before,\u201d Samaniego said.<\/p>\n