Running through the end of June in the Department of Art & Art History's Gittins Gallery at the University of Utah is an extraordinary exhibition, built not around the work of a single artist, but of a community.
Students look for their work on the doodle arch.
The Art of Us: Collective Art for Sustainable Communities celebrates artwork co-created by University of Utah teaching artists and over 300 community collaborators. In an era defined by disconnection, these student-led projects use artmaking to build relationships, support the people around them, and cultivate wonder and connection. The regenerative power of collaborative art makes it in-separable from activism and sustainability, and the works on view reflect the beauty of connecting with one another and working together to transform our world. By facilitating these collaborations, artists plant the seeds for sustained relationships within their communities.
As demonstrated in this exhibition, community can take many forms: classrooms, healthcare spaces, after-school programs, families, activist groups, dance troupes, and neighborhoods. We invite you to reflect on the power of collective engagement and creativity displayed throughout the gallery and to consider ways to connect with your own community. By developing stronger, more connected communities, we can foster hope and sustainable social action that ensures a future for our world.
What stories, materials, or relationships might you bring together to create a shared artwork in your community?
Many of the exhibits are interactive.
This exhibition presents community-based artwork created by students in University of Utah courses and through the Community Arts Research & Education (CARE) Program in the Department of Art & Art History.
The exhibit runs through June 30th.ART 3550: Art in the Community, taught by Sydney Porter Williams, invites students to explore community-based art education through theory and practice, creating art that builds community and supports positive change. With support from the University of Utah Office of Sustainability, students created 14 projects with their own communities, developing a deeper understanding of community-based art through personal connection.
CARE expands access to arts programming in the community while preparing students to work as teaching artists and creative practitioners. Through partnerships with schools, healthcare organizations, and community partners, CARE supported nearly 200 participants represented in this exhibition. For more information about this program or to support this work, please visit art.utah.edu/care/.
The exhibit runs at the Gittins Gallery,
Special thanks to Dr. Anne Osborn for her continued support of CARE and to the Office of Sustainability for supporting ART 3550 through the Applied Sustainability Learning Program.