Center For Creativity prepares for fall with new strategies, workspaces

CENTER FOR CREATIVITY PREPARES FOR FALL SEMESTER WITH NEW STRATEGIES, WORKSPACES

Julie DiPietro For The Pitt News

When looking to be crafty, the Pitt community often turns to the Center for Creativity for all things art. They will have a new space this fall to draw on their imagination — literally.

The Center for Creativity opened a new creative space a few weeks ago on the third floor of the Hillman Library, called Text & conText, where students can try out bookbinding, papermaking, calligraphy, a Vandercook proof press and more.

Along with a new space, the Center is also planning for a return to some in-person activities with virtual options this fall. They hold classes and provide supplies at The Workshop below the University Store and now Text & conText. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, their programming was entirely online last year. Pitt also delayed the opening of Text & conText from early 2020.

Both spaces have walk-in hours during the week from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.

Kit Ayars, the director of the Center for Creativity, said one of the center’s goals is making sure people of all artistic levels feel comfortable in their craft. This is even more poignant for this year’s slate of activities because of the close community that has developed during the pandemic, she said.

“One of our mottos is ‘amateurs welcome,’” Ayars said.

Ayars said she’s most looking forward to seeing students engage with the new center this semester.

“The big thing is the Text & conText, which students have not been able to be in before,” Ayars said. “So that will be a huge new thing especially from the student perspective, to have that space in Hillman on the third floor.”

Finding a hands-on way to make art is one of the most important missions of the Center, according to Eric Schuckers, manager of communications and programming for the Center of Creativity. He said figuring out how to do this virtually was one of the most challenging aspects of last year’s programming.

“Our mission is finding ways to encourage hands-on making,” Schuckers said. “Initially we wondered, ‘How are we going to be able to do this and take what we do and translate it into an environment where hands on really means hands on in your house?’”

The Center for Creativity introduced film festivals with virtual screenings, produced the documentary “CHASING COVID” and started a three-season collaborative podcast about creative and current events. The third season discusses the Text & conText Lab as well as the importance of writing in modern times, propaganda and the press.

Shannon Fink, manager of operations for the Center of Creativity, helped create the podcast. She said it was one of the most fulfilling projects she worked on last year.

“I’m super proud of that because of the amount of teamwork that went into it and the way we were able to collaborate together,’’ said

Find the full story online at pittnews.com

The Center for Creativity is finally opening their second space this year, the Text & conText Lab space, located in the Hillman Library. Image

via Center for Creativity