Catalyst for Innovation
Art students get creative outside gallery walls By Christine Byrd
Photo: Teresa Bernadette
After more than a year away from
campus due to the pandemic, Claire Trevor School of the Arts students were thrilled to get back into studios and in-person classes in fall 2021. For the five student leaders of the Catalyst Undergraduate Student Art Gallery, the return was especially exciting: they planned to reopen their cherished gallery space. For more than 15 years, the Catalyst gallery has played a vital role in the art student experience at UCI. The CTSA supports only one juried undergraduate show annually, so honors art students typically volunteer to curate additional undergraduate exhibitions in the Catalyst gallery on the second floor of the Art Culture andTechnology building. “Without something else student driven, there’s not a lot of opportunity to show your work,” explains Teresa Bernadette, Catalyst’s head curator and a senior majoring in art. “One of the important things about being an art 34
student is learning how to present your work, how to get it ready to hang and show.” But just hours before the Catalyst team was to present its plans for its fall 2021 exhibitions at the Arts Involvement Fair, they discovered the gallery was already occupied. The space had been turned into a graduate student’s studio as the campus scrambled to provide exhibition spots for M.F.A. masters thesis shows that had been postponed by the pandemic.
Making it Work When she learned the gallery was unavailable, Teresa emailed her colleagues with the news, and braced herself for their reactions. “The team was amazing. Everyone said, ‘We will make it work.’” Teresa recalls. Their unflinching support brought tears to her eyes, and drew admiration from faculty. Image (above): The Fall 2021 Tenth Thursday event held in the Department of Arts plaza.
