Upcoming Goya Night!

A Question for You

Here's a totally hypothetical question for you. Say, for example, that it is nearing the end of the semester. Say that you and everyone around you are losing your minds as finals draws ever near. Say that you really need something completely random and bizarre to get you through just one more middle of the week, slug-it-out-with-academia kind of moods. Would a completely nonsensical election help you through it? Let's say, oh, I don't know, that your department needed to decide which of the following two uplifting figures was going to be your new, unofficial program mascot. 

One is a Dancing Diva Cow whose fashion sense is entirely her own,

and whose extracurricular activities would leave any 

aspiring starlet jealous

The other is Paddington Panda Bear, a sassy, lovable visitor from the 

far east who, while he may not be able to procreate 

in captivity, is more than willing to lend out 

hugs where he can to whomever he can

Which one would you choose for this entirely hypothetical, not insane election? 

-Ben

Dia de los Muertos!

Our celebration was a success!

Thanks to the combined efforts of Heritage Studies and Campus Ministry our Dia de los Muertos celebration honored the spirits and then some. Some highlights of the night included a reflection and prayer courtesy of Sister Betsy, a presentation on the pagan, Latin American, and Catholic roots of Dia de los Muertos by Ben Remillard, and assorted presentations by Dr. Ortiz's seminar students. Of course, there was a copious amount of candy, drinks (including a deliciously warm cider brewed by our own Dr. Ortiz), and snacks courtesy of our department co-sponsors. The night was capped off with students trying their hands at sugar skull style face painting. A big thank you goes out to the 40+ people that showed up to our event.

Check out some of our pictures from the event below (check back for updates later in the week!)

Our brave intern Ana was the trendsetter of
the night thanks to her half-face painting

Amber, post-painting

Here, our resident artist Kerry is in the middle of one of
her many masterpieces of the night

The new face of our program?

For those of you who couldn't tell, that's Dr. Ortiz
behind the mask

Ana hard at work on our altar

The finished version

Dr Ortiz's students presenting an original song

Ana presenting as part of her Spanish seminar

Celebrate Dia de los Muertos with Us!

The Heritage Studies department is going to be busy the next few days as it prepares for Dia de los Muertos. Be sure to check back in in a few days to see all the pictures from the setup and event!

-Ben

PHI Wine

Ahhh, Dionysus. The patron Greek god of winemaking, wine, grape harvests, fertility, and of course, one of the patrons of our program. One of the most beautiful Greek gods to be sure, he gives inspiration to both the arts and revelry making around the world. 

Whoops, that's Hurley from "Lost," played by Jorge Garcia. 

There we go, that's Dionysus. Actually,.. I'm still having a hard time telling them apart.

Anyways, to get back to the point of this post, during the 2012-2013 school year Prof. Florio and his students made their own wine. Last spring we posted an update of that process after Margaret and some other students, both graduate and undergraduate, bottled some of the finished product. 

Some time had passed and there were fears that that nectar of the gods had started the slow but inevitable transformation into vinegar. Earlier this week Ana, Ben, and Prof. Florio took a trip down into the depths of College Hall to see how much of that delicious concoction we still had left. Turns out...it was a lot. While the three of them recovered four gallons worth of vino there is still about four good gallons left. Here's to a new year with good wine!

-Ben

New Graduate Intern!

We would like to welcome Ben Remillard as our new Graduate Intern for the 2014-2015 school year. Ben will be taking over for Margaret Bogosian, who so efficiently managed the position last year.

Ben is in his second year of the Heritage Studies MA program. In 2013 Ben graduated from Providence College with a double major in History and English, with a concentration in Theatre. His graduate thesis focus is on the Native American memorialization of Boston Harbor's Deer Island.

Ben says that his focus this year for Heritage Studies is to make our events as "interdisciplinary as possible in order to connect to the most students on campus, regardless of major." 

Happy Start of School!

It's a month into the school year and our office is a mess as we undertake the near herculean task of reorganizing. Hoping you're off to a good start to the semester!

Lay Apostolate Website

Over the past semester students and faculty in the Heritage Studies program have been working on a project to honor and preserve the memory of the Lay Apostolate program at Regis College.  This project has included:  archival research, interviewing former participants, creating a website, and a documentary.  The semester may be over, but the project continues on through the website.  Participants in the program have an opportunity to share photos, stories, and memories.  On the site there are stories from those who were interviewed.  They tell of their journeys to places around the world, where they were able to make a difference.  If you would like to join the conversation or learn more about the program check out the website : http://layapostolate.wix.com/regislayapostolate

For his Landscape and Memory class's digital humanities requirement, Courtney Fisk designed a website dedicated to a group of hometown heroes and locations close to his heart; UGK, and Port Arthur, Texas.

Courtney had this to say:

"Port Arthur, Texas is the home to many celebrities including, but not limited to, Janis Joplin, Jimmy Johnson, and Evelyn Keyes. Although they are very recognized celebrities, the local history has only chosen to focus on the contributions of those in the white or middle class community while leaving out very important facts of many people and places. This website is dedicated to the little known history of the city’s historic places and its celebrities in the black community."

Check out Courtney's website using the link below:

http://efisk8.wix.com/ugk4life

Pictures from the Past

As some of you may know, students from the Heritage Studies program put together an exhibit for the Carney Gallery on campus called "Following Our Path: Regis College Through Its Art". The exhibit was created to celebrate the history of Regis College, as well as the history of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Boston. Alumnae were invited to send in pictures from their college days to further explore the history of the college. We were excited to receive pictures from students from the classes of 1967, from Ellen Szesy, and 1991, from Jodie Zinna.

1967

1991

Thank you to Ms. Zinna and Ms. Szesy!

Landscape Studies and the Freedom Trail: The Old State House and History in our Everyday Lives

By Benjamin Remillard, Graduate Student

One of our focuses early on in our Landscape and Memory course was the effect of studying subjects up close versus studying them from afar, taking in the surrounding area as a whole. Nowhere was this focus of observation more pertinent than during a recent class field exercise on the Freedom Trail. As the sight of the Boston Massacre, the Old State House is one of the most notable stop on the Freedom Trail. Up close, tourists are greeted by the oldest surviving public building in Boston. The structure’s brick exterior, colonial windows, and Greek columns serve as a visual reminder of the architecture styles so prominently used by the colonial elite three centuries earlier. The square around the building draws visitors' eyes to the antiquated building, until they notice the skyscrapers racing upward around them. It is then that focusing on structures in their wider context becomes particularly important. 

One of the most common observations people must make when walking the Freedom Trail is the merging of eras, how buildings centuries old lay next to feats of modern architecture. In some cases the two are integrated into each other, such as in the case of the Old State House. To begin with, the placement of the building in the shadows of skyscrapers might be disorienting because of how out of time the building might seem. This is no different, however, than many of the other stops along the Trail, even if many of those stops do not have dozens of floors of steel and glass hovering over them. 

One of the struggles historians face is figuring out how to bridge the gap between the past and present for people not normally interested in seeing how the past continues to affect their daily lives. The Old State House is of particular interest for both History and Landscape studies because of how it is now part not only of tourists’ experiences, but of native Bostonians' lives as well. Since 1904 and 1908 the MBTA has operated the Blue and Orange lines, respectively, out of the basement of the Statehouse. Between the Old State House, the surrounding buildings, the railroad beneath, and the museum operating out of the building, passersby witness a merging of technology, architecture, and history that group together 301 years of Boston heritage. With that type of cultural conglomeration in such a concentrated area it is hard to not be reminded of how the past continues to play a part in people’s everyday lives.

Regis undergraduate Kerry Pintabona enjoying both Boston’s past and present. 

Following our Path: Putting together the Exhibit video

The "Following our Path" exhibit has been up at the Carney Gallery of the Fine Arts Center for a little over a month now, but have you wondered how the museum studies practicum students actually went about installing all of that material? (Of course you have!). Thanks to museum studies student JP Harwick, we have a short documentary about the process of installing "Following our Path". Just click on the link and enjoy!

http://youtu.be/ka-TaNeSOCw 

Welcome Ana!

Ana is the newest addition to the History, World Languages, and Cultural Heritage Department family. As our assistant she will be provide weekly office support to faculty and students.  Welcome Ana!  We look forward to working with you this semester.

 

My name is Ana Fernanda Hidalgo. I am eighteen years old and a freshman at Regis College. I have one sister, Gabriela. She is twenty two years old and a Boston College graduate. My parents are from Nicaragua and I am very proud of my heritage. I grew up in Nicaragua but was born in Miami, Florida. I genuinely think that the fact that I was raised in a third world country highly influenced my view on life as a whole. In other words, I know what it is like to see young kids asking for money at stop lights, I know that I am privileged to be receiving an education at this institution. When it comes to entertainment, I've always had a passion for reading and writing. Because of this, I am double majoring in English and Communications and minoring in Spanish. My dream job is to be a journalist, to inform the general public of current events and how they might be able to help. The reason I moved to Massachusetts is because I wanted a whole new experience as far as college goes. I wanted to move away from my hometown in order to become independent and grow as a person. As the department's assistant, I hope to get to know everyone at a personal level and help each faculty member to the best of my ability.

The Exhibit Opens!!!

 

By Margaret

I  can not even begin to count how many events I have helped put on throughout my time here at Regis. I always forget how much planning is needed in order to make an event successful. I have watched the students from the Museum Studies Practicum for over a semester now plan the exhibit that opens today at the Carney Art Gallery here at Regis College. I just walked down to the Fine Arts Center to see the finished product and I was blown away at the professionalism taken by the students while putting this show together. I have been keeping up on the blog posts the students from the class have been putting up and it was wonderful to finally see it all put together. I don’t want to give away any surprises, but I left the exhibit with a much deeper understanding of the history of this college and the legacy left by the Sisters of Saint Joseph. 

I have been at Regis College for over five years now and this exhibit opened up Regis’ past to me in a way I have never seen before. My favorite part of the exhibit was a poem written by Sister Lucilla Dineen, a past Academic Dean of the college. It not only represents the exhibit in its prose, but serves as a reminder that as the college continually changes over time it is important to recognize and celebrate our past. I think the students, under the guidance of Dr. Kathryn Edney, have done a fantastic job showing the community how proud we should all be to call Regis a part of our own personal history.

An Interesting Find: "Following our Path: Regis College through its Art Collection"

by: Sarah Vedrani

Last week we began installation of our exhibit “Following Our Path” in the Carney Gallery, and we’re all very excited to see it all finally coming together. We knew going into the installation process that we might have to make some (or many) last minute changes, additions, or even deletions to the exhibit. It just happens.

Well, when something like that happens, it can end up having some very cool results. I had been cleaning up a small bust of Mary and baby Jesus and I noticed that the artist signature on the piece didn’t match what we had on the label. So I noted the change, and did a Google search to see if I could find out the artist’s first name, as it was not included in the signature. Instead of a first name, I found an interesting connection to a famous place in England.

The artist, Raffaelle Monti (I did finally find his first name) was a member of the Crystal Palace Art Union, which was a collaboration of European artists who worked making porcelain copies of classical and contemporary marble sculptures. The Union was housed in London’s Crystal Palace, originally built in 1851 for the Great Exhibition, which showcased industry and inventions from all over the world, as well as English history. The Crystal Palace Art Union exhibited and sold pieces from the Sheffield Court, which was originally meant to house important pieces of Sheffield silver. The Union would operate well into the 1860s.

The Crystal Palace

Raffaelle Monti exhibited copies of many of his own pieces at the Union, including a copy of one of his most famous works, “The Veiled Vestal.” Altered and renamed “The Veiled Bride” for the Union, the piece was made for the 6^th Duke of Devonshire, and currently resides in Chatsworth House in England. The statue was featured in the 2005 film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, starring Kiera Knightley.

     

While this was all a very last minute discovery, it’s still important, and showed me why it’s important to always do my research. Simply wanting to be thorough and to have a complete label led me to make an interesting discovery that links Regis College’s collection to the larger world of art. Who knows what else we’ll find as we continue installing?