Zoë Crutcher ’22 spent most of the night Oct. 18 sitting at the feet of performers at the Display Art Collective’s “Open Mic Night.” Holding a black microphone up to the mouth to those playing instruments and singing, she laughed at an oversight: they didn’t have a mic stand.
Smith students, their friends, and Crutcher, the music performing director for Display, packed into the Tenney house living room. The event had a large audience, leaving many standing in the kitchen with the hopes of getting a peek.
“I was in the jazz ensemble my first year, but this was my first time performing anything I had written,” Phoebe John ‘22 said after singing three of her original songs to the crowded room. “It felt like a judgment-free space where the audience wanted to hear me, and I wanted to be heard.”
Although there are some student organizations that allow students to engage in art (such as the Smith College Radio, Smith Ukuleles, a capella groups, Wind Ensemble, and more), students have an increasing desire for less formal creative spaces. Display Arts Collective, along with the reboot of the Smith Music Collective, are two student-run organizations trying to generate an arts culture separate from what has already been established.
Since the beginning of the semester, the organization, founded by Crutcher, Clara Kim ’23 and Chidi Obieshi ’22, has been meeting weekly to plan and promote events like their Open Mic Night. So far, they’re organizing a “huge” Halloween party, gallery show, “bedroom pop production” workshop and zine release party. In addition to their own events, Display is working with Students for Justice in Palestine, another chartered student organization, by making and sourcing artwork to be sold for fundraising at their cosponsored upcoming “Anti-Colonial Celebration” event.
“Art and music at Smith tend to be highly institutionalized,” the Crutcher, Kim and Obieshi said. “Through our interdisciplinary independent arts programming we hope to encourage collaboration and foster an artistic community on Smith’s campus.”
Ysatis Tagle ’22 and Isabel Montesanto ’22, founders of the reestablished Smith Music Collective (SMC), echoed Display’s sentiments.
“My personal experience with trying to make music here outside of [a cappella or credited music courses] has been that it’s hard to find people to play with, hard to find places to perform, and hard to get access to school equipment, especially drums, without paying for lessons,” Montesanto said. “And a lot of that is because I barely know anyone else who’s doing it, which doesn’t necessarily mean that barely anyone is, just that we’re not in touch or visible on campus.”
Through helping students obtain all the resources necessary to practice and perform jams, open mics, and shows, SMC hopes to cultivate a shared space for creating and appreciating music.
“I wasn’t involved when SMC stopped, but I heard that it kind of petered off last fall and remained inactive from there,” Tagle, SMC’s president said when asked why the organization had previously disbanded. “In order to [keep the org active] you have to meet certain requirements like having two meetings, hosting an event, and small things like that. The hardest part was just coordinating with the OSE [Office of Student Engagement].”
“Smith’s music scene is very formal, I feel,” Tagle said. “There is not a lot of space for people who aren’t committed to music to explore that part of themselves. Most music related things fall through the music department.”
Crutcher had a similar attitude toward working within the Smith institution. “I would say where the formalities get frustrating is when we want to use basement spaces. I’ve been told vehemently by res life that we can’t throw parties down there. Which sucks because they are such amazing spaces for concerts and DIY gallery parties.”
Perhaps it is these types of regulations and requirements that deter other student-led art organizations from forming. But in a setting where Smith is liable for their students’ wellbeing, regulations are necessary. Organizations require funding, use the school’s equipment, and all reside on campus under the protection of the college. Display only had positive things to say about working with OSE, and SMC recognized that regulations make organizing student activities easier for the Smith administration.
Regardless of what requirements the organizations may face, Display and SMC are actively proving student-led groups can thrive on campus. Display’s turnout at the open mic night, both clubs’ presence on social media and the amount of students showing interest illustrate the Smith community’s desire for an artistic and social environment. In these music jams, Halloween parties, gallery openings, and other shared creative spaces beyond the classroom setting, students have the potential to come together and explore their artistic endeavors – all with the support of peers who care and encourage artistic growth.
For more information on the Smith Music Collective, look on the Smith Social Network and Facebook. For more information on the Display Art Collective, follow their instagram @displayartcollective or email display@smith.edu to be added to their emailing list.
