[Message from the President header with his website url: president.baruch.cuny.edu]

March 29, 2023

My March Blog: “What Does Art Have to Do with It?”

Dear Baruch Community,

One of my weekend routines is to take a long run to the west side of Manhattan, along the Hudson River, before the city wakes. After finishing my run, showering, and sipping coffee in the glow of the early morning sun, my wife and I plan where to explore that day. This is the beauty of living in New York City—a brief subway ride or a casual stroll through the neighborhood takes us to the steps of one of many world-class art institutions. While people across the globe plan their visits to these museums months in advance, for us, all that is needed for entry—in most cases—is a Baruch ID.

What Art Means to Me
I love how the world is seemingly transformed as soon as we enter these magical spaces—whether it is the desolate light and vivid facial expressions created by Dutch Golden Age painters Rembrandt, Hals, and Vermeer at The Met; the expressive exploration of color, line, and shape of Kandinsky at the Guggenheim; or the audacious and yet ingenious experimentation with form and color by Matisse and Chagall at MoMA—it seems each piece is a portal into the artist’s state of mind that has somehow remained alive and well through the ages. Without using words, art has a way to bring out surreal and yet familiar feelings in an entirely intuitive and holistic way.

Being surrounded by great artwork invokes memories and emotions in me that very few other experiences can. Wandering through the galleries, I often feel a sense of wonder in the strangeness of life—where I have been and how I got here.

Growing up in Taipei, I was blessed with free access to the National Palace Museum. One of the most celebrated museums in the world, its art collections span more than 4,000 years of Chinese history, from translucent jade objects dating back to the Neolithic period to delicate textiles, ceramics, paintings, calligraphies, and carvings over millennia. Even then, what amazed me was the intrinsic connection I felt with those ancient souls who created the pieces of art—the sense that emotionally we may not have changed all that much through the ages.

My wife and I are members of The Met, which allows us to stop by regularly to savor what truly is an ingeniously curated representation of human heritages—from the great civilizations of antiquity, to African, Asian, Byzantine, Islamic, and Oceanic art, as well as paintings and sculptures from the European old masters and notable American and modern artists. By allowing ourselves to spend an hour or two per visit—not rushing through but paying real attention to a small segment of the collections—I learned to notice how a great piece of art possesses the fluidity to weave its way into the mind and heart through particular angles, and that our perceptions change and evolve over time.

A Sanctuary of Our Own
I previously made the point<https://presidentsblog.baruch.cuny.edu/appreciate-the-complexity-around-us/> that “we become what our minds are exposed to.” Expanding our experiential base is fundamental to a high-quality education. In particular, exposure to art, music, and other cultures improves our ability to see the full context of our world and the emotional underpinnings of human nature—something that is better experienced than taught. Personally, I consider exposure to the arts to be an essential ingredient to a rich and fulfilling life. This is why I was so excited when the Mishkin Gallery<https://weissman.baruch.cuny.edu/mishkin-gallery/>—Baruch’s very own art gallery on Lexington and 22nd Street—reopened following a more than two-year pandemic closure.

In my March blog post, “What Does Art Have to Do with It?<https://presidentsblog.baruch.cuny.edu/what-does-art-have-to-do-with-it/>,” I share my admiration for the ways in which art challenges the status quo, opens doors to new perspectives and ideas, and has the power to inspire creativity and innovation in our personal and professional lives.

Please join this timely conversation—comment, subscribe, and sign up for blog notifications. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

S. David Wu
President, Baruch College

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