The Arts Council beyond Princeton: Work from Barbara DiLorenzo’s online students from 2020-2025
Exhibition statement:
In the middle of March 2020, classes were ending from the mid-winter session, and spring classes were about to begin. Students had already signed up for in-person studio classes. However, due to the COVID pandemic, we quickly had to pivot to Zoom classes online. The first classes were less about technique and more about adapting to the new way of learning and communicating online. We quickly got our bearings, and while the world was shut down, artists were inspired to paint locations all over the world from their own homes. Five years later, students continue to join this online community for many reasons. Some people have physical challenges that make attending in person too hard. Some people log in from hundreds of miles away (or other countries like Canada or Sweden). Our geographical distance was illustrated to us in April of 2024, when an earthquake struck New Jersey. Some people felt the tremors immediately, some felt them after a delay, and some artists up and down the Eastern seaboard didn’t feel anything and wondered why fellow artists near New Jersey were alarmed.
In the middle of March 2020, classes were ending from the mid-winter session, and spring classes were about to begin. Students had already signed up for in-person studio classes. However, due to the COVID pandemic, we quickly had to pivot to Zoom classes online. The first classes were less about technique and more about adapting to the new way of learning and communicating online. We quickly got our bearings, and while the world was shut down, artists were inspired to paint locations all over the world from their own homes. Five years later, students continue to join this online community for many reasons. Some people have physical challenges that make attending in person too hard. Some people log in from hundreds of miles away (or other countries like Canada or Sweden). Our geographical distance was illustrated to us in April of 2024, when an earthquake struck New Jersey. Some people felt the tremors immediately, some felt them after a delay, and some artists up and down the Eastern seaboard didn’t feel anything and wondered why fellow artists near New Jersey were alarmed.
We are an invisible community, but we make up a part of the fabric of the Arts Council of Princeton. The ACP hosts an annual members’ show which serves as a sort of celebration and in-person reunion for us. We even meet every Friday for a free open studio just to hang out together, chat, and make whatever art we want.
This collection is just a sampling of the work created by these artists in this time.
