Have you been to The Rose Art Museum yet? Marked by the iconic Light of Reason sculpture by Chris Burden, The Rose was founded in 1961 and, according to its website, is dedicated to “collecting, preserving and exhibiting the finest of modern and contemporary art.”
Hannah Kressel ’20 is the president for the Student Committee for the Rose Art Museum (SCRAM). She is triple majoring in Art History, Studio Art and European Cultural Studies, and is taking over the responsibilities as President for the first time this semester.
SCRAM is dedicated to connecting students with the museum and all that it offers by hosting various events throughout the semester. “We’re in charge of outreach to students. Our big goal is to get students to come to the Rose Art Museum, to be involved, to plan events for The Rose … We want to get people to the museum, looking at the art and appreciating the space,” said Kressel of the committee.
As president, Kressel’s job is to make sure that SCRAM, the museum staff and the students are all communicating and exchanging their ideas for events The Rose can host. Kressel meets regularly with Leanne Winn, the Manager of Museum Administration & Special Events at The Rose Art Museum, to talk about the various stages of the events that SCRAM is planning and toss ideas back and forth between the museum staff and the committee.
While event planning is a large piece of what the club does together, they also attend outings into Boston to enjoy art. “We’re planning trips to the MFA, we’re trying to plan more art appreciation events,” explained Kressel of the other ways that the club incorporates art that is not necessarily related to The Rose.
SCRAM hosts four events each semester. This semester, SCRAM is planning a farmer’s market in March with vendors outside the museum. They are also trying to plan an open house after the museum has its opening of new exhibitions in early March with special access for students. They will also host their annual SCRAM Jam, a big party in April that will feature food trucks, a beer garden and live music, and the museum will be open late. Also, each semester near finals week, SCRAM hosts a Study Night at The Rose for students who want to study in the art museum.
One of Kressel’s favorite events from last year was SCRAM Jam last spring. “We had a band from Boston come…and we had three food trucks there and a really good turnout. It was nice to see people enjoy the art as well in a different context than you would be able to at a general museum.”
SCRAM hopes to show Brandeis students that The Rose is an abundant resource on campus. “There’s over 9,000 pieces of art there, and [from] very real well known artists.” For students interested in joining the committee, Kressel explains, “It’s a great way to get involved very intimately with art in a way that you would never have any other opportunity to do so.” As a member of SCRAM, students can also get exclusive previews to shows. Lastly, if you’re interested in planning events, the club is a great way to get involved. “It’s fun to plan things and see people enjoy them,” Kressel said.
SCRAM is made up of a small group of dedicated students and Kressel hopes that as students join, they will be even more “actively involved in the event planning process” by having opportunities to speak with The Rose staff, like the president of the club currently does. Students wishing to get involved can join SCRAM’s listserv, come to one of its meetings, which take place on Tuesday nights at 8:30 p.m. in the art studio or attend their events.
