Creatives @ the Barnett | Barnett Center

The Barnett Center for Integrated Arts and Enterprise is leading a pilot program during the 2023-24 academic year entitled Creatives @ the Barnett. The program supports a cohort of 12 undergraduate students (the “Creatives”) who each possess a particular creative focus (i.e. creative writing, design, visual art, music, dance, theatre, photography, etc.). The cohort will work closely together throughout the 2023-24 academic year investigating, designing, creating, and presenting collaborative creative expressions which are connected to an identified social theme. The Creatives are supported by a team of experienced mentors and a budget to support their integrated creative expression.

The cohort will examine dimensions of creative expression through regular cohort seminar meetings, artist presentations, and excursions to local arts events. Ultimately, each cohort member will be paired with another and tasked with the creation of a collaborative expression connected to an identified social theme. Consideration for inclusion in the cohort is open to students regardless of major.

This pilot program endeavors to provide each cohort member with:

• a heightened awareness of their own creative “voice”

• a deepened understanding of interdisciplinary work in the arts

• rich engagement with collaborative creative expression

• an awareness of the impact of the arts in local community

• meaningful engagement with an experienced creative mentor

• informed understanding of the identified “social theme”

Questions can be directed to Barnett Center Director, Dr. Scott A. Jones, at BarnettCenter@osu.edu.

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During the pilot program, each Creative will be paired with another whose creative discipline differs (i.e. a dancer and a creative writer; a painter and a cellist; a designer and a composer; etc.). Each pair will then be commissioned to create a single integrated creative expression that illumines a dimension of the pre-determined social theme (i.e. homelessness, food scarcity, mental health, diversity, etc.). The 6 creative pairs will present their collaborative expressions at public events scheduled for April 2024.

Each creative pair will be supported by an experienced mentor (from the Ohio State campus and/or local arts community). Mentors will work closely with their creative pair through the planning, creating, and sharing of their creative expression. Each Creative will also be provided a budget of up to $500 ($1000 total per pair) for the acquisition of resources central to their creative expression. Each creative will also be provided with space for collaborative work as a member of the cohort.

Expectations for members of the cohort include:

• a curiosity about interdisciplinary creative expression

• an interest in the integration of the arts into local communities

• a willingness to remain open and vulnerable to new ideas

• a belief in the importance of creative and human diversity

• attendance at all regularly scheduled cohort seminars (2 hours weekly, evening times TBD)

• enrollment at Ohio State in both Autumn Semester 2023 and Spring Semester 2024

• a commitment to full cohort participation during both semesters

The calendar will include cohort seminar meetings, local cohort excursions, and meaningful engagement with artistic and community innovators. The time commitment for cohort activities is anticipated to be approximately 2 hours per week.

Featured below are short bios of both the new cohort and their mentors. For more information about each individual, please click the button below.

Cohort Bios