A mock-up image of what the mural will look like once complete.
MADISON HACKETT / COURTESY
Maria Castaño, Contributor
The Manhattan University performing arts has commissioned a mural from senior student Madison Hackett to be painted in the rehearsal room of Thomas Hall 5.17.
As the department continues to work to enhance the experience of students involved in the performing arts, the mural is intended to make the space feel more inspiring and welcoming, while also paying tribute to the roots of jazz and rock with musicians such as Chuck Berry, Louis Armstrong and Miles Davis featured in the piece.
Andrew Bauer, an adjunct professor in the department and the director of performing arts on campus, was the one who encouraged Hackett to take on the project after she presented her idea to him. Bauer spoke with The Quadrangle about why the department felt the need to add a mural in the rehearsal room.
“Following the completion of the room, it just seemed to me that we needed to personalize it for our performing art performance,” Bauer said. “Also, it’s a beautiful room, but it’s kind of stale, it’s very simple and it didn’t have any personality, and we needed to add personality in the room.”
Hackett, a senior majoring in digital media arts with a double minor in business and music, shared with The Quadrangle her creative process and intentions behind the mural.
“[The inspirations for this mural were] the roots of jazz and rock because I think every modern and contemporary musician looks back for inspiration to these guys.” Hackett said. “I know the Beatles which are going to be featured were huge fans of Chuck Berry so I think it’s a nod to musicians that are fans of these other great musicians, so it just keeps going back and I think it’s really amazing.”
This mural represents the roots of music, aiming to inspire students and make the rehearsal room more aligned with its purpose through art, while also adding deeper meaning to the space.
Mark Pottinger, Ph.D., department chairperson for communication, sound and media arts, spoke with The Quadrangle about the process of the room renovations and the importance of showcasing art on campus.
“There hasn’t been a renovation there since before my time and my time was 26 years ago, so the fact that there hasn’t been any sort of major update of that space was huge and so to mark that [we commissioned the mural]” Pottinger said. “[This is] part of the three stages, where we just finished completing stage one. Stages two and three are basically turning the performing arts space, Thomas Hall 5.17 into a recording studio … so the mural is like putting a flag on the moon and saying this belongs to us, but also this is an acknowledgment of the creativity that the performing arts brings.”
One of the goals of the piece is to portray unity, and find a way to visually represent how all of the schools within Manhattan University come together through the performing arts spaces. Pottinger spoke to how he hopes the mural will convey this message.
“Through color and through line,” Pottinger said. “And object and design, creating something that people can connect to orally because the space … it’s a sounding space, so a way to perceive as one looks out which connects us all.”
The renovations that took place in the rehearsal room were part of an overarching mission to better the resources on campus for performing arts students.
Bauer shared with The Quadrangle how this room began to take shape.
“Two years ago, the room was renovated, and prior to the renovation, the room was really terrible in terms of using it for rehearsal space for either singers or instrumentalist bands and things like that,” Bauer said. “So Brother Dan Gardner, who was the president at the time, secured funding to have the room completely renovated. He had a new floor put in, we had sound paneling on the walls, we had an acoustically appropriate ceiling put in, so the room is just completely redone.”
The performing arts groups on campus are open for anyone to join, allowing for individuals of various majors to come together to enjoy and participate in the arts.
“I continue to see the place of the arts on campus as fundamental to the liberal arts education,” Pottinger said. “We’re not a technical school, we’re not a purely engineering school or business school, we are a university now that connects all three areas of study. For me, I’d like to see engineering involved more in the arts. I’d like to see the arts more involved in business, I’d like to see more integration… seeing this as one complete school. I think the performing arts is one key place where that takes place… I want to encourage that because this is really the mission of the school…to create this integrated sort of perspective of the student.”
Enhancing the visibility and importance of the arts is not only essential for the students who pursue more creative and artistic careers, but also for all students to create a sense of community on campus. The mural also serves as a way to showcase the historical diversity of music, and the artists throughout time who have inspired current students most.
“I was also asking people, who do you want to see on the mural?” Hackett said. “I asked students and a lot of people gave me a lot of good ideas. I wanted to include different instruments starting with early jazz because a lot of contemporary musicians get all of their inspiration from early jazz … and I was thinking not only of jazz but of early jazz and who else other than John Berry. So it was a mix of asking students who they wanted to see and also featuring iconic figures that brought the foundation of music today.”
The art serves as a physical representation of student creativity on campus.
“I think the execution of this mural will instill confidence within our students that if they have ideas, they can come to fruition,” Bauer said. “Madison had an idea, and she presented it to us and we supported it. And I think that we want to have an environment where all students can contribute their ideas … [and] have the opportunity to have their ideas heard and executed.”