Guests view the end of year showcase in a previous year.
MANHATTAN.EDU / COURTESY
Brooke Della Rocco, Senior Writer
Manhattan University’s (MU) Sanctus Artem club has a productive semester ahead, filled with engaging, community building activities.
Sanctus Artem can be translated to “pure arts” in Latin, naming it as the only student art club on campus. According to their website, the club “seeks to foster student creativity and collaboration through a variety of visual, performing and literary arts-related activities…the club provides students with the opportunity to come together, focus their talents and fulfill their artistic potential.”
Senior environmental studies major Lucas Haas discussed his role as president of Sanctus Artem, and how he first got involved with the club.
“I started getting more involved in the club in my sophomore year,” Haas said. “Here at Manhattan [University], they didn’t really offer too many [art classes], so I wanted to get involved in art somehow…I would just go to all the events…It was great. I wanted to be a part of that.”
Sophomore biology major and the events coordinator for Sanctus Artem, Aine Kolpa, discussed the noncommittal nature of the club and how that ties into its mission.
“It is non-committal, so people can join us at any time, without stressing if they can’t make it the next week,” Kolpa wrote in an email to The Quadrangle. “The mission of this club is to give students two hours of de-stressing and having fun through different art mediums a week.”
With the spring semester upon them, the club hopes to cultivate a lengthy and exciting lineup of events to host. In the past, they have been extremely active with events such as painting on the quad, a few museum trips in New York City and workshops. Kolpa spoke more in depth about the workshops that the club often puts into effect.
“We love hosting workshops based on holidays, seasons and the university’s schedule, so it is honestly pretty easy to come up with fun ideas that also get people in the mood for different holidays,” Kolpa wrote. “Especially in college, people can feel disconnected from these kinds of things, so I always love coming up with different crafts that can bring in the holiday spirit for students.”
Haas spoke about wanting to implement at least three trips into the city, whether it be to a museum or exhibit, compared to last semester’s two trips. Additionally, the club hopes to foster more collaboration among the arts programs at MU.
“We hope to collaborate with student government for Valentine’s Day, and we also hope to collaborate with different performing arts groups here on campus for our art showcase,” Kolpa wrote. “I believe very strongly in connecting the arts here on campus, so it has been a big passion of mine as an E-board member to make this happen this semester.”
Despite the past year’s absence of an art showcase, Haas hopes to bring it back near the conclusion of the school year.
“Later in the semester, we’ll be doing an art show and trying to find some other clubs to collab with,” Haas said. “A potential LOTUS [Magazine] collab, if they’re interested, to showcase some of their previous designs. Just to really showcase all the art and creativity on campus that we have.”
Despite a small budget for the active club, they have found a successful ability toward stretching what they have to accommodate their plans. Moving forward, the club hopes to maintain its current members, as it has more participants than ever.
“Sanctus Artem has a bright future,” Kolpa wrote. “Our president, Lucas, and our vice president, Stasia, are laying amazing groundwork for the future, so when they are gone, the club will have a strong foundation. They have gone above and beyond this semester to make the club more active than ever.”
Haas left readers with some advice if they are ever on the fence about joining.
“We welcome everybody,” Haas said. “You do not have to be an artist, so to speak. Just come, and we’ll help you out. We’ll show you some techniques and tricks to make whatever masterpiece that you can handle.”