Anonymous COVID-19 confessions, struggling hip-hop artists and ballet during the pandemic: scrolling back through the Emerald’s A&C tab reveals how much has happened in Eugene’s arts and cultural scene in the past few months. Here’s a look back at the top stories from this fall.
An anonymous Instagram page shares COVID-19 concerns
Em Chan
A couple months before fall term started, a group of anonymous students and UO alumni created the Instagram @covid.campus page, which posts anonymous submissions from students and community members about the school’s handling of COVID-19 issues. Other universities and colleges across the country have had similar pages pop up as students have felt outraged by the way their administrators have responded to the pandemic.
The page’s reputation grew as more students found the page and submitted their own testimonies. Concerns raised by submissions include protocol for the human physiology department’s in-person labs, the safety of student workers in the libraries and how UO is handling Fraternity and Sorority Life in the wake of parties allegedly thrown at live-outs and members’ homes. From all the discussion the page raised, UO administrators defended the safety protocol and challenged the legitimacy of some of the posts, but the submissions and dissatisfaction of students and community members remain evident and highly contentious.
New Zone Gallery opens a new location near campus
Grace Murray
The New Zone Gallery has been a staple in Eugene’s art community since 1983, serving as a place for artists to create, collaborate and display their work. The main gallery space is on Seventh Avenue in downtown Eugene, adjacent to the Hult Center, but for the first time, New Zone has opened a second location offering additional opportunities for members and the community alike. Just a block away from UO, the new location is the first art-oriented business to join the bustling 13th Street in years.
The building was formerly home to a Smith Family Bookstore location, but it now holds an entirely art-focused space. The features include a New Zone gallery, a gift shop and the Smith Galleria where artists can rent studio spaces to create and sell their own work in a marketplace fashion. The New Zone gallery will stay on 13th Avenue until the end of 2020 — and possibly beyond.
Fermata Ballet Collective reinvents the dance company
Jennah Pendleton
This summer, Eugene dancers proved their resilience when they created a new dance collective that aims to support the dance community in the face of extraordinary challenges. When met with a global pandemic that made the traditional process of a dance company impossible, as well as the civil unrest that has aimed to change traditional power structures, the seven founders of Fermata saw the dire need for change.
Fermata is a performing collective that relies on an egalitarian decision-making structure. The co-founders’ mission in the formation of the company was to offer a safe place for dancers to continue their practice during the pandemic. “It was important to our name and brand that we are an exemplary institution of healthy ballet, diverse ballet and representative ballet,” Fermata co-founder Angela Dunham said. In addition to classical ballet classes, Fermata also offers other genres of dance like contemporary ballet and modern technique.
Local hip-hop artists share their struggles
Lucas Warner
Rap music may not be the most popular genre in Eugene, but local artists are still trying to push it to the forefront. Many were set to make good inroads into repopularizing the genre before the pandemic happened. Now they are staying motivated by interacting with their fans online and keeping their nose to the grindstone.
Three Eugene hip-hop artists who stand out are Julian Outlaw, Michael Klindt and Elena Leona. All of them have overcome challenges like the struggle to make money from art, the stereotyping of hip-hop artists and Eugene’s lack of diversity. Artists in Eugene also have to deal with the close-minded attitudes of some local venues that don’t support hip-hop music. Although these artists face a long road to change the mindset of locals, they remain steadfast in their love of and desire to make music.
Art from members of the New Zone Art Gallery is on display in their new location in the Smith Family Building on 13th Avenue. While only members can display art there, the new studio space is open to all artists in the community. On October 9, the New Zone Art Gallery is opening a new location in the Smith Family Building on 13th Avenue. (Will Geschke/Emerald)
