Featuring artistic media ranging from painting and photography to drawing and printmaking, the senior art major showcase is the result of this unique dynamic. Beginning yesterday, April 24, seven graduating Studio Art majors are showcasing their thesis projects in an exhibition entitled Pit Stop, now on display at the Spagnuolo Gallery in Walsh through May 17.

While many students at Georgetown seem most keen on policy jargon and their next internship opportunity, these seven seniors have decidedly struck out on their own.

Laura Thistle (COL ’13) is a Philadelphia native who served as captain of the field hockey team this year. Her contribution to the exhibition comes through the medium of oil paints, specifically “somber landscapes that convey not only a sense of loss of physical things, but also the fleeting quality of moments themselves,” she wrote in an email to the Voice.

After arriving at Georgetown, Thistle surveyed the landscape of potential majors and settled on Studio Art, in a department that, she notes, “is barely known around campus.”

However, her perception is not necessarily a reality, according to fellow Studio Art major Swedian Lie (COL ’13). “I think it is too easy and simplistic to just prescribe to that belief,” he said. “As an active member in the theater community as well as a Studio Arts major, I find myself surrounded by individuals from the MSB, from the SFS, from the NHS, and so forth who are all exercising their artistic minds in various capacities on campus.”

A certain charm exists within this kind of small group working together. Greta Rasmus (COL ’13), who has a series of charcoal drawings on display, talked about her appetite for this niche.

“There is something entirely unique about spending time in a studio for five hours a week with your professors and classmates that allows you to really delve into the art you’re doing, but also to simply get to know the people who are working around you,” she said.

The title of the exhibition, Pit Stop, provides a double meaning for both the artist and the viewer. These are seven young artists, unsure of the future of their craft and their lives, eager to make their first step into the real world a positive one. This show is only a brief respite along the way, and it could prove to be an enlightening break for the viewer as well—as a welcome interlude from the chaos of the twenty-something’s journey, a haven from the unknown.

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The rip-roaring, fast-paced production, loaded with extravagant movements and ladles of charm, had me enraptured throughout. This came as a surprise—I had not expected 17th century Spanish humor to gel with my own, but I found myself responding heartily to the plays’ unexpectedly relatable wisecracks.

Cervantes, a pet favorite of Professor Mujica, is an apt and intelligent choice for this particular endeavor, given his plays’ relative brevity. In fact, the entreméses were originally meant as interludes between longer plays. Their brevity allowed for a spartan set design, which was effective in keeping the overall mood intimate and the drama unfettered by ornamentation. The audience could concentrate fully on the characters themselves, and the only sensory enhancements were the skillful use of light and sound.

I was admittedly relieved at the availability of English subtitles on the background screen. The incongruence of any improvisation made with the subtitles present would have caused some awkwardness, but not once did the neophytes slip up on their lines—a nod to their robust efforts. The screen simultaneously provided a visual backdrop, demonstrating their thoughtful use of multimedia.

The director also did well to modify a 17th century script—with certain elements and archaic terms bound to be lost on us—to suit a contemporary cast and audience. There was a clear attempt to connect to a younger crowd, with modern garb, motorcycles, and even an amusing iPod mention, but the effect was never confusing oranachronistic. Cervantes’s humor and social satire remained dominant throughout.

I could imagine several audience members identifying with his ever-relevant themes of adultery, prejudice and patriarchy. While we should certainly thank Cervantes for his tremendous insight into our core human condition, this feat was achieved in no small part due to the clever dramatic choices to infuse modernity.

Due to the confines of working with limited professional cachet, one may expect noticeable compromises to be made, but the brilliant casting and adept use of resources made these “compromises” seem purposeful. The ostensibly American accents of the non-native speakers somehow worked marvelously with the comic elements—it was hysterical watching the comedy in accordance. The lead, Yoel Castillo (GRAD ‘16), in both plays deserves special mention for his uncanny comic timing and roguish, cheeky swagger. Even the small venue seemed to me a purposeful decision, for the lack of voice projection was less of an issue.

With signature Cervantes style, these plays are works of levity that are filled with fallibly human moments that are the mark of great comedy. The cast and crew manage to bring the playwright’s wit and social commentary to the stage in an inspired, sensitive and modern fashion—no Apple products included.

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Saturated with references to the king of the jungle, Reincarnated may be perfect for an audience too stoned out of its mind to remember that Snoop changed his name, but the casual listener will find the album rather tedious.

Even tracks like “Here Comes the King,” which allow Snoop Lion to stay in his comfort zone of rapping, before reaching out for a reggae vibe only towards the end, fall flat on their abrasive and distracting drums.

Guest artists, too, do little to improve the LP’s quality. On “No Guns Allowed,” Snoop Lion’s daughter Cori B and Drake turn an attempt at a soaring chorus into an off-key wail. The track’s one positive feature is Drake’s veteran expertise on an almost emotional 30-second indictment of guns.

Though a limited array of featured artists may raise a song from the ashes, they eclipse Snoop Lion’s attempts at reggae in the process. The far more experienced Movado and Popcaan, for instance, are the clear winners on “Lighters Up,” in spite of sharing only brief verses.

Major Lazer’s production of the album is, in the end, the glue that holds Reincarnated together. “Get Away,” a particular gem on the album, explicitly features the producer’s name, synths, and a pulsing bass drum that shifts enough attention from Snoop Lion to create a solid track.

“Tired of Running,” too, features pleasantly powerful electronic elements, though Akon dominates the song.

Reincarnated—though rather unfortunate as a full album—contains a mixture of noteworthy artists and occasionally first-rate production, Snoop Lion’s poor showing notwithstanding. Still, traveling to Jamaica and converting to Rastafarianism, no matter how sincere the transformation may be, does not imbue a rapper with reggae prowess.

Voice’s Choices: “Get Away,” “The Good Good”

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Phoenix kicks off the album with “Entertainment,” an upbeat track reminiscent of the lighthearted dynamism heard in 2009 single “1901.” The thick keyboard on the chorus grounds this otherwise airy tune, complete with Asian influences and a catchy melody. “The Real Thing,” slows down the pace, as a drum machine emanates ‘80s vibes to create a steady, bass-heavy backbeat. “S.O.S. in Bel Air” stands out as a remarkable layering of guitar, drums, synthesizers, and even maracas, all of which coalesce into a hypnotic hook complemented by hype instrumentals.

To characterize the title track as anticlimactic would be an understatement, since “Bankrupt!” includes a nearly five-minute build-up to two minutes of melancholic vocals that simply fade out and allow the listener to break out of the confused trance induced by this overly forced endeavor of a song.

The second half of the album continues with consistent reverberations of classic Phoenix quirkiness and exuberance, most notably in “Drakkar Noir” and “Oblique City.” The band even exerts a kind of pretentiousness characteristic of Georgetown students in the title of the song “Bourgeois,” in which the tension and ambitious arrangement seen throughout the rest of the album simmer down just enough to allow Mars’s aural magic to resonate freely through the track.

What the album lacks in lyrical excellence it makes up for in harmonic intricacy, and although similar in sound to many of its previous albums, Phoenix yet again reminded us why it has been around and thriving for the past sixteen years. Arguably the leaders of indie synth-pop, the French quartet demonstrated their ability to adjust to the idea of being more mainstream artists without abandoning their distinct voice. Defined by the kind of kinetic energy that pervades summer nights and open roads, it begs to be heard.

Voice’s Choices: “Subway,” “Always”

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His geography hasn’t gotten less complicated since then. In his most recent collection of essays, Shopping for a Better Country, Novakovich chronicles his vagabond lifestyle, which led him from his home country to Serbia for medical school; then to Vassar and Yale to study psychology, theology; and creative writing; to St. Petersburg; Berlin; Pennsylvania; and finally Montreal, Canada, where he currently teaches writing at Concordia University. He answered some questions for the Voice while in Israel, where he is a guest lecturer.

What kind of traveler are you? Which parts of travel do you enjoy? Which bore you, frustrate you, tire you?

Airport, airport security—that is all horrible. I like culture clash, seeing that things can be done differently, and random encounters, although I have fewer of those now than I used to. Well, I never really met a lot of people traveling, but some, and sometimes it was cool to talk to strangers until you cease to be strangers.

How does it feel to write in your second language? Does English still feel like your second language?

No, I don’t count languages in numerical order. If I go chronologically English is my second language. If I go memoiristically, from now backwards, it is my first and Croatian is my second. I live in English. So which will be seconded depends on the direction of the time arrow we shoot. How does it feel to write in English? How does it feel to drink tap water? How does it feel to breathe city air? By now, it’s primal even though it’s not.

Do you have any sources of inspiration aside from your own life? If you have writer’s block, where do you turn?

Yes, other writings and musings about history and strange events around me. I don’t fight writer’s block; I always write something, at least letters.

Do you think that writing loses any of its integrity when translated?

A lot is untranslatable but recreatable. Much depends on the creative energy and acumen of the translator to recreate the text in the target language as a living organism.

What is home? Do you enjoy “shopping for another country”?

I thought I’d enjoy finding another country more than I did. But maybe Canadians are just too nervous and too well regulated to let me relax.

Why do you write?

To understand things. I don’t think unless I write, or at least, I think so vaguely and chaotically that I need to write to clarify.

Who are your favorite authors? How do you choose what you read?

Well, it varies. My favorites change with my age, thinking, and so on. I certainly enjoy Maupassant and Heinrich von Kleist and much of Kafka… and I used to relish Beckett’s prose… Vonnegut.  I did read a lot of Tolstoy, Balzac, Maupassant, Dostoyevski… and now I read mostly my students because that’s how I make a living mostly. Well, Nabokov. I admire much of his work, and perhaps there are some similarities, but I was raised in a different era, that of minimalism. He is a maximalist of sorts and a linguistic acrobat and exhibitionist, a verbal narcissist. As a butterfly collector, he collected words and caressed them… though of course, you can’t caress a butterfly.

What is your writing process like? Do you have any superstitions associated with writing? What does a typical day look like?

One superstition I have about writing is not to talk too much about what I am writing so I don’t exhaust the energy and the ideas that should remain fresh until I hit the page.

Do you have plans for another novel?

I have finished revising a novel, and I want to go back to an unfinished one… I like to vary things I write about. I wrote too much about wars. But that’s our cultural imagination and practice. I am in Jerusalem now, and half of the Bible is war stories of one kind or another, and the Iliad and the Odyssey are even more bellicose.

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At a university known more for its strong political bent, this kind of occurrence is something that turns heads. Though Georgetown boasts a high-ranked theater department and famous alumni in both the film and comedy worlds, it’s never been known for a strong arts community, and student films are few and far between. A severe lack of arts funding and unification of arts groups makes pursuing projects like Figueredo’s, which was principally self-funded, a major challenge for students.

“I think that there needs to be more unity in the arts at Georgetown—more activities and events around campus,” he said. “There are actually interesting creative people here and if they find each other, it can work.”

Producer Katherine Propper (COL ’15) agreed, “Georgetown is not necessarily hostile but it’s definitely inconvenient to film on this campus because there’s not much support or connection between the arts departments. We had to go out of the way to ask people to get involved, so it would be nice to have easy access to people with artistic abilities.”

Figueredo emphasized the collaborative aspect of filming, from the writing stage to post-production.

“One thing I try to emphasize to other film minors is to work together—not making it an individual process. The more talented people you bring on board, the better it will be.”

Featuring a talented director of photography, Brooks Birdsall (COL ’14), and original compositions from Lyell Evans (COL ’13), Muse certainly highlights the span of Georgetown’s artistic talent.

When asked about the inspiration for Muse, Figueredo pointed to a quote from Albert Camus: “A guilty conscience needs to confess. A work of art is a confession.”

“With this film, I was just trying to capture the internal struggles of an artist or writer, related to that quote from Camus,” Figueredo said. “I was trying to go for the dichotomy of trying to create from experience and from imagination—there needs to be a perfect combination.”

The film itself has a metaphysical aspect, following an uninspired screenwriter (Mansmann) who lives between two worlds of reality and imagination. In his imaginary world, an artist is struggling to complete a painting and is inspired only by death. The muse of the title is a girl (Waldon) who flits in and out of his conscience to inspire him.

Currently in the editing process, Muse will be screened at 4 p.m. on April 22 and May 1 in the Film Screening Classroom. This Saturday, April 20, however, GUTV will stage a film festival with over 20 short films from undergraduates.

The focus of the festival will be narrative films, though it will also include documentaries. The festival chair, Nick Sennott (COL ‘13), noted in an email to the Voice that he was inspired to revamp the event and create more opportunities for student collaboration out of his own personal experience.

“I wanted to make a film but didn’t know how to find cameras, actors, or any of the necessary tools,” he said. “I managed to figure it out but realized that the final product could have been much better with support.”

Sennott also emphasized that the expansion of the Film & Media Studies program to include narrative storytelling as well as documentaries marks a new direction for the arts community.

“With so much recent success by Georgetown alums in the film industry, the program is growing in significance and reputation,” he said.

With this kind of progress, time can only tell if we have an Oscar contender in our midst.

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Directed by Robert Redford, the film is a retrospective look at homegrown terrorism—of the best intentions, but terrorism nonetheless. The anti-government Weather Underground Organization took their radical activism against U.S. participation in the Vietnam War to the absolute extreme by killing a security guard in their violent 1970 Michigan bank robbery. While perhaps lacking in factual accuracy, the film spins a compelling tale of how each member’s life spiraled out of control 30 years later.

Robert Redford gives a stellar performance as the protagonist—Jim Grant, a Weather Underground member-turned-lawyer-turned-fugitive. His upstanding nobility inspires the support, yet suspicion, of viewers as questions about his actual guilt remain unanswered.

The film successfully evokes certain questions regarding this paradox that characterizes all freedom fighters—whether we can still vilify them once cognizant of their motivations, and if we can justify civilian attacks when peaceful means failing. I was intrigued by each member’s innocuous and domesticated home lives in contrast with their revolutionary mindsets, and it was a sensitive rendering of the two motivations that gave each character depth.

30 years on, the veteran freedom fighters bear the distinct mien of the weary, and yet expertly elude the FBI—evidence that the fiery passion of their youth is all but extinguished.

Shia LeBoeuf does what he does best—charming and annoying your socks off as a pesky-but-brilliant small-time reporter named Ben Shepard. Young, provocative, and unstoppable in his quest for facts, he embodies the Weather Underground youths in their heyday. The relationship between his character and Redford’s wizened revolutionary Grant is one of distance and suspicion, however, as Grant accuses Shepard—and by extension, his generation—of hollow ambition. Though crotchety, this stand seems to point to the reality of revolution today being a muted version of that in the past, when fiery political movements were full of red-blooded life that just doesn’t come across in a tame tweet.

Despite this intriguing commentary undergirding the narrative, however, the film’s resolution was somewhat abrupt and lacking in explanation, appearing rosier than reality would suggest. Restricting this kind of story to the confines of a Hollywood thriller formula does it a disservice, sweeping under the rug the inter-generational tension that grounds Redford’s drama and the legitimate questions it arouses about the death of idealism for the sake of tidy plot structure. For all its glorification of revolutionary fervor, The Company You Keep doesn’t color far outside the lines.

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In its third iteration, The Young and the Restless, hosted by theINcrowd, is sponsored by a growing array of organizations including the Georgetown Urban Arts Patrons, the Black Student Alliance, What’s After Dark, and the Lannan Center for Poetics and Social Practice, among others, ensuring a showcase of considerable talent.

“I just invite artists I’m listening to the most,” many of whom “are on track to be signed with a major label,” said Oyewole. Despite its rather unscientific nature, this approach appears to be perfect for the task—the acts appeal to both the hip-hop fan and a critical ear.

Philadelphia native and rapper GrandeMarshall, recently affiliated with Fool’s Gold Records, will be joined by the more soulful Brooklyn collective Phony Ppl and the Atlanta-based Two-9, who promise a refined hip-hop experience.

Emceed by Nehemiah Markos (COL ’14), the showcase opens at 9:30 p.m. in Hoya Court this Friday, with tickets on sale for $5 to Georgetown students.

The Young and the Restless III, however, has been expanded to feature more than promising musical acts. Live art curated by the Georgetown University Art Aficionados will appear alongside the performances, adding another medium to the mission of showcasing the artistic prowess of our generation.

“Just because you get a liberal arts education doesn’t mean you get a fine arts appreciation,” said Megan Schmidt (COL ’15), a featured artist. The Young and the Restless III “is encouraging a wide range of students to get in touch with that world.”

Artists invited by the GU Art Aficionados are encouraged to use their own materials as well as those provided for the event, creating a far more eclectic artistic environment in an eye-opening assault on the senses.

Before the student body descends into the crushing depths of Lau, The Young and the Restless III may provide a brief instance of hope and enlightenment in the vibrant world that awaits those who survive finals.

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To mark the 50th anniversary of the event, the Newseum is displaying two new exhibits of never-before-seen artifacts and photography covering Kennedy’s presidency and assassination.

The first exhibit, “Creating Camelot: The Kennedy Photography of Jacques Lowe,” features the Kennedys’ personal photographer’s snapshots of the family during their time in the White House. One of my favorite photographs from the exhibit is a candid shot of JFK with one of his children, a toddler at the time, because it reminds me that while history books often portray JFK as some great martyred hero-figure, he was also a regular guy (albeit a really, really rich one)  who loved spending time with his family, just like everyone else.

The second exhibit, entitled “Three Shots Were Fired,” examines the events following JFK’s assassination in Dallas on November 22, 1963. Consistent with the Newseum’s tradition of using journalism and media as “the first draft of history,” the exhibit uses photographs, articles, television news clips, and other media to demonstrate the enormous socio-cultural impact that JFK’s assassination had on America.

In my opinion, this exhibit is definitely the highlight of the collection; simply being in that room, surrounded by newspaper articles and magazine covers, with Walter Cronkite narrating the events of the assassination on an archaic black-and-white television, effectively transported me back in time and clearly portrayed the confusion and distress people must have felt on that day.

The exhibit also features amazing never-before-seen artifacts that include the long-sleeved shirt Lee Harvey Oswald was wearing during his arrest an hour and 20 minutes after the assassination, and the radio logs recorded by the Dallas Police Department on the day of the assassination.

Lastly, “A Thousand Days” is a Newseum-produced original documentary that recounts the Kennedys’ brief time in the White House. One of my favorite parts about the film was how it highlighted Jacqueline Kennedy’s role following the assassination. While she may have lost her husband, her home, and her social role in a mere six seconds, the strength and dignity she demonstrated in the public eye helped to keep the nation from coming apart at the seams.

Overall, I thought the documentary and both exhibits were phenomenal. Although the exhibits and the documentary do a fabulous job in portraying the human side of JFK and his family, their central purpose is to emphasize the significance of the media’s response to the assassination. Though they put a presidential icon under the spotlight, the exhibits never neglect the journalists telling the story.

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Save Rock and Roll’s greatest achievement is its novel disregard for the restrictions of genres. Lead vocalist Patrick Stump belts out nearly every line with his characteristically cutting delivery, but the band ventures outside familiar territory by embracing electronica, from throbbing, electronic basslines to lighter techno-esque rhythms.

“The Phoenix” and “My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light ‘Em Up),” the album’s singles and first two tracks, exemplify the band’s stylistic transition. “The Phoenix” begins with an urgent, symphonic intro which soon gives way to pounding drums, matching the lyrics’ striking cry for war. “My Songs Know” offers another heavy-handed chorus and is one of the few songs on the album to give the guitars a lead role.

Save Rock and Roll features several guest vocalists, whose contributions to the album are rather hit-or-miss. The backing vocals of Foxes on “Just One Yesterday” make this track the best on the album and create a trinity of noises, as Stump, Foxes, and the synth beat play off each other perfectly. Similarly, Elton John’s deep voice offers a nice contrast to Stump on the album’s title track. The inclusions of Big Sean and Courtney Love, on “The Mighty Fall” and “Rat a Tat,” respectively, seem tacked-on and distracting, in comparison.

It’s hard to tell if Fall Out Boy entitled their comeback album Save Rock and Roll out of their brand of self-aware humor, but it’s easy to hear that this record marks a new direction for the pop punk princes. Even if the angsty anthems of fond adolescent memories remain, they’re full of new maturity that doesn’t allow dwelling on the past.

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