“Create don’t hate” was the theme surrounding
QU’s 2008 I Heart Art festival sponsored by The Montage, Quinnipiac’s student-run literary magazine. The festival, which took place on Tuesday, Jan. 29, was a chance for students to express themselves in front of peers, faculty and any other visitors. The art was displayed from 2 to 7 p.m. and 9 to 11 p.m.

The artwork covered all different mediums
including paintings, photography, drawings and even a display case filled with jewelry. Collages made by different student organizations on campus aligned the sides of the walls. Each of these collages contained a positive message about creating, not hating and peace on both campus and on earth.

All students were eligible to send in any
art work they felt they wanted to share with
the Quinnipiac community. Niki Kneeland,
a sophomore health science studies major,
as well as a contributing artist, was excited
about showing her artwork to her peers.

“It was the first time I’ve ever displayed
my art publicly and it was the most rewarding
feeling I’ve ever felt,” she said.

Her specific artwork displays one word, peace, in a creative manner. When asked what inspires her she answered, “I just think of words that inspire me and I make a picture.” When people complimented her on her artwork, she said “it made my day.”

The decorations resembled a real art gallery with a calm and tranquil setting. The lighting in the room was mostly dark, but
surrounding Alumni Hall were colorful stringing lights, rice paper, bamboo floor
lamps and tap lights on the tables. Soft
music played in the background, as a slideshow filled with photographs ran on a
projector screen in the front of the room.
Vases with flowers centered the tables, which were placed in front of the screen, so
people could sit and watch the slideshow. The tables contained different colored
tablecloths which made them stand out, and of course, cookies, brownies and different
cheeses were offered for a snack.

The festival was great for, but not limited
to, people who appreciate art. Dana Monahan, a sophomore physical therapy major, knows nothing about art but went to the festival anyway.

“The art work was really interesting to see,” she said. “I don’t know enough about
art to understand it, but this inspired me to
want to do art.”

Certain students attended the festival because they were in some of the pieces that were submitted. Jerome Palmeri, a senior media production major, was in a displayed drawing created by Mathew DiGiovanna.

“The picture was from a class,” DiGiovanna said. “It was kind of cool that he chose my drawing. Alot of people enjoyed my modeling which was kind of awkward,” he joked.

The festival then continued with a string of poets from an organization called the Connecticut Student Poets. Chiara Di Lello, a 19-year-old student from Wesleyan University, was one of the visiting poets.
“This was a great experience,” she said after explaining that this was the group’s
first show of the year.

Following this came a group of Connecticut slam poets who not only read their poetry, but performed it as well. These artists were crowd pleasers; they got the audience pumped up and received loud rounds of applause. One of these artists, Baub Bidon, used beat boxing as part of his poem. Through this he claimed, “I’ve been beat boxing since before there was beats in boxes.”

The annual I Heart Art festival proved to be a success and can hopefully influence students on campus to express themselves artistically. After all, as the Montage says,
diversity equals creativity.