As I entered The Gund alongside Jodi Kovach, the gallery’s Pamela and Christopher Hoehn-Saric deputy director of curatorial affairs and education, I found myself instantly struck by a salon-style array of diverse works, each innovative and beautiful in its own way: a sculpture of two metallic figures embracing one another, their arms fused together, a video of a woman miming different scenarios using her husband’s hands and a massive oil painting of Chewbacca and two teddy bears, each of them gazing out into a field of colorful blossoms. There were so many different styles, emotions and mediums on display in front of me. 

Kovach explained that the diversity of these works is exactly the point. “This is our 15th anniversary exhibition,” she said in an interview with the Collegian. “We’re trying to show the variety of mediums and artistic practices that are represented in The Gund’s collection. A lot of the works that you see here are new, some exhibited for the first time,” Kovach said. The exhibition is called Where Ideas Begin — a fitting name considering The Gund’s main mission: to inspire and inform the students here at Kenyon by connecting them to a variety of art and artists. “We’re a center for interdisciplinary teaching and learning.” Kovach continues, “The collection has always been grown with that in mind … to show the diversity of voices in the global contemporary art world today.” 

When I asked Kovach which of the pieces she thought was required viewing, she led me to a square quilt on one of the walls. Entitled Dancing at the Louvre by Faith Ringgold, this beautiful patchwork quilt depicts five young women dancing in front of the Mona Lisa and other Leonardo da Vinci pieces. “This is probably our most beloved work in the whole collection,” Kovach said. “You have this dialogue going on between the characters in the foreground — all Black women and girls — taking over a canonical space in the history of Western art that’s dominated by white male artists. It’s a really, really powerful piece.” Anyone who hasn’t already should come visit this illuminating work. After all, it won’t be here long; the quilt is going off to Europe over October break, where it will be part of a solo exhibition of Ringgold’s work. 

But the 15th anniversary exhibition isn’t the only breathtaking display in The Gund right now. There are two more shows, and both of them deserve a moment in the spotlight. The first exhibition is a collection of photographs and poems by Doris Derby, entitled Radical Care. Kovach explained how, in the search for powerful female artists to fill The Gund’s next exhibition, Derby stood out immediately. “She has been so important to civil rights activism, education, equality. …  And yet her photography practice is not as well known as some of the more famous civil rights photographers who are, for the most part, white men.” 

Radical Care contains an eye-opening collection of Derby’s works. Interspersed between her photographs from civil rights demonstrations, health clinics and schools are Derby’s works of poetry, printed directly onto the walls of The Gund. In the room next door, the exhibition continues with a segment from a documentary video that details one of Derby’s biggest projects: founding the Head Start program in Mississippi. “Derby was a grassroots civil rights activist in Mississippi,” Kovach said. “She moved to Mississippi to do work in creating racial equality in the ’60s and ’70s … But education was also a big priority of Derby’s, and this documentary highlights that.” 

The Gund also highlights another largely unsung female artist: Sonja Sekula. Unruly Lines showcases a vast collection of Sekula’s work. Like Derby’s, Sekula’s visual works have been paired with her own poetry, adding another dimension to this exhibition. “I am engaged to become a garden / with small hands / with orange stripes haunting / a broad table,” Sekula’s “Poem 1942” reads. “You see a lot of surrealist strategies, sensibilities, processes in her work — everything from automatic drawing and writing to collage. But you see a lot of experimentation with other practices as well,” Kovach explained. 

“[Sekula] has been overshadowed in the history of surrealism [and] abstract expressionism … by her male counterparts,” Kovach said. “She was a gay woman who had come out at a time when that was not acceptable, and she suffered from schizophrenia. With this exhibition, we wanted to show how really important her contribution to the development of modern art was.” A lot of Sekula’s pieces are small and unassuming, but Kovach and the rest of the curatorial team were able to use the negative space to their advantage. “The paintings can really speak for themselves within this gallery space,” she said. As I gazed over the sudden splashes of color and jagged lines that gave this exhibition its name, I couldn’t help but agree.

Exiting the gallery space with Kovach, I was left with a brand new appreciation for The Gund, its collection and its mission. When I asked her if there’s anything else she wants to tell Collegian readers, Kovach responded excitedly: “Students are accustomed to coming here with classes. … The Gund is not just a place for classes, it’s a place for socialization, for quiet contemplation. … The Gund is free and open to everyone.” With this in mind, if you ever find yourself with a couple of moments to yourself, consider checking out these breathtaking new exhibitions. At the very least, you’ll learn something new about an amazing artist or two. But, at best, you’ll be transformed and inspired in this place where ideas begin.