Oberlin Portrait: Linda Weintraub

Emerging Arts at Oberlin

The first course in the emerging arts program was offered last fall. "Creative Options in the Contemporary Arts" (Weintraub is writing a book of the same title), was comprised of students from all artistic disciplines and approached the discussion of contemporary arts through the lens of inspiration.

Weintraub says that the inspiration theme "established a commonality between arts disciplines, which is the principle supporting the establishment of the emerging arts program at Oberlin. Student composers from the conservatory and student choreographers, filmmakers, and dancers shared a syllabus and assignments. Their presence in the same course demonstrated that all the disciplines share the essential ingredients of the creative process. Whether the artist's instrument is the human body, a harp, a camera, a computer, or--as has recently been demonstrated--garbage, explosives, or mud, inspiration is the spark that serves as the determinant of all subsequent artistic decisions."

Students in the first-semester course were treated to a three-day whirlwind tour of arts experiences in Manhattan. Weintraub says she designed the tour "to demonstrate that the city's cultural vitality thrives at every subway stop. For example, in midtown, the students attended a Japanese Buddhist fire ceremony that featured two astounding flute solo performances and the hypnotic chanting of monks. Then, in the heart of the financial district, students visited 16 Beaver Group, a radical cooperative studio occupied by young visual artists and musicians."