Celebrating Art in Research: A Self-Healing and Social Justice Variety Show And Did We Mention There Was Cake?
Left: the perfect way to celebrate the hard work, energy, joy, and courage that went into the variety show.
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So what was our Self-Healing and Social Justice Art Collective up to in the School of Social Work lobby on April 12, 2023? A variety show! More than 100 faculty, staff, and students from across the university gathered to see members of the Collective perform, to take a whack (or two or 10) at that piñata…and to share that cake. usic! Dance! Balloons! Cake! A piñata! A cathartic, end-of-term “pity party”....
“It was a happening,” said one staff member. “It was divine madness!” Said Associate Dean Rogério M. Pinto (widely rumored to be the cause of the madness): “In my entire career, I have never seen anything like it!” One participant called it, “A new way of sharing art and addressing social justice.” Another trumpeted a seven-word manifesto for the day: “Art should be everywhere, accessible to everyone!”
12 | AHEAD
As part of his drive to integrate the arts into social work practice and research, Pinto founded the Collective just before the COVID pandemic hit. Those joining him built and sustained a unique bond online. They articulated a mission, soon transitioned to in-person meetings, and ultimately found a collective mode of expression. Actually, two modes: the performance, including dance, poetry, performance art, and an audio work housed in the first-floor reflection room, was complemented by a Photovoice exhibition in the hallway outside the Office of Student Services. Members of the Collective had taken photos in