ABINGTON, Pa. — For two Penn State Abington students majoring in art, the leap from classroom to career started before graduation, thanks to a professor who turned an acclaimed public art exhibit "Field Notes: Learning to See" into their professional launchpad.
Yvonne Love, associate professor of art, said the decision was intentional.
"Including students in professional exhibition contexts is something I'm deeply committed to, as it provides invaluable real-world experience and visibility for their creative work," she said. "Student work is featured in the education area, creating a meaningful dialogue between professional and student artists."
Love invited students Sophie Bell and Alina Voytovich to exhibit their work alongside her exhibition, on view at the nearby John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove. It's a textbook example of the Abington Experience, the four-pronged roadmap that provides students with real-world experience in creative, research and career-focused work.
Bell said she found the experience to be transformative. Three of her drawings from the series "A Study of Movement: The Fleet, Fierce, and Feathered" and Voytovich's painting are on display. Bell credited Love as a mentor, adding that she is grateful to have her work showcased alongside accomplished artists in a professional museum setting.
Love said she sees student opportunities like this as central to her practice and to her mission as an educator.
"I've involved students in professional-level experiences through this project. It really connects to the Abington Experience and campus to career ideas in a meaningful way," she said.
According to Love, bringing Bell and Voytovich into that process reflects her belief that mentorship, observation and collaboration are inseparable from the work itself.
"The project is a perfect example of the high-impact teaching, experiential learning, community engagement and campus to career preparation that we hope to offer every Abington student and that arts and humanities faculty like Yvonne do so well," said Friederike Baer, division head for arts and humanities at Abington.