The Arts are Everywhere at Bates

Studio art major Avery Mathias ’24 of Needham Heights, Mass., in her Olin Arts Center studio with her paintings for her senior exhibition. Artist Statement “My body of work seeks to focus on the mundane as a worthy subject matter to explore light, color, and the beauty in the ordinary. I have focused on a single subject—the chicken egg— as it is a universally recognizable object that is often overlooked. Given that the chicken egg is so common, it is accompanied by a variety of connotations that the audience can examine with the work. Combined with the striking contrast of the yellow-orange yolk with egg whites, the chicken egg encapsulates the concept of finding intrigue and beauty in the mundane. In order to emulate traditional still life painting, I stretched and gessoed the canvases by hand and used oil paint as my medium. While I was inspired by historical still lives by female artists such as Gluck (Hannah Gluckstein), Ethel Sands, and Vanessa Bell, I was also influenced by the modern still life painter Leah Gardner. She is a young, self-taught artist whose work consists of a series of common objects captured with bright colors on a plain background. Her use of light and color inspired me to focus on daily life and the functioning of seemingly insignificant mechanisms which led to my involvement with biology and cooking. I have particularly fond memories of making breakfast with my father on the weekends as a kid and enjoy food and how a shared meal brings people together. While food and people’s relationship with it comes with a range of emotions and connotations, everyone can recognize and connect to the symbol of a fried egg. In addition to providing valuable nutrition, an egg can symbolize or invite other associations such as life and sexuality. The lack of context included in my work invites the audience to bring their own associations and significance to each piece. The egg is also the epitome of routine as a chicken lays one egg every day a

Connect with other artists at Bates! Learn about our academics, arts-related clubs, upcoming events, performance opportunities, and much more.

In the classroom

Bates College offers six arts-related majors , a statistic which only scratches the surface in terms of the inclusion of arts across the curriculum.

At winter’s end comes the Mount David Summit, a showcase of student academic achievement. The arts component includes photography, film and literary presentations, and coincides with major departmental performances of dance and music.

Assistant Professor of Music, Zen Kuriyama, leads a workshop during the 2024 Admission Fall Open House

On the stage

Spaces like Schaeffer Theatre play host to a variety of professional and student-organized performances.

The Robinson Players, Bates’ student-run theater ensemble founded in the 1920s and supported by the Department of Theater and Dance, offer everything theatrical from traditional musicals to avant-garde one-acts. Every spring, the Rob Players produce a popular musical specifically for elementary students from Lewiston-Auburn.

A highlight of Bates’ distinctive Martin Luther King Jr. Day programming is the evening performance by Sankofa, exploring the vibrant cultures of the African Diaspora through music, spoken word and dance.

The Bates Dance Festival brings together an international community of choreographers, performers, educators and students in a cooperative community to study, perform and create new work. The Festival fosters a creative exchange of ideas, encouraging exploration of new ground and providing opportunities to experience a wide spectrum of dance/movement disciplines. Artists, students and audiences share their knowledge and inspiration through workshops, jams, discussions, informal showings and performances.

Trashion Show 2024
Co-hosted by the EcoReps; Dining, Conferences and Campus Events; and Bates College Student Government Julia Neumann (’25; she/her/hers; Park City, Utah) and Aneeza Ahmad (’25; she/her/hers; Sharon, Mass.) are the EcoReps in charge of the show.
In the Immersive Media Studio, dancers clad in white performed against a projection of shimmery hues and fiery colors during “My Love Is Like Eternity,” choreographed by dance major Lola Buczkowski ’25 for her senior thesis. (Sammy Weidenthal ’27 for Bates College)
A practice session for the Bates Dance Festival’s Young Dancers Intensive takes over the floor in Alumni Gym in July 2024. The dancers were part of Alfonso Cervera’s contemporary practice class. (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

In the chapel

Chapel is considered a favored by performance venue by many groups on campus including the choir and a cappella groups. It also hosts {PAUSE} — a short interlude of stillness, reflection and performance on Wednesday evenings. Organized by students, it’s presented by Bates’ Multifaith Chaplaincy.

An all-male group founded in 1957, the Deansmen launched Bates’ beloved a cappella tradition. Sharing the a cappella stage are the male Manic Optimists, co-ed ensembles Crosstones and TakeNote, and all-female Merimanders. Not a cappella but equally resounding are the Gospelaires.

The college’s five a cappella groups, including the Deansmen, performed to a packed audience in Gomes Chapel during the 2025 Winter Carnival (Carly Philpott ’27 for Bates College)

On the quad

Whether it involves yarn bombing statues for a senior thesis project, photographing fall foliage, or hosting an impromptu guitar jam with friends, the quad is a popular place to relax and partake in the creation of art.

Nicole Kumbula ’20 from Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe. “I haven’t declared my major yet. I am taking classes and exploring. I am here for break, visiting other people’s dorms. It was really fun. I went for movie night with Dean Reese and other students. I enjoyed relaxing without classes. Commons was open so we could eat without rushing. I got my work done without pressure. Right now I am going to Commons to meet a bunch of friends for breakfast.”

In the Museum of Art

As a teaching museum at a liberal arts college, the Bates College Museum of Art brings to campus a world of ideas that are vital to the intellectual and cultural life of Bates and its surrounding communities. It serves as a laboratory for nationally recognized, thought-provoking exhibitions, collections, art production, critical discussion and scholarship.

Each year the museum supports senior studio art majors through the Annual Senior Exhibition, which highlights work selected from their thesis projects.

Bates students also gain career and leadership experience through internships working with staff on exhibitions, collections and educational programs.

Taking place in the spring of each year, this exhibition highlights work selected from the thesis projects of graduating seniors in Studio Art. This year, seven emerging artists will present work in various media: Elizabeth R. Barrow Miryam Keller Avery Lehman Erin McCarthy Alex Provasnik Lila Schaefer Danny J. Zuniga Zarat Thesis projects vary from student to student, each pursuing an individual interest. The emphasis of the program is on creating a cohesive body of related works through sustained studio practice and critical inquiry. The year-long process is overseen by Art & Visual Culture (AVC) faculty, and culminates in this exhibition. The Bates College Museum of Art maintains a close relationship with the college’s AVC department, and is committed to supporting the work of Bates students through this Annual Senior Thesis Exhibition. To see more about the artists’ work, visit the website: https://www.bates.edu/museum/exhibitions/senior-thesis-exhibition-2025/
Danny Zuniga Zarat, AVC Studio Art ’25, speaks with Carolina González Valencia, Associate Professor of Art and Visual Culture at the 2025 Senior Thesis Exhibition Opening (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

On the radio

The student-run radio station, WRBC-FM, is an expressive outlet for volunteer DJs from Lewiston-Auburn as well as Bates broadcasters. The station also sponsors concerts by Maine and national performers.

In the studio

Whether in the dance studios, a visual art studio, or the digital media studio, students are constantly busy exploring and perfecting their craft.

As they advance through the Art and Visual Culture curriculum, students are encouraged to innovate and work independently. All studio majors develop a year-long thesis with the personal guidance of faculty, and their work mirrors the spectrum of contemporary visual practice. Projects cross media and disciplines, often combining students’ work in the studio with their studies in other fields.

Lizi Barrow ’25, in her senior thesis studio (Phyllis Graber Jensen/Bates College)

On paper and online

Bates students are simultaneously holding on to traditional forms of publication and pursuing alternative mediums of expression.

Student-edited publications provide contemplative venues for expression and reflection, such as Snaggletooth Magazine and The Bates Student newspaper.

The Bates Arts Society offers an online clearinghouse for student work in all media.

In the wider community

Sharing the arts with the off-campus community and participating in the local arts and culture scene are abiding priorities across the arts disciplines and programs at Bates.

With support from the college’s Harward Center for Community Partnerships, Bates students take the arts into local schools and youth-serving organizations, to aging populations, and to local immigrant communities. Off-campus neighbors are frequently welcomed to campus to enjoy diverse arts programs, offering access to art-making and art-inspired learning to thousands. A standout student initiative is Stages for All Ages, in which hundreds of school children come to campus each spring to enjoy a musical produced by the Robinson Players, a student club.

Bates students also engage as scholars, artists, and performers in the off-campus community, conducting research that informs local initiatives, serving as volunteers and interns with local arts organizations, and performing at diverse public events. 

The posted instructions were simple: coat the surface; press, then peel, the block; dry and take home! Printmaking at Free Press involved rolling ink out onto stamps carved by a variety of talented Bates artists for fellow Bobcats to make designs on the canvas of their choice. The annual event, sponsored on May 7 by @batesmultifaith, provided paper, canvas tote bags, and clothes to print on. Participants provided whatever else that required artistic embellishment (t-shirts? jean jackets? A roommate’s bedspread?). No prior art experience or skill was necessary because artists were there to guide everyone through the process. Multifaith fellows Jilly Scott-Lewis ’27 of Portland, Ore., Rosina Makwabe ’26 of Arusha, Tanzania, and Hana Roggendorf ’27 of West Hartfor, Conn., put together the event.
Printmaking at Free Press involved rolling ink out onto stamps carved by a variety of talented Bates artists for fellow Bobcats to make designs on the canvas of their choice.

Not find what you are looking for? Click here to check out list of clubs and organizations on campus. Still coming up empty handed? Start a group of your own. Bates offers a wealth of resources and the opportunities are limitless.