Class immerses students in monochromatic art exhibition

Prof. Christine Mehring and curator Orianna Cacchione (left to right, sitting on the floor) lead a group discussion for the art history seminar course Monochrome Multitudes, a class that meets weekly in the Smart Museum exhibition of the same name. Photo: Jason Smith.

‘Monochrome Multitudes’ at Smart Museum challenges viewers to see multiple meanings in a singular color

This story by Tori Lee was originally published by UChicago News on November 21, 2022. Click here to read the full story.

A group of students sit in a white room filled with white art. The class clusters around a piece by Robert Ryman, who painted almost exclusively white paintings. Seated beneath the painting, co-teachers, Prof. Christine Mehring and Orianna Cacchione, gesture upward, prompting students to look closely. Look at the brush strokes. Is this really all white? What does the white allow you to see more of?

Monochrome Multitudes—the newest exhibition at the Smart Museum of Art—encourages visitors to look, and then look again.