SUMA Observations & Conversations

In this episode, Emily Ronquillo, Director of Marketing & Design, and Jessica Kinsey, Executive Director, discuss how museums can utilize design sprints and strategic planning, something SUMA has recently undergone. This is a special episode that covers a look back on Jessica’s time as Executive Director, as well as the benefits of strategic planning and Design Sprints. We hope you enjoy this episode.DonateBecome a Friends of SUMA member

In this episode, Emily Ronquillo, Director of Marketing & Design, and Jason Moodie, Director of Learning & Visitor Experience, sit down with three SUU faculty members from different areas of the university to talk about how they engage with the museum in their courses.Kevin Koontz from Outdoor Recreation and Parks and Tourism tells us about how his classes visit SUMA to learn more about museum interpretation. Alex Bradshaw-Yerby from Dance shares how her students react to exhibitions through movement. And Susanna Herrmann from Graphic Design talks about how she uses the museum’s collection to teach typography and poster design. We hope you learn more about how SUMA is an educational resource at SUU. If you want to bring a class for a tour at SUMA or learn even more about how to connect the museum to your syllabus, you can reach out to Jason at experiencesuma@suu.edu.

For today’s episode, please welcome our very own Dean of the College of Performing and Visual Arts, Michael Schmidt. He and our Executive Director, Jessica Kinsey, sat down together to discuss the importance of campus museums. They talked about how these museums are a valuable resource for students, faculty, and the community and how they provide great opportunities for learning and starting conversations.If you enjoy this episode and would like to come visit us, visit our website here to find more information.

Immerse yourself in our exhibition, Salt Lines: Exploring Climate, Environment, and the Saline Influx with commentary from our Director of Curatorial Affairs, Dr. Becky Bloom, and two of the participating artists, Himali Singh Soin and David Soin Tappeser. They discuss their artwork as they walk through the gallery, providing insight into each piece's process, inspiration, and intentions.  If you’d like to learn more about Salt Lines: Exploring Climate, Environment, and the Saline Influx and how you can see this exhibition, visit our website here.

Welcome to a new episode! This time we have guest Alexandra Fuller here to discuss SUMA’s new exhibition, Salt Lines: Exploring Climate, Environment, and the Saline Influx. Alex is a Utah-based artist working primarily in photography, installation, and poetry, and is one of the artists in the Salt Lines exhibition. We chat about the exhibition, making it as an artist, the importance of salt, and the future of The Great Salt Lake. Whether you’re an aspiring artist or interested in the changing environment in Utah, there’s something in this episode for you. If you’d like to learn more about Salt Lines: Exploring Climate, Environment, and the Saline Influx, visit our website here, and if you’d like learn more about Alex, check out her website here.

Wash your brain with the ambient noise of Harry Bertoia’s sound sculptures in this special episode.Bertoia was a renowned modern artist and designer, perhaps most well known for his 1950s suite of wire furniture. He spent his 40-year career experimenting with various materials and techniques, including decades working with metal in particular. During this time, Bertoia came to realize its great potential for unique sonic qualities. He sculpted beautiful tonals, gongs, and singing bars that would create an ambient sound environment when activated. SUMA recently hosted an exhibition of Bertoia’s work and wanted to bring the sonambient experience to all our listeners. Please enjoy 20 minutes of Bertoia’s soundscapes.If you’d like to hear more, check out our YouTube channel where we have 20-minute, 10–minute, and 5-minute concerts.

Southern Utah Museum of Art Manager of Marketing and Communications, Emily Ronquillo and Dr. Becky Bloom, SUMA’s Assistant Director of Curatorial Affairs, sit down and to talk with special guest and artist, Vitus Shell. We talk with Vitus Shell about his education, style of art, inspirations, advice to rising artists, and some artworks that are featured in the summer exhibition A Dream Deferred: New Perspectives on Black Experience. You can view his work by visiting SUMA through September 23, 2023.

Southern Utah Museum of Art Manager of Marketing and Communications, Emily Ronquillo, sits down with Dr. Becky Bloom, Assistant Director of Curatorial Affairs at SUMA, and museum associate and previous intern, Courtney Blue, to talk about the second online exhibition Courtney was able to curate, Souvenirs of the Floating World: Japanese Woodblock Prints. Listen to learn about the history and process of creating these historic tools. To view the online exhibition of the Japanese Woodblock Prints visit Catalogit.

Southern Utah Museum of Art Manager of Marketing and Communications, Emily Ronquillo, sits down with Dr. Becky Bloom, Assistant Director of Curatorial Affairs at SUMA, and museum associate and previous intern, Courtney Blue, to talk about the online exhibition, Psychedelia: The Art of the Fillmore West that Courtney was able to curate during her internship at SUMA. We discuss various attributes of posters from the 1960s and 70s and the artists behind them. To view the online exhibition of these rock and roll posters, visit Catalogit.

This is a three-part episode where Southern Utah Museum of Art Manager of Marketing and Communications, Emily Ronquillo, meets with Dr. Becky Bloom, Assistant Director of Curatorial Affairs at SUMA, and museum associate, Courtney Blue. In this episode, we discuss how to get involved with SUMA internships and the projects of curating a digital collection that Courtney was able to complete during her time as an intern in the collections department. Learn more about SUMA internships by visiting our website and more about curated online exhibitions by visiting Catalogit.

In this special episode, Dr. Becky Bloom, SUMA Assistant Director - Curatorial Affairs, hosts a Q&A with artist Joseph DeLappe during the special Friends of SUMA preview hour for the opening of Resistance, Memory, and Play.  In this episode, we learn about DeLappe's background, the motivations behind his work, and get an inside look into various artworks in the exhibition on display through December 23, 2022.  To learn more about how you can become a Friends of SUMA member to get invites to exclusive events, programs, and discounts while supporting the museum, visit go.suu.edu/friends 

Southern Utah Museum of Art Manager of Marketing and Communication Emily Ronquillo chats with SUMA Coordinator of Exhibitions Mallory Sanders and SUMA Preparator James Culbertson about their conceptual exhibition The Art of the Preparator. The group talks about what a preparator is, their favorite moments of planning the exhibition, what it’s like being an artist and exhibition designer, and their advice for future preparators. The Art of the Preparator is on exhibition at SUMA from June 4 through September 24, 2022. 

Southern Utah Museum of Art Manager of Marketing & Communication Emily Ronquillo, invites volunteer Joanne Brattain to ask questions about abstract and modern art in connection to The Space Between: Visions of the Southwest. SUMA’s Assistant Director of Curatorial Affairs, Becky Bloom, Ph.D. gives more insight about the artists exhibited, how to understand and appreciate abstract art, and the connections between SUMA’s two main summer exhibitions The Space Between and I’m Walkin’ For My Freedom. The Space Between: Visions of the Southwest is on exhibition at SUMA from June 4 through September 24, 2022, and features the work of Beatrice Mandelman, Louis Ribak, Shalee Cooper, and Arlo Namingha.  More information about The Space Between including the learning guide referenced in this episode can be found on SUMA's website. 

SUMA Executive Director, Jessica Kinsey, and Manager of Marketing & Communication, Emily Ronquillo sit down with filmmaker Jeanne Jo to talk about her exhibition What Am I Doing Here? on view at SUMA June 4 through September 24, 2022.  The group talks about the 17 films starring Jeanne, directed by her friends and colleagues. This brings up topics of art in Hollywood versus art in museums, addressing difficult topics using humor, and advice for future filmmakers.  Thank you to Jeanne's collaborators on this exhibition: Alan Michnoff, Auden Bui, Camille Shooshani, Christine Serchia, Clementine Leger, Fangs Liu, Harris McCabe, Jamari Perry, Kate Stayman-London, Kim Ford and Jake Greene, Leandro Tadashi, Michael Kellman, Michael Schatz, and Oates Wu. TAMPOON - a short horror/comedy film More information about What Am I Doing Here? at SUMA.

SUMA Manager of Marketing & Communication Emily Ronquillo sits down with SUMA Assistant Director, Museum Operations Kari Heaps about working at an art museum. Southern Utah Museum of Art has a unique model of working with mostly student employees to rotate the gallery, plan programs and events, and market the museum.  Emily and Kari talk about what sets SUMA apart from other museums through its focus on students, the history of SUMA and the Braithwaite Fine Art Gallery, and how students can start their museum careers. 

Southern Utah Museum of Art Manager of Marketing and Communication Emily Ronquillo chats with Maren Holmes, Campus Engagement Associate, and Courtney Blue, Museum Associate and SUMA Sidekick member about how SUMA engages with students at Southern Utah University.  The trio talks about the evolution and future of the museum's membership program SUMA Sidekicks, getting on TikTok and venturing into Pinterest. This episode gives insight on ways the museum is engaging with college students at large and the role of student employees.  SUMA Sidekicks is a free membership program open to students at SUU and Southwest Tech. Sidekicks earn prizes for visiting the museum, bringing friends, and attending events. More information about the program and how to sign up is available at go.suu.edu/sumasidekicks. 

Southern Utah Museum of Art Executive Director Jessica Kinsey invites artist Billy Schenck into the podcast studio to talk about his 50+ year career, his connection to Andy Warhol, his advice for art students, and even his favorite Western movies. This episode was recorded as part of the exhibition "Billy Schenck: Myth of the West," a retrospective of works from Billy's permanent collection on view at SUMA through March 19, 2022, and his first-ever all-landscape exhibition, "Schenck's Utah: A Land Less Traveled" at Modern West Fine Art in Salt Lake City through March 21, 2022.  Billy Schenck is a contemporary artist with work in more than 40 museum and corporate collections. His subject matter spans genres from Western landscape to cowboy pop. He is a World Champion Ranch Sorting winner and the proprietor of the Double Standard Ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico, his home for the past two decades.  You can find more information about Billy's exhibition alongside "Andy Warhol: Cowboys and Indians" at go.suu.edu/westernpop. You can find more information about BIlly at billyschenck.com and on Instagram @billyschenckart.  SUMA Observations and Conversations in produced in partnership with SUU News. 

Southern Utah Museum of Art Manager of Marketing and Communication, Emily Ronquillo, and Registrar, Emily Moyle talk with artist and art historian, Dr. Andrew Kent-Marvick about Andy Warhol in anticipation of SUMA's exhibition "Andy Warhol: Cowboys and Indians" on view through March 19, 2022.  Andy Warhol was the undisputed leader of American Pop Art, a movement characterized by artists' use of household items, advertising images, and other "low" art forms, and commercial printing techniques in an effort to democratize art. Warhol had a tremendous gift for understanding the myths of the Baby Boomer generation. His ability to identify images that expressed the essence of the Boomers can be seen in his early work in the 1960s, including Soup Cans and the Elvis Presley series.  SUMA Observations and Conversations is produced in partnership with SUU News. 

In this episode, Southern Utah Museum of Art Marketing Manager Emily Ronquillo and This Earth co-curator Hikmet Sidney Loe interview artist Michael Dax Iacovone. We discuss his work, Tracing the Arc of the Solstice, his process and how he learned geometry to make art, and connectedness and solitude during the retreat.  This episode was recorded during the opening weekend of the exhibition.  This Earth: Notes and Observations by Montello Foundation Artists is on view at SUMA through December 23, 2021. 

In this episode, Southern Utah Museum of Art Marketing Manager Emily Ronquillo and This Earth co-curator Hikmet Sidney Loe interview artist Miho Suzuki. We discuss her works in the exhibition, Animal Friends, her experience at The Montello Foundation, how it compares to other artist residency programs, and her time in Utah and the American West.  This episode was recorded on October 15, right before the opening reception of This Earth.  This Earth: Notes and Observations by Montello Foundation Artists is on view at SUMA through December 23, 2021.