The University Gallery is envisioned as a set of dynamic visual arts spaces situated within historic Silliman Hall. These spaces will make manifest Silliman University’s commitment to cultural discourse in the region as well as to the long process of physical and cognitive labor that begins in the art studio and finds resolution in a space of exhibition.

The University Gallery will serve Silliman University and the wider community by:

• Providing the first space in the province dedicated to the contemporary visual arts exhibition and discourse;
• Providing for the display and storage of the university’s art holdings, allowing this collection to be visible to the public and encouraging its growth;
•  Strengthening Silliman University’s visual arts curriculum by extending the pedagogy in its classroom and studios out into a space of exhibition.

The resources currently situated in Silliman Hall and the Fine Arts Department will be expanded to cover these logistics components:

• Secure, archival storage and an inventory system for the university’s art holding such as the Ariniego Collection;
• Flexible provisions for display such as movable walls, pedestals, and vitrines as well as adequate gallery lighting and proper art installation equipment;
• Equipment for video and sound art and to provide support for talks, events, and workshops that the gallery will host.

Engaging and relevant programming is essential to the life of any contemporary art exhibition space. A rotating display of work from the university’s art collections and the curriculum-driven exhibitions of the Fine Arts Department will form the backbone of the University Gallery’s programming.

In time, as the gallery grows more capable, the Fine Arts Department will be putting in place a formal means by which proposals for the exhibition spaces may be received, evaluated, and realized.

At the outset, this programs is planned as a series of short-term workshops to which notable people in the field of the visual arts may be invited. As both the Artist Teaching Residency Program and the University Gallery grow, longer-term residencies may be offered. Resident artist-teachers will be able to work on their practice alongside our students in the Fine Arts Department studios, sharing their knowledge and experience with us. During the course of their stay, sharing their work with the wider community through pubic exhibitions hosted by the University Gallery.