The Stanlee and Gerald Rubin Center of the Visual Arts hosted “The Vault Mixer,” a one night only exhibition that featured artwork from “The Vault” Thursday, March 14.
“The Vault Mixer,” a student-led event organized by the student staff of the Rubin Center, exhibited works by art icons such as Salvador Dali, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Claes Oldenburg and other well-known artists.
“We are always trying to find ways of connecting with the UTEP community and sort of, better serve the staff and the students and so we asked the student staff to come up with an idea, an opportunity or way to reach a broader community,” said Melissa Barba, Rubin Center assistant director.
The one-night event provided a walkthrough of installations of the various selected screen-prints and lithographs that were displayed at the gallery. The mixer also featured an inflatable photo booth where guests could take pictures using fun and iconic photo-booth props.
“We wanted to create a cultural and social gathering to appeal the UTEP student body and have an artistic experience and have fun,” said Sara Isasi Torres, graphic design intern for the Rubin Center.
The Rubin Center initiated a series called “The Vault Series” that has been led by two staff students Gianna Salas Ostos, public relations intern, and Jasmine Flores, student collections manager.
“What we intended was to bring out the works of the most well-known artists under our collection to maybe appeal to those students who are not really involved in the art world and they can come and experience it for themselves,” Salas said. “This is an event made by students, for students.”
Each week a selected piece from the Rubin Center’s permanent collection from “The Vault,” is selected for the “The Vault Series” and is highlighted on the Rubin Center’s Facebook page.
“Collectively they’ve been doing the series where they are showcasing the different art-work that we have in our permanent collection, which we’ve had for years but we really haven’t had the opportunity to showcase it,” Barba said. “Every week they do a little series and they wanted to create an event based on the Vault Series.”
The Stanlee and Gerald Rubin Center of the Visual Arts serves as a gallery and laboratory for emerging artists, students and practitioners. The Center’s mission is to bring contemporary artwork to the Borderland and create and inspire social, political and cultural dialogue within the community. The Rubin Center has held over seventy-five exhibitions and provides lectures and workshops to the public, year-round.
The Vault Series can be found at the Stanlee and Gerald Rubin Center of the Visual Arts Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/rubincenter/ , where videos on the series will be posted weekly.
