Hi! I’m Daniel Meyer and I can’t wait to get to know all of you this interim! My decision to take this class was initially sparked because of my interest in government and the democratic process. The final project of the course, where we essentially lobby on an issue of choice, was of particular interest to me.
The question I am most excited to discuss and learn about is presence of censorship, either intentional or not, in government supported artwork, and how that is best avoided. At this point, although I hope this will change, it seems difficult or impossible to avoid either explicit requirements for topics and artists covered to be “virtuous”, whatever that means to decision makers; or instead for a blank slate to be given to artists who take it upon themselves to limit their expression to ensure they do not upset their sources of funding. Given the problems with this view, I look forward greatly to discussing how government supported art can be complementary of less limited private art, and how government works to promote all forms of artistic expression.
The greatest unknown of the trip, which I am slightly apprehensive about, is simply being away from campus for extended periods of time yet still being in an academic setting. I have become very comfortable learning, socializing, and living on the hill, and being away from my established network, routine, and activities is something I have not really done since beginning college. I greatly enjoy my time at St. Olaf, and am slightly nervous about leaving that, but even more so I am excited about being able to experience learning in a different context.
My typical areas of interest and expertise are somewhat different from many of my classmates. At St. Olaf, I study Economics, Statistics, and International Relations, and am seriously considering law school after graduation. I am excited to bring my very much less musical and less artistic skills to the class. I approach problems or questions in a very analytical way, and often don’t feel I have a complete understanding of something unless I can articulate a response to my own point. This view of understanding has undoubtably been cultivated by my years of debate competitions in high school and my time in mock trial while at St. Olaf. My analytical mind will hopefully assist me in questioning the follow-on effects of any changes we discuss, as well as helping to avoid creating an echo chamber of like-minded artistic and musical people.
My knowledge base, when weighed between art and government, is heavily tilted towards government. I hope my knowledge of how our government functions on each level and with other governments will help our class to discuss governments relation to art in a more realistic and less abstract way. I hope to target discussions with political officials to their areas of expertise and influence which our class could definitely fail to do without conscious choices being made. I noticed this during out meeting at Representative Craig’s office: that our questions about Angie Craig’s and the federal government as a whole’s focus on the arts and their role in it were largely unanswered, while questions about the specific role of legislative correspondent were given detailed and comprehensive answers.
My greatest field of experience with the arts is dance, which I initially, even as I write this post, don’t consider artwork in the same way as visual art. I ballroom and swing dance typically 3-4 times per week and have become fairly experienced as both a lead and a follow since I began 3 years ago. I look forward to considering the role of dancing in relationship to the arts, even given the course’s lack of focus on dance. I also look forward to considering why dance is not immediately associated with art, which I anticipate sharing many rationales with why our course doesn’t focus on dance as a form of artistic expression.
In the end, I am extremely excited to get to know all of you for the remainder of the month, and am thrilled for the opportunity to become familiar with a city outside of Minnesota for the first time in my adult life!