Student Co-Curates Traveling Art Exhibit, “Amplifying Voices: Global Feminism”

Zhu was inspired to create the exhibit after helping to curate and promote a similar show, titled “Undefined Women,” with work by all-female artists in China in the summer of 2023. “I approached artists by posting recruitment calls on social media and visited galleries to speak to female artists in person. Unfortunately, these exhibits were banned in China because the content was identified as too progressive and in line with Western ideas,” she said in her curatorial statement.

After returning to Gunn in the fall of 2023, Zhu began talking with faculty about her experience, and she was encouraged and supported by visual arts faculty members Andrew Richards P’20 ’23 and Lincoln Turner to mount a similar exhibit here. “There was a brochure that I made for the exhibit in China. Mr. Richards said, ‘This is awesome.’ Some of the art, he really loved. And then Mr. Turner said we should put the show up again at our school. They were very nice to let me share this with the school, as an extension of what we did at Shanghai,” Zhu said.

Working with Turner, Zhu put out a call for artists last summer and began collecting work from artists around the country, and the world. She then collaborated with three friends from Shanghai, Churan Xu ’25 and Michelle Zhang ’25, who are students at The Lawrenceville School, and Rui Wang ’25, who is a student at Miss Porter’s School, to select the multimedia work for the show. “We have a really diverse representation of different interpretations of feminism. I hope through this exhibition that people can see the potential of female artists,” Zhu said. “We really want to empower the female artist and bring the concept of amplifying different voices, different backgrounds.”

The exhibit, which will travel from Gunn to Miss Porter's in February and to the Hutchins Gallery at Lawrenceville later this year, includes art from four students at Gunn and others from Lawrenceville, Miss Porter's, Taft School, Pomfret School, Governor’s Academy, The Hill School, The Cambridge School of Weston, Weston High School, The American School in Switzerland, The Sichuan International Department of Chengdu Shide High School, Qibao Dwight in Shanghai, China. UCLA, and USC.

Their work ranges from paintings and drawings to photography and video, and touches on a range of subjects. "Half the Sky," by FiFi Wu at UCLA, is composed of digital photographs printed on fabric of women's clothing and Nüshu script, "derived from Chinese characters that were invented and used exclusively among ethnic Yao women in Jiangyong County in Hunan province of southern China." Clare Shen from Miss Porter's, also incorporated language in her work, "He(a)r Silent Whisper," which combines palm prints with elements of Nvshu "a secret language created and spoken exclusively by females in the Jiang Yong area of ancient China."

A mixed media work on canvas by Cailyn Cien of Weston High School "depicts the societal pressure placed on women, particularly older women, to conform to unrealistic beauty standards surrounding youth (and thinness)." On the same wall, a large surrealist oil painting by Judy Wang of Governor's Academy "discusses how female forms are constantly subjected to the male gaze, like statues exhibited in a museum."

The art work by Gunn students includes "Bound to Dance," a large mixed media piece that incorporates charcoal on paper, ribbon, and yarn, by Rebecca Tu '25, which depicts a ballet dancer but "also serves as a commentary on the broader experience of women, who often carry the expectation to embody grace, beauty, and strength simultaneously while being constrained by societal demands." A graphite on paper drawing titled "Pride and Prejudice," by Michal Schroeder '26, depicts the sisters from the classic novel by Jane Austen, which the artist said is one of her favorites and "highlights the importance of thinking for oneself and how different personalities deal with pressures of society." An acrylic painting titled "The Gaze," by Marley-Austell Kennedy '25, "explores themes of identity, presence, and the tension between visibility and invisibility." An acrylic painting titled "Floating" by Willa Regan '27 "details the simultaneous floating and sinking of a woman's form. The faceless figure is highlighted as feminine intentionally in order to relate to the female struggle to 'stay afloat.'"

“Although more women artists are entering museum and exhibition spaces, a discrepancy exists between female and male artists’ presence in galleries. Through this exhibition, we seek to not only bring to light the philosophies of modern-day feminists through art, but also provide an opportunity for student-artists to showcase their work,” said Zhu, who also makes art in the Artistry & Technique cocurricular program at Gunn, performs as a member of Vocal Ensemble, and was recently cast in her fourth theatre production at Gunn, “Mean Girls High School Version,” which will debut in February. She credits her experience at Gunn with helping to prepare and empower her to make her artistic ideas a reality.

"Artistic expression is a critical portal for creating social change,” the co-curator said. “We believe that the perspectives of talented, creative students will add to our communities.”

Photos by Phil Dutton '81 P'23