On April 7, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the Seton Gallery faculty, students, and their families gathered to celebrate the achievements of University of New Haven students during the Night of the Arts. The event involved showcases from students involved in the Art, Interior and Graphic Design, Theater, and Music Departments on campus.

The event began at 4 p.m. and ran until 7 p.m., and students and their families, as well as some of their professors, gathered in Seton Gallery to walk through and view student artwork.

Artwork included many different styles including scratch board work, graphite drawings, oil and canvas, digital photography, portraits, and even 3D printing. Interior design artwork was also prominently showcased as many students were actively creating various projects in the gallery to showcase, not only their work, but also their creative process. There was even a cyber forensics video game set up on a computer for guests to play. Any student could submit artwork for the gallery showing, and the wide range of work represented most departments on campus.

At 4:45 p.m. people were ushered into Bucknall Theater and Jordon Daguplo’s acoustic group began playing. Their set included a mix of original songs and covers and lasted for about 20 minutes. Following their performance, the directing class performed a comedic theatrical skit , and proceeded by a dance performance. Once the performing aspect of the night was over the award portion began. Jamie Slenker, Assistant Professor and Department Chair, gave a short introduction before awards began. The awards segment began with the Theatre awards, and then continued with art awards, Interior and graphic design awards, and finally ended with music awards. Many students were honored and recognized for their work and dedication to their programs over the course of their time here. The night came to an end with a poetry corner in the theater lobby following the presentation of awards.

It was a great night for the Arts Departments here on campus to showcase their talent apart from the other various departments across campus. “Even art walks hand in hand with science; you can find art in any aspect of life so it should be rewarded and represented just as prominently as any other part of the community,” freshman Pat Smith said. The Night of the Arts gave the UNH community a way to come together to celebrate the arts in a way that highlighted student achievement and gave recognition where it was due. There is no doubt that art is an essential part of humanity.

“To stifle the creativity of the individual is to essentially stifle what makes us human,” Smith said. “The arts are an essential piece of the community of our college, as well as anywhere you go,” he added.

This dedication to art on campus was a great way for students to come together and celebrate each other.