It was an “only at Hunter” story: A dedicated teacher with strong connections in the New York art world promotes her students’ work — to a surprising effect.
In October, Laura Sue King MFA ’92, a longtime Hunter adjunct associate professor of studio art and alumna, sent 13 students from her printmaking class to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The assignment was to view “Witnessing Humanity: The Art of John Wilson” and come back with inspiration for etchings.
Wilson (1922–2015), whose powerful Washington, D.C., memorial to Martin Luther King Jr bears witness to the civil rights struggle, made art marked by his experience as a Black American during a tumultuous century of inequality and injustice. He also sought to convey the dignity and sanctity of Black American life through vibrant street scenes and family portraits. The students filled sketchbooks with notes and drawings.
Hunter’s location near New York’s famed Museum Mile gives the college a high impact as a teaching institution in the art world.
“The proximity of our 68th Street campus to the Metropolitan Museum of Art means that our undergraduate students have crucial access to historical and contemporary artwork in person rather than just through books and screens,” noted Ruth Stanton Chair of Art & Art History Sara Rafferty.
The students had only once before attempted etching — a technique that involves a metal plate, an etching needle, wax, acid, ink, a press, and damp paper — but their efforts landed. King found the etchings so beautiful and moving that she made a PDF with one from each student and shared it with her friend Liz Zanis, collections manager in the Department of Drawings and Prints at the Met. Zanis, in turn, sent the PDF to the exhibit curator, Jennifer Farrell, and to Nadine Orenstein, head of Drawings and Prints. Farrell was so impressed with the students’ work that she asked if she could share the PDF with Wilson’s family.
“We were so overjoyed by the request that we all had goosebumps in class when I shared the news,” King said. “I can’t think of a better art-world interaction our students could have, and I know they will take this forward in their future efforts.”
According to the Met, “Witnessing Humanity,” featuring more than 100 pieces, is the largest exhibition of Wilson's work and his first solo museum show in New York. It includes examples of Wilson’s paintings, prints, drawings, sculptures, illustrations for children’s books, and archival material.
King’s students are mostly Latino, and most are the first generation in their families to attend college. The students took various ideas from the Wilson exhibit.
Lucía Martinez, a student with Argentinian heritage, emphasized political content: Her etchings evoked the Argentine “Dirty War” of the 1970s with scenes of police and mothers of the missing.
"I am excited and honored to be a part of this project,” she said.
Others, such as Henry Downes, showed family scenes, such a father with his toddler son and a little sister sleeping.
“I found John Wilson's work inspirational and beautiful, especially in the way it celebrates fatherhood,” Downes said. “What resonates with me most is the sense of closeness in his work. The quiet, protective, and gentle moments between fathers and children. It reflects my own experience as a father. Fatherhood is meaningful, yet it isn’t celebrated enough. Wilson’s work captures that intimacy in a way that feels real.”
King said that she hasn’t heard yet whether Wilson’s family has any reaction to the images, but she’s glad she reached out and shared the students’ work.
“I think that they responded in a personal way,” King said. “The works are just stunning, absolutely beautiful. I love the Met; it’s my favorite museum, but it also feels like a place with a lot of money and power. Sharing with the artist’s family gets it down to the human connection.”
