The Art History Club at the University of Minnesota unites students studying art as well as those interested in the subject through various events and opportunities, including museum visits, guest speakers and social events. 

The club was revived in fall 2023 after taking a hiatus due to COVID-19. In an effort to bring students studying art history closer, department members reached out to club president Teagan Londo and other officers to get the club started again. 

Londo said she has always had a huge interest in art history. Since being at the University, she said she and the other officers are all very active within the art history department. 

“We wanted to make it accessible for more people who maybe weren’t as available to do extra lectures or do extra work outside of classes,” Londo said. “But we still wanted to be a resource for people who had a general interest.” 

Since the art history department is relatively small, the club tries to get people involved and connected, Londo said. She added the club events are centered around art but often include a craft or fun activity that aims to teach members about art. 

“We try to make those connections and get people involved where we can,” Londo said. “It’s just a really fun way to get people into the conversation without just kind of droning on about one particular piece that maybe they’ve already studied. We try to go outside of the box a little bit.”

Camille Dauplaise, the club’s marketing officer, joined last spring in hopes of making more connections with others in art history. 

“I think that it’s kind of a small major at the U and a lot of the time you don’t have chances to talk to other people in your classes, since usually you just go and listen to the lectures and leave,” Dauplaise said. “I felt like it would be a fun way to make friends and also, I had seen some of the posters from previous events like visiting museums and auction houses.” 

Dauplaise said she decided to study art history because she was always interested in the topic and wanted to work in an art museum. 

As someone interested in contemporary art, Dauplaise enjoys learning about social movements and protest art and plans to study the topic further in graduate school. She said she enjoys finding the hidden details and stories behind the art she learns about in class.  

“I definitely see art as a means of expressing yourself, and I look at art throughout history as a way to kind of track human behavior and politics and change in society,” Dauplaise said. “I usually don’t make art myself. Growing up I enjoyed making art, but I feel like I never explored making it myself. I always like going to art museums, and I just find it visually beautiful and interesting.”