The visual arts should be at the center of university life, argues Marjorie Garber, chair of the Department of Visual and Environmental Studies at Harvard University and director of the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts. In the Ideas section of the Boston Globe, she writes that “although artists and performers are highly prized as visitors to colleges and universities, the kind of work they do has not reached a comparable importance in the curriculum.” Garber notes that art is often considered a loss leader for schools, and argues that insitutes of higher education should become stronger patrons for the arts—and should think about how artists can be better funded and integrated into the larger university experience.
