South Campus students show their creative side

Defne Egecioglu is an artist at heart. But the majority of her
life currently centers around the science classes she is taking for
a biochemistry degree from the UCLA graduate school.

Those two qualities granted her a spot at the third Neuroscience
Undergraduate Society Exhibit taking place in the Kerckhoff Hall
Art Gallery this week. The exhibit features creative artwork from
seven different artists, all of whom are UCLA undergraduate or
graduate science students.

The display includes photographs, pencil drawings and one
painting. Many students submitted multiple entries. Egecioglu, for
example, is showing five abstract drawings. She used colored
pencils and pens to draw on white printing papers.

“I drew symmetrical figures that represent my thoughts and
feelings (over) the past few months,” said Egecioglu.
“When I couldn’t make sense of my chemistry classes, I
tried to make sense at least out of the artwork I was
doing.”

Egecioglu, who participated in a similar exhibit as an
undergraduate at UC Santa Barbara, believes such events create
a rare opportunity for amateur artists to share ideas with each
other and with the public.

“People who do science can also do art,” said
Egecioglu. “People choose to do different things as their
hobby and profession, and art is my hobby.”

Miluska Propersi, a neuroscience student and the current
secretary for NUS, submitted four photographs for the exhibit.
Propersi took the photos while she was studying in Venice, Italy,
two years ago. There, she studied history and language as a break
from science. During that year, NUS hosted a similar exhibit, but
Propersi was unable to participate. This time, she jumped at the
opportunity.

“It’s so nice to know that other science majors have
art qualities,” said Propersi, who enlarged her photos at the
on-campus Kodak drop-off with her employee discount.

“I don’t want to just be an analytical science
major; I want to always keep the creative side of me,” she
said.

Also a fan of photography for the past eight years, exhibit
coordinator Angine Hovsepian believes there are plenty of South
Campus students who also have artistic talent.

“We can’t compare to art majors who do this
everyday, but we can also be creative,” said Hovsepian.
“You just have to go and see for yourself.”

However optimistic, the number of art submissions was lower than
anticipated. Takahiro Soda, president of the NUS, was still looking
for last-minute submissions less than a week before the
exhibit’s opening. According to Soda, there were just enough
art work to fill the exhibit hall after admitting multiple
submissions from students.

Hovsepian is not surprised with the low number of
submissions.

“As all South Campus majors know, eighth week is
a very hectic time for most of us,” said Hovsepian,
“Most students really struggle with the time factor, and so
this week (was) not really (the most) convenient time.”

Mark Schwartz, a professor of neurology, is known among his
colleagues for his artistic passion. He was delighted to learn the
NUS has put an art exhibit together solely for South Campus
students. He regrets not having enough time to enjoy the arts
during his schooling because he was a science student. He now tries
to fulfill that passion with regular visits to local galleries and
museums.

“As we know, the left hemisphere of the brain is more
analytical, and science majors use it all the time. The right
hemisphere, on the other hand, is reserved for creativity,”
said Schwartz, who sometimes practices drawing on Post-its during
his break time.

“Science majors especially need the arts to strike a
balance,” Schwartz said.

Both Hovsepian and Egecioglu would agree with Schwartz. They
believe that such an exhibit designated for South Campus students
should occur more often.

“A South Campus art culture definitely exists,” said
Hovsepian. “We are here to prove it.”