Samantha Oleschuk is an emerging arts professional, art writer, and arts researcher based in North Carolina. With experience in museum collections, exhibitions, arts programming, research and art criticism, she possesses a demonstrated interest in inclusive, equitable, and accessible transformative experiences in the arts. She studies Art and Visual Culture with a concentration in Art Management at Appalachian State University.
With experience in collections management, art handling and installation, exhibition logistics, gallery team management, museum education, visitor experience, and programming and events, I seek opportunities to work with art and visual culture to create meaningful experiences for visitors.
Image: Samantha Oleschuk holding artwork at FRANK Gallery. Photo taken by Barbara Tyroler, 2023.
From reading about exhibitions and performances she is unable to visit to actively reviewing performing and visual arts events in North Carolina, I embrace art criticism as means of connecting my interests in art, writing, and community engagement.
Image: Installation view of the Geometry with Feeling: Ida Kohlmeyer in Two & Three Dimensions exhibition at the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum. Photo taken by Samantha Oleschuk, 2023.
Between course-guided bibliographic research papers, qualitative research focused on creative aging programs for my honors thesis project, and personal research pursuits in art, visual culture, and museum practice, I aim to convey the impact of the arts and consider myself a lifelong learner.
Image: Honors Thesis Defense of "Sharing the Creative Aging Impact Story: Navigating Barriers, Pursuing Sustainability, and Dreaming into the Future." Photo taken by Eli White, 2024.
Looking Glass Gallery
Co-curated by Olivia Hoagland and Samantha Oleschuk
January 16-30, 2024
Since its inception in 1995, the Looking Glass Gallery has exhibited the artwork of Appalachian State University’s students, staff, faculty, and alumni. More than this, however, the Looking Glass Gallery is an essential part of the App State community and local arts ecology, serving as a space for students and community members to engage in the arts, find inspiration, and explore creativity.
To emphasize its immense impact and celebrate our rich artistic community, Leading Legacy: Visual Art Across Campus showcases the work of our university’s talented student artists from a variety of different academic disciplines, departments, and majors. Each student artist leaves a lasting impression within these walls, contributing to the legacy of the Looking Glass Gallery. We invite you to reflect on what the Looking Glass Gallery means to you.
HP5 exhibition of work by Christopher Metz in the Looking Glass Gallery. Photo taken by Samantha Oleschuk, 2022.
2024 Art + Design Expo (photo taken by Olivia Hoagland, 2024)
2023 Art + Design Expo Reception (photo taken by Crisol Campos, 2023)
2022 Art + Design Expo Reception (photo taken by Jennie Carlisle, 2022)
The Ella West Gallery Opens with Powerful Exhibit, Return to Parrish Street: A Dream Realized
Stephen Towns' Mesmerizing Visual Stories of Shadowed History at Reynolda House Museum of American Art
Lorraine O'Grady: Both/And – Nationally Important Art and Deep Thinking at the Weatherspoon Art Museum
Arts Access' Movement Exhibition Promotes NC Artists with Disabilities at the Sertoma Arts Center
Abstracto/Latino Exhibition Highlights Local Latinx Artists at the Block Gallery
An Intimate, Symbolic Exhibition of Ida Kohlmeyer’s Artwork at the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum
Artists Alley Exhibition at the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum Asks, "What Makes a Community?"
TheatreFEST is Back at NC State with Gripping Production of Assassins
Bulldog Ensemble Theater's Engaging, Layered Production of Peerless
"Sharing the Creative Aging Impact Story: Navigating Barriers, Pursuing Sustainability, and Dreaming into the Future" (coming soon)
"Architectural Site and Imagined Landscape: The Foundation Lore and Perpetuated Mythology of the Round City of Baghdad," Aisthesis: The Interdisciplinary Honors Journal (published May 2023)
Poster presentation at the North Carolina Museums Council Conference in Cherokee, NC in April 2024 (photo taken by Dr. Andrea Burns, 2024)
Poster presentation at the 27th Annual Celebration of Student Research and Creative Endeavors hosted by the Office of Student Research at Appalachian State University in April 2024 (photo taken by Dr. Heather Waldroup, 2024)
Honors Thesis Defense at Appalachian State University in April 2024 (photo taken by Eli White)
Presentation of "Architectural Site and Imagined Landscape: The Foundation Lore and Perpetuated Mythology of the Round City of Baghdad" at the Southern Regional Honors Council Conference in March 2023 (photo taken by Dr. Heather Waldroup, 2023)
Presentation of "Architectural Site and Imagined Landscape: The Foundation Lore and Perpetuated Mythology of the Round City of Baghdad" at the SUNY New Paltz Undergraduate Art History Symposium in April 2023, session moderated by Madelyn Colonna
This award was given for demonstrating outstanding work ethic and leadership to the Plemmons Student Union in my role as Art Collections and Looking Glass Gallery Manager (Apri 2024).
This grant was awarded to fund my honors thesis research entitled "Sharing the Creative Aging Impact Story: Navigating Barriers, Pursuing Sustainability, and Dreaming into the Future" and support my travel to present at the 2024 North Carolina Museums Council Conference in Cherokee, NC (January 2024).
The Whitaker Foundation Art Scholarship Fund awards scholarships and honorable mentions to art history students with an emphasis on museum studies and art students with a special emphasis on watercolor (January 2022).
The North Carolina Museums Council awards scholarships to exemplary students interested in careers in museums or cultural organizations to fund membership and attendance at the annual conference (March 2021).
Copyright © 2024 Samantha Oleschuk - All Rights Reserved.
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