From Edward Munch’s “The Scream” to Ikea Furniture, students who attend the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art’s “Fall Film Series: Scandinavian Surprises” can expect to travel through Denmark, Norway, and Sweden to explore art across Northern Europe.
The upcoming October 18th event, sponsored by the Valencia College Osceola Humanities Department and Student Development, invites students to enjoy light refreshments and free readings while viewing the Norwegian segment of the three-part BBC series “The Art of Scandinavia”.
Betsy Peters, the Museum’s Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer shared the process behind discovering this year’s fall film series.
“We look for films that are both films and documentaries with subjects and themes that both relate to our collection and our times period. It’s interesting because many different things impacted the art of this region and northern Europe, including landscapes, mythology, and religion, so we thought people would really enjoy this. We do have a work that is by a Scandinavian artist but some of it [the film] fits into our time period as well, this is more of an art in general film series,” Peters said.
According to a blog post recently shared by the museum, The Morse Museum, founded in 1942 by Jeanette Genuis Mckean, believes that art “should be made accessible and understandable to everyone” a sentiment shared by museum organizers who help facilitate free events like the Fall Film series and provide attendees with articles and books available to checkout at the Winter Park Library.
Arielle-Christiane Courtney, Director of Community Relations at the Morse shared how the uniqueness of the event helps to accommodate visitors of the Fall Film series, “It’s nice for people who are either students or who are working professionals; they’re able to come on maybe a lunch break and just enjoy the hour and learn something new.”
The Fall Film series hosted in the Jeannette G. and Hugh F. McKean Pavilion behind the museum, begins at 12pm on October 18th and other select dates throughout the month. In addition to the 50-minute presentation, the museum will provide participants with drinks and themed snacks that coincide with the film screening.
“The themed snack is a fun way to get people thinking about the film topic. We did a film series on France one time, we had little treats from each region of France and participants like to guess how the food or snack relates to the film’s topic,” Peters explained.
Although this is Valencia’s first time attending the fall film series, Maura Gleeson, faculty coordinator and Humanities professor on the Osceola Campus discussed Valencia’s well-established relationship with the Morse Museum, “An important aspect of my courses is inviting students to experience art in real life, so in Spring 2024, I partnered with Colleen Gaffney, Education Manager at the Morse Museum, to take students through the Morse’s collection and learn about the history of the museum.”
Following the fall series, in January, the museum will begin their winter series focusing on the World’s Fair. The two-part series surrounding the 1889 and 1893 World Fairs will explore the construction of the Eiffel Tower and the Colombian Exposition by Nikola Tesla. The winter series will also celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Tiffany Chapel on display in the Morse from the 1893 fair.
Whether you’re an art lover or looking for a fun way to spend the afternoon, the Friday Films series is an event Valencia College students won’t want to miss. For any questions about the event please contact Dr. Gleeson at [email protected] or visit the Morse Museum’s website.
