Adrienne Gionta

Adrienne Gionta is an artist and the Coordinator of Administrative Services for the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts & Letters, Davie office. She also coordinates FAU Osher Lifelong Learning Institute Fort Lauderdale (OLLI FLL), the acclaimed interactive lecture series created for seasoned adult learners in Broward County. The lectures, presented by experts in their field, examine contemporary and historical political, social and artistic issues along with cutting edge research. "In my role as coordinator I am fortunate to see the great benefits of our OLLI FLL program for our members, the community and our faculty," said Gionta. "The best reaction about a recent OSHER lecture came from one of our advisory board members who said that FAU Professor Joseph Velasquez’s presentation on the power of printmaking was so good, they almost levitated from their chair."

Gionta earned her BFA in Sculpture at FAU in 2009 while working at the FAU University Galleries as the assistant to the Director before pursuing her MFA in Time-Based Media & Photography at Florida International University. In 2014 she was invited to join FAU’s Department of Visual Arts & Art History to teach digital photography and digital art.

"My most memorable experience at FAU was my first day as a BFA undergrad in my first art history class, which was Pre-Classical Art with Dr. Brian McConnell and thinking: ‘I am finally in the right place at the right time for the first time in a long time,’" said Gionta, who was born and raised in Brooklyn and lives in Fort Lauderdale. "Also being invited by Dr. McConnell to return to FAU after completing my MFA to teach was highly memorable."

As a new media artist and as a curator, Gionta is inspired by music, colors, people, space, sci-fi, poetry, psychology, books, online research and everyday life experiences.

Gionta’s latest contemporary art exhibition, Why Should We Talk About These Things At The Table? A Community Based Conversation with South Florida Artists presents 15 artists residing in South Florida whose work varies greatly in style and media. In questioning historical etiquette advice from Emily Post that topics such as politics, religion, money or sex should not be discussed in formal settings or at the proverbial table, Gionta and co-curator and fellow FAU alumni, Jeanie Ambrosio, emphasize dialogue as a core tool for speaking to challenging subjects. Aligning with the 2020 presidential election and the Covid 19 pandemic, this exhibition serves as an alternative source of contemplation beyond the traditional debates and media stream. The curatorial process builds on a series of virtual studio visits with the artists, which aim to understand how local artists from diverse backgrounds are responding to the current climate through their work.

"Presenting and reflecting on these collective yet varied points of view may serve to enrage, divide, heal or enlighten, while bring forth a sense of community, reminding us that we are all delicately interconnected," Gionta and Ambrosio said.