NYU Student Friends Committee: Your Gateway to the Arts

The Student Friends Committee is open to all NYU undergraduate students, regardless of their experience or background. “You don’t need to study art in order to be interested in it,” says Sweet. “Art is not just aesthetic or pretty: it also bears cultural messages. It can help us improve our understanding of other cultures and develop skills like empathy. That’s something that can appeal to anybody.”

For Media, Culture, and Communication major and SFC member Joy Cheng, this group was the perfect way to integrate herself into the arts community after spending 2023 abroad in London and Shanghai. “I wasn’t able to fit an Art History minor into my schedule. But knowing the SFC existed and anyone could join, I wanted to get involved. Plus, I had completed two previous internships at museums—one at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the other at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art—so the SFC was the perfect opportunity for me to explore this space again.”

The SFC’s mission is twofold. The group promotes the Grey’s shows and upcoming campus events as well as creates unique programming opportunities for SFC members. Last spring, after the Grey moved to its new location at 18 Cooper Square, the SFC helped promote its inaugural exhibition Americans in Paris: Artists Working in Postwar France, 1946–1962. Because of their efforts, more than 150 students attended the event.

“I don’t think we could’ve ever gotten that many students to come to the Grey without the SFC,” says Sweet. “The students planned the whole event. They found a wonderful jazz trio of NYU students to play Parisian jazz music. They decorated, picked the food, and did all the publicizing for it. In that way, they really are campus ambassadors for us. On top of that, planning events of this caliber means that Student Friend Committee students gain critical skills in areas like project management, event promotion, and professional correspondence that they can leverage after graduation.”

In addition to event planning, SFC members enjoy access to “fun opportunities they can’t get anywhere else,” says SFC president and NYU Gallatin School of Individualized Study student Ava Noland. Last semester, they received a private tour of Stephen Antonakos’ gallery from his widow, Naomi Antonakos. They also met with NYU alum and curator of Modern and Contemporary Asian and Asian Diaspora Art at the Asia Society, Dr. Beth Citron. Finally, they participated in a behind-the-scenes look at the Grey’s exhibition Make Way for Berthe Weill: Art Dealer of the Parisian Avant-Garde.

“The exhibition was beautiful,” says Ava. “The head of publicity led the walkthrough. She talked about the process of curating the exhibition, publicizing it, and encouraging people to come see it. It was a great opportunity to hear from someone currently in the art world, learn more about their career, and understand how they approach problems in this professional space.”

When asked about her favorite part of the SFC, Ava definitively said, “The people!”

“It’s so fun to build relationships with people who share your interests, yet come from different backgrounds,” says Ava. “I think art is so beautiful, and that’s why I’m so passionate about the SFC. Art really is for everyone. It doesn’t matter where you’re from or what experiences you’ve had—there’s a piece of art out there for you. If you’re interested in learning more about art and being in an artist’s space, then I highly encourage you to apply to the SFC.”