By ABBY BRAVO
Staff Writer
Ally DeRusso, a graduating Studio Art major, has made her mark on Saint Rose by putting a large emphasis on preserving the tight-knit community that is the art program.
She will be graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art with concentrations in both printmaking and photography. DeRusso is also pursuing a minor in art history.
Growing up in Clifton Park, N.Y., DeRusso had always been inspired by art and knew she wanted to be an artist for a long time.
She opens her artist statement with, “I am consumed by our temporary experience. We shift in our identity, spaces, possessions, and relationships.” Yet, even though we do shift throughout our life, DeRusso has made the most out of the Saint Rose chapter of her “temporary experience.”
She spent a large amount of her time here at Saint Rose making sure the arts are fully appreciated.
“I feel like my experience here at Saint Rose was made the experience that it was from the Center for Art and Design,” said DeRusso.
“She goes out of her way to honor others and is always looking out for other people,” said senior graphic design major Sarah Sampson. “This has shown itself this year in the amount of time and effort she has poured into memorializing the art department on Saint Rose campus, whether it be pushing to get a tree planted and mural painted in memory of the Center for Art and Design, or spending her weekend days helping screen print t-shirts for our fundraiser.”
Being president of the Student Art League in her senior year, DeRusso is determined to keep the arts alive at the college. SAL had recently put on their annual “Art Prom” where students were able to go out and show their support to the program as well as have a good time with their friends. DeRusso had said that this had to be her favorite event that SAL puts on.
“We always get dressed up, and it’s just a lot of fun to hang out and dance,” said DeRusso.
Along with the art community at the college, DeRusso has also made a lasting impression on the people around her, students and professors alike.
Sampson had gone on to talk about a trip she had gone on to Ireland with Ally through the college. She had said that the trip was very busy and filled with events, yet found herself reminiscing on the night they had spent in.
“We spent the night talking for hours and sharing a bunch of stories and memories. It was just a really sweet moment,” said Sampson. “It takes good friends for one of your favorite memories on a trip filled with adventure to be just hanging out and talking.”
Along with that, Kaylee Sterns, a friend, and roommate, of DeRusso, wrote, “I feel lucky to be around such talented creatives including Ally, and watching her work and practice grow and evolve inspires me to try and challenge and better myself as well.”
In wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, DeRusso had to make some significant changes to the way she was learning. Nobody was prepared for the pandemic to hit when it did, so DeRusso hadn’t brought home all the supplies she would need for the semester.
This had caused her to get creative. She had made a screen out of fabric and an embroidery hoop to use for screen printing while she was at home. DeRusso had stated that classes during the pandemic “showed how to be an artist once you’re out of school,” since they lacked the in-person component.
“She made strong work in every class,” said Professor Susan Meyer. “Standouts include a strange and wonderful animation for Color Theory, and, for Sculpture 2, a large-scale quilt woven from collected and re-used plastic shopping bags.”
She is recognized as hard working and passionate by everyone around her, Sampson saying her first impression of DeRusso was simply, “Damn, this girl has talent.”
DeRusso ends her artist statement with, “Our mortality, the way we remember and forget, and our interactions with people and objects is embodied in my work: each shift is a transition and commemoration of the previous one.”
