Tina Chen ’25 has seen a lot of frantic Sculpture I: Form, Material, & Process students scurrying around the MakerSpace for their final projects. I was one of those frantic students, begging her to help me with the bandsaw. Tina was my MakerSpace superhero, always coming to help me when I needed guidance.
When I told her this, she laughed and replied, “Funnily enough, I tried applying [to work in the MarkerSpace] in my sophomore year, but was rejected. I didn’t have experience, but then, junior year I got accepted, I think partially because [Assistant Professor of Art Jody Joyner] encourages art students to work at the MakerSpace for more experience.”
Surprised, I was curious about how Tina gained more experience, and about what led her to the art department. She asked, “You know when you pick up Chinese takeout and find a kid working behind the counter? Yeah, that was me [back in middle school]. I was always doing my homework at the [cash register]. After school, I would go to the restaurant and draw on the Styrofoam cups when I wasn’t working. So that’s where it started.”
She continued, “I remember in middle school, or elementary school, I was asked what I wanted to be when I grew up. I said I wanted to be a cartoonist. And then, in high school, I realized that that’s not really a sustainable career, especially if you’re from a low-income immigrant household. So that’s when I kind of stopped thinking about making art.”
Swarthmore, by offering architecture, allows students to build a more structured and secure academic path. Tina found stability in the architecture program that compelled her to the major.
She shared, “When I was applying to college, I stumbled upon architecture because it blends math and science, so it felt more professionally sustainable. I was also really interested in sustainability and environmental science. I was looking for pre-professional architecture schools. I realized that you need a portfolio in high school, and I hadn’t taken any art classes. Initially, I didn’t even know there was a special major in architectural studies at Swarthmore. Somehow I stumbled upon two [older students] who were architectural studies majors. So I emailed them and asked how they declared.”
Tina continued, “Sophomore year was when I decided I would take on the architectural special major. Since then, I’ve been exploring other art mediums as well. I realized that I’m not sure if I want to continue focusing only on architecture in grad school. I think I’m more interested in design and simply making things. I want a future career that allows me to sit down, get dirty, and make stuff with my hands, you know?”
But what does architecture look like at Swarthmore? With such a small department and the designated “special major” label, I was curious how (and if) the major integrated studio practice with technical skills. Tina responded, “When I started, the department was a really small subset of students. In my first architecture class, Painting II: Turning Corners with [Sara Lawrence Lightfoot Professor of Art] Randall Exon, I wouldn’t say I learned a ton about technical skills or research. We did a lot of painting, which I enjoyed, but I only really started considering it as a major when I sat down for my final critique with Randall. He said that he saw my potential in architecture, and pushed me to continue. That really made me feel supported.”
Tina did continue her journey in architecture. Not only did she get a job at the MakerSpace, but she became fascinated with woodworking, joints, and support. In her senior thesis, she is combining her passions to create a functional, real, wooden chair.
“I first got inspired by Instagram. My feed kept on showing me waves of chairs, and I thought it would be a nice way to get into woodworking and learn more about joints. And also, my project allows me to not focus too heavily on an architectural program. At this time, I’m still considering whether or not that’s something I want to pursue,” Tina shared.
There was something about Tina’s interest in chairs that fascinated me. Most of the arts students I’ve had the privilege to interview are interested in less functional items. A chair, however, has implicit and explicit meanings. Does Tina want you to sit in her chair or is it off limits? What environment does it occupy, and why does it occupy that space?
Right now, Tina is focused on the logistical component, and finding significance in her process. She elaborated, “Making a chair is very technical. You need to get the angles correctly. Figure out how to join pieces together, how tall and how wide it needs to be. With my first wooden project, I was just thinking, ‘Oh, I’ll stack wood together and shave it off.’ And when I was joining the pieces together, it was just very intuitive. This project is different, and I’ve been enjoying how much thought I need to put into making my chair.”
On the topic of messaging, Tina admitted that she’s still working through what she wants her chair to symbolize. “I think the fact that [Art Department Chair Logan Grider] was very supportive from the start was helpful. He kept urging me to make more designs, and look at chairs around campus. He gave me a lot of ways to think critically about the experience of sitting in chairs. He urged me to consider what experience I want to create with the chair, and why I’m creating chairs.”
Perhaps the chair doesn’t need to mean anything. It can be an art object insofar as it provides an experience that cultivates a cooperative environment. Tina is making the chair to share with those around her. It will absorb the energy of these interactions, and transform into a physical representation of that memory.
Regardless of what message she lands on, its significance lies in the pleasure Tina finds in creating and sharing her sculpture. Simply put, Tina, “just wants to make things [she enjoys].”
