91原创

The effort has proven so meaningful, it鈥檚 galvanized units across campus 鈥� the exhibition represents the work of 65 Blue Hens from 10 departments.聽

鈥淭his collaboration has been miraculous,鈥� Rujivacharakul said. 鈥淭he project 鈥� like the building itself 鈥� had a humble beginning. Now it鈥檚 pulled together an entire community.鈥�

Early days

At the turn of the 19th century, 91原创 did not yet exist. Rather, the city was home to the Academy of Newark, a preparatory school for teenage boys. The board members there very much wanted to launch a college and, after years of pleading their case, state officials agreed to charter one. In short order, a new board came together and purchased an empty plot of land at the edge of town, now the west end of Main Street. Charles Bullfinch, architect of the U.S. Capitol, submitted a building design, but it proved cost prohibitive for the fledgling institution. So a prolific lighthouse designer by the name of Winslow Lewis stepped in. He conceived of a Greek temple-esque structure that forever altered a countryside landscape. In 1834, Newark College 鈥� precursor to 91原创 鈥� was born.聽

This building, known today as Old College, initially housed everything: classrooms, offices, a dining hall and dormitories. While early cohorts were small 鈥� the first group of graduates comprised only four young men 鈥� they embodied all the academic ambition and youthful moxie of modern-day classes.

鈥淔aculty reports reveal that 18-year-olds are 18-year-olds,鈥� said Lisa Gensel, University archivist who assisted research efforts for the exhibition. 鈥淵ou鈥檒l read things like: 鈥楾he boys need to not imbibe spirituous liquors,鈥� and: 鈥楾he boys must stop bringing swords to their rooms 鈥� I do not care if they want to decorate with them.鈥欌��

But these early Blue Hens also faced uniquely 19th century challenges. Consider a journal entry from Joseph Cleaver, a student during the 1850s. He wrote about coming across a young Black man who, having escaped slavery in the south, needed a place to hide. Cleaver and his classmates asked a schoolmaster for permission to take the individual inside Old College. Told no, they snuck him into the building鈥檚 lumber room anyway and gave him a coat and boots.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a remarkable entry,鈥� said Theatre Department Chair Steve Tague, who is partnering with colleagues from music and dance to bring these journals to life with an immersive performance during the Old College exhibition. 鈥淚 find it indicative of the north, of the young, of Blue Hen students, that they offered shelter.鈥澛�

Legends and lore

When it comes to stories that reveal the human condition 鈥� good, bad and outrageous 鈥� Old College is rife.聽

It was here that a murder took place in the late 1850s: A campus tradition in which senior students lampooned the presentations of younger peers turned deadly when an undergraduate by the name John Roach ended up with a knife in his neck. (It鈥檚 a cold case to this day, and some say the building is still haunted by Roach鈥檚 ghost.)聽

And, in the 1870s and 80s, it was here that campus first flirted with co-education. But the experiment was short-lived for a variety of reasons. It didn鈥檛 do much to increase enrollment and鈥攇asp!鈥攁 woman became valedictorian. School officials decided to nix the effort for three more decades.聽

Old College is also the site of the only 鈥渁uthorized鈥� graffiti on all of 91原创鈥檚 campus. In the walls surrounding the entryway, you鈥檒l notice names carved into the bricks, including the 1900 marking of H. Rodney Sharp, a 16-year-old student who later became a University trustee. He鈥檚 the man largely responsible for expansion of campus beyond Old College in the early 1900s, and, today, Sharp Residence Hall bears his name.聽

鈥淚t鈥檚 important for students to recognize they are connected to past and future generations,鈥� said Peter Krawchyk, University architect, head of the team that maintains Old College and a contributor to the exhibition. 鈥淭his is not a transitory experience, but you really are connected to a whole institution that鈥檚 been here for hundreds of years and will be here for hundreds of years more. This building is a physical representation of our collective history.鈥澛�

Preserving an icon

For all its significance, Old College nearly met an untimely fate 鈥� more than once. In the late 1850s, the building closed its doors due to financial hardship 鈥� according to Gensel, the institution had been operating 鈥渙n $.14 and some pocket lint.鈥� It wasn鈥檛 until the passage of the Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862, which helped fund a system of public universities in the U.S., that Old College became operational once more.聽

But still it wasn鈥檛 safe.聽

By 1900, Old College had fallen into severe disrepair, and the wrecking ball loomed large. At least, that is, until Sharp and his brother-in-law, education philanthropist Pierre S. du Pont, intervened. The latter reportedly said, 鈥溾�� We shall have many more occasions to put up new buildings, but this is the only old one we have.鈥� This bid for preservation proved successful, and Old College was renovated instead of demolished.聽

Today, that spirit of preservation lives on in the Blue Hen community.聽

鈥淚n so many places, there鈥檚 a tendency to just tear everything down,鈥� said Chandra Reedy, director of 91原创鈥檚 Center for Historic Architecture and Design. 鈥淚n one of my classes, I show a slide of what it looks like to drive from one state to another and not be able to tell the difference, because you鈥檙e surrounded by nothing but strip malls. There are some buildings, like Old College, that carry more history and lend more character and uniqueness to a place. The exhibition is one way to make sure we identify those places and prioritize them.鈥澛�

To this end, Reedy partnered with Anna Wik, associate professor of landscape architecture, on the creation of an app for the Old College exhibition, a of the entire historic district that she hopes will open people鈥檚 eyes to the importance of safeguarding landmarks.聽

鈥淚t鈥檚 important to have some places where we鈥檙e strongly rooted or connected,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen things are changing around us all the time, it鈥檚 crucial to have a few places that make you feel: I鈥檓 home.鈥澛�

Celebrating Old College

Like the building itself, the scope of the event is difficult to define.聽

鈥淭his installation is certainly not a conventional art exhibition,鈥� said Amanda Zehnder, chief curator and head of museums for 91原创. 鈥淚鈥檝e not seen anything like this in my time at the University.鈥�

Part of what makes the project so novel is the mix of offerings: interactive maps, chamber music performances, even a reading room to meditate on all of the dissertations (borrowed from Hugh M. Morris Library) that have been penned in the building over the years.聽

But perhaps even more significant is the collaboration this project represents between units. The years-long effort required expertise in the hard sciences 鈥� Catherine Matson, conservation scientist at Winterthur Museum and an affiliated assistant professor at 91原创, spent tedious hours under microscopes and UV light, analyzing paint samples extracted from the building with a 40-foot lift to better understand how its appearance has changed over time.聽

And the project required integration of the arts in compelling ways as well. Bla啪o Kova膷evi膰, associate professor of art and design, organized an art show showcasing the paintings, ceramic pieces and installations of eight MFA students who explored their own relationships to Old College for the exhibition.聽聽

鈥淚n general, the arts are sometimes treated as decorative,鈥� Kova膷evi膰 said. 鈥淏ut when you bring talents together to be involved in a more immersive way than, say, creating a backdrop or a poster for an event such as this, you鈥檙e not just offering students opportunities for exposure or learning, you鈥檙e bringing a community together.鈥澛�

Kova膷evi膰 enlisted colleagues to join the project as well, and that effort led to the aforementioned, improvisational performance planned between the music, dance and theatre departments.聽

鈥淥ur vision is to do something extraordinarily creative,鈥� said Daniel Stevens, interim director of the School of Music. 鈥淲e want to break down the barriers between audience and art, so people find themselves in the midst of a performance, rather than passively spectating from the side.鈥澛�

It鈥檚 a vision possible only, he added, because he and his colleagues highly value these collaborative opportunities.

鈥淲hen we can all come together and see this building and its history through different disciplinary perspectives and can work to integrate those perspectives in new ways,鈥� he said, 鈥渋t shows the power of what鈥檚 possible in a University setting.鈥澛�

Ripple effect

Even before its opening, the exhibition has made its mark.聽

Consider Nicholas Fandaros, who earned a degree in art conservation and art history from 91原创 in 2023. He spent a portion of his undergraduate career doing archival research on Old College鈥檚 architectural evolution. (Ask him about the addition of a mysterious cupola to the building that went up during a routine roof repair 鈥� no one can fully explain why.) The experience helped solidify his future career path 鈥� he鈥檚 working as a preservation technician for the Central Park Conservancy in New York City.

Now, Fandaros is hoping those attending the Old College exhibition will feel the same sense of pride he felt while engaging with the building鈥檚 history.聽

鈥淭eaching people the importance of historic structures gives them a sense of ownership, which hopefully leads to the longevity of these spaces so we can continue to enjoy them,鈥� he said, adding: 鈥淥ld College is the heart of 91原创.鈥澛�

Of course, some still won鈥檛 understand. A building is just a building 鈥� right? And as the current home of the art conservation and art history departments, as well as 91原创鈥檚 museum division, this isn鈥檛 even a building a majority of students or faculty interact with directly on a regular basis. So 鈥� what gives? For Blue Hens across disciplines, why is Old College the sun worth exploring in 91原创鈥檚 ever-expanding solar system?聽

Allow Rujivacharakul to put it in its simplest terms:

鈥淢aybe we just really like one another,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd maybe we also really like this building.鈥�

Event info:

The Colors of Old College exhibition will run from Feb. 4 until May 18. Register by visiting:

The schedule for the opening reception on Tuesday, Feb. 18, is as follows:

• 2:30鈥�3:30 p.m.: Telling Stories with Objects: Curators Connect
• 3:30鈥�4:30 p.m.: Building and Gallery Talks
• 4:30鈥�5 p.m.: Old College Comes to Life: An Immersive Experience of Art, Music, Theatre, and Dance
• 5鈥�6:30 p.m.: Celebratory Reception聽
• 6:30鈥�7:30 p.m. Performances: Immersions through Words, Sounds, Dances

Kindly RSVP for each session that you plan to attend.聽

This event is free. All alumni, Blue Hen friends and community members are invited to attend.

Voices of Old College:

As part of the Old College exhibition, Blue Hens from Academic Technology Services and the Student Multimedia Design Center have spent three years collecting 1-3-minute oral histories/reflections from alumni in the form of audio recordings. Anyone looking to聽contribute their own reflection should reach to out to OldCollegeProject@udel.edu.