Diana Galante ’03 Shines Brightly at Smithsonian
Also in this edition: Melvin Van Peebles ’53, Will Day ’93, Danielle Beauford ’10, Teresa Troyer ’94, and Vernita Johnson ’95.
Diana Galante ’03
Diana Galante ’03
Diana Galante, a conservator at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, cleans and restores a Tiffany-embellished bicycle over the course of 200 hours. The bike is now on display at the Washington, D.C.-based museum.
In an article about her experience, Galante says, “The way this piece was initially made, it would have been like a diamond necklace. It would completely dazzle, with every point of the gilding reflecting light. If the owner went out on a sunny day, you saw that bicycle.”
Galante, an objects conservator working with three-dimensional art and artifacts, majored in fine arts and minored in history at Ohio Wesleyan. At the museum, Galante says, she relies on her studies in “art history, fine arts, history and chemistry, and (training in) graduate study, self-driven exploration, and internships.”
Read the full article, “Uncovering the silver—and gold—lining of a Tiffany-embellished bicycle.”
Melvin Van Peebles ’53
Melvin Van Peebles ’53
Hollywood director, actor, and screenwriter Melvin Van Peebles discusses his career with reporter Mal Vincent of The Virginian-Pilot.
In the 1970s, Van Peebles launched a new era of films about urban African Americans who, until then, never had movies that focused on them. Peebles majored in English at Ohio Wesleyan.
“Before ‘Sweet Sweetback’ there was nothing for black filmmakers,” Van Peebles says of his debut film. “It changed everything.”
Read Vincent’s complete article, “Director Melvin Van Peebles, who started a genre of black exploitation films, does things his way.”
Will Day ’93
Will Day ’93
Will Day discusses his artwork and becoming an artist with Westword reporter Jamie Siebrase, telling the writer “each piece is a conversation with God.”
Day is one of the featured artists in the Open Studios Fall Artist Tour at Boulder (Colorado) Open Studios. The tour “allows artists to share their dreams and visions,” Day says.
Read the full Westword article, “Will Day’s Paintings Sound Every Bit as Good as They Look.”
Danielle Beauford ’10
Danielle Beauford ’10
Danielle Beauford, an animal keeper at The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, spends part of her summer studying key species re-introduction efforts of the great steppe in Mongolia.
Beauford, who majored in zoology and minored in psychology at Ohio Wesleyan, is pursuing a master’s degree from Miami University’s Global Field Program.
Teresa Troyer ’94
Teresa Troyer ’94
Teresa Troyer will spend 10 months at the American Embassy in Bogota instructing Colombian teachers on how to teach English as a second language.
Troyer, a double-major in English and Fine Arts at OWU, also works for the Dayton (Ohio) Public Schools as supervisor of its English as a Second Language programs. She will take a leave of absence to travel to Bogota.
“I take a lot from teaching … about how people see me and how I want to be in the world,” Troyer told reporter Tom Stafford. She will travel to Colombia with her husband and their two sons.
Read the complete Springfield News-Sun article, “Leave of absence equals world awareness for Springfield couple.”
Vernita Johnson ’95
Vernita Johnson ’95
Vernita Johnson, owner and operator of Shy-Stone, a handmade jewelry business, is spotlighted in The Metropreneur newsletter.
“Flawed stones are intentionally used to create this unique product line of bracelets, earrings and necklaces,” writer Jonnel Ransom writes, “because, ‘Just as the flaws in the stones make the stones more beautiful, the flaws women possess enhance (their) beauty,’ Johnson says.”
Johnson has participated in art shows, attended multiple women’s conferences, and been featured at the North Market. Johnson was also one of four artists invited to sell jewelry at the Columbus Museum of Art.
Johnson, who majored in sociology/anthropology at OWU, says her journey began with a toy-store jewelry kit.
Read the full Metropreneur article, “Women’s Business Center Spotlight: Vernita Johnson, Owner Shy-Stones.”