Tuesday, August 29, 2023
Written by
Alexis Belme
Image Gallery
A photo of the HBD, SMA zine, held up against the colorful mural in the Stanley Museum of Art lobby.

When starting to plan a birthday celebration for Stanley, we wanted to really be able to capture the experiences and moments from the last year. Celebrating the reopening of the Stanley Museum of Art not only was a celebration of the museum itself, but also everyone that has come in the doors. Thus, we really wanted this celebration to be like a typical birthday party: cupcakes, music, activities, and even a little picture area with a Polaroid!

A photo taken at the HBD, SMA event. It shows one student in the foreground, looking at the HBD, SMA zine, and others in the back interacting with the gallery hosts at the event's information desk and mingling in the back.

To try and really reflect on the past year, we created a zine compiled of events, classes that have come in, student employees, alumni, and so much more.

 

The zines were given out at an information table that also had punchcards for the Stanley Student Challenge. The challenge was made to increase the attendance at student events while providing a fun incentive for attending 5 of the 10 events this year.

Personally, I think that the prize of a free Baggu designed by staff is a great reward for those who attend the events!  

A photo of Alexis, the Stanley's Campus Engagement Coordinator and the student in charge of the HBD event, posing in front of the tables with the cupcakes on them.

 

Overall, HBD SMA allowed us to celebrate the opening of the museum and the accomplishments of the past year. However, it also gave people the opportunity to see the space, hang out with friends, take silly pictures, and have a delicious cupcake from Molly’s Cupcakes. Even if people just stopped in for the cupcake, we wanted to make the space less scary and intimidating for students.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information on the Stanley's first year open, watch the Daily Iowan TV segment below: 

Gallery
A photo of the HBD, SMA zine, held up against the colorful mural in the Stanley Museum of Art lobby.
A photo of two chalk sandwich board signs in an office. One sign has a cupcake drawn on it, the other has multicolored balloons and a "1" birthday candle. Both advertise the HBD, SMA birthday party event.
A photo of the Stanley Student Challenge card, held up against the Stanley's lobby mural.
A photo of Alexis, the Stanley's Campus Engagement Coordinator and the student in charge of the HBD event, posing in front of the tables with the cupcakes on them.
A photo of the event in action. Students mingle around, eating cupcakes, reading the zines, and chatting. Jack and Anaka, two gallery hosts, sit at the event's welcome desk.
A photo of the HBD, SMA event information desk. On it are various paper goods--the zine specifically made for the event, and the Stanley Student Challenge stamp card.
A photo taken at the HBD, SMA event. Two students in the foreground are having a conversation; behind them, other students are at a cocktail table eating cupcakes. In the background is a projector screen with a powerpoint displaying images of student events.
A photo of the cupcakes at the HBD SMA event. There are 12 of them in a cardboard box, with different colored cakes and frosting.
A photo taken at the HBD, SMA event. It shows one student in the foreground, looking at the HBD, SMA zine, and others in the back interacting with the gallery hosts at the event's information desk and mingling in the back.
A photo of two Polaroid pictures, taken at HBD SMA on a black tablecloth.
A selfie photo of Anaka and Jack, two gallery hosts working at the HBD SMA event welcome desk.
A photo of HBD, SMA event in progress. Alexis is being interviewed by the Daily Iowan TV crew, while other event guests eat cupcakes, talk, read their zines, and mingle.
A photo showing the HBD, SMA set up. Facing west inside the building, black cocktail tables, an information desk with chairs and pamphlets, and the Stanley's rainbow-colored lobby mural can be seen.
A photo showing the setup of the HBD, SMA event. This view looks north into the Stanley's lobby, showing the placement of the couches and the womb chairs, creating spaces for people to sit and chat.
A photo of the HBD, SMA event in progress. People mingle, eating cupcakes, chatting, looking at their zines, and watching the powerpoint presentation cycle through images of student employees, interns, student projects, and student events.
A photo of Anaka and Jack at the HBD, SMA information desk. They are smiling, preparing to hand out zines and Student Challenge cards to event visitors.
A photo of HBD, SMA event in progress. Alexis is being interviewed by the Daily Iowan TV crew, while other event guests eat cupcakes, talk, read their zines, and mingle.
One student takes a Polaroid picture of two other students, posing excitedly, their arms raised, in front of the Stanley's rainbow-colored lobby mural.