How to describe David Masnato '11 as an artist? He draws and sculpts, produces videos and installations. He's a printmaker and animator. He has worked his own musical compositions into his artwork, too—not to mention miles of twine.

As a studio art major, Masnato has made the most of the Art Department's approach to creativity: explore widely, in media as well as styles. "We're required to take courses from different faculty members to ensure that we are trying new things all the time," Masnato noted.

Explore he has. Nothing, it seems, has escaped his imagination. He learned to crochet as a freshman and later incorporated the craft into his art, inspired by a semester in Italy as a Kenyon in Rome participant. "I saw other artists who did soft sculptures and wondered how I could apply that to crochet," he said. One result was "Twine Hive," a construction he stitched for a December show by the students in Claudia Esslinger's "Installation Art in Time and Space" class. The hive stood nine feet tall and used three and one-half miles of twine. Props capturing the smell and taste of honey and the sound and activity of bees completed the installation.

Lately, Masnato has been drawn to animation. He recently posted a short on YouTube depicting a dangling strand from a ball of yarn morphing into three "yarn people" who embark on a quirky adventure before being pulled back into the ball. The video presages Masnato's Senior Exercise: an installation featuring four interactive animations to be presented to the campus in March in Olin Gallery. The faculty views the Senior Exercise as each student's first professional exhibit. "I am really excited about it, but there is a lot of pressure," said Masnato. "We are one of the few majors on campus where everyone can experience our comps. We have to please the faculty, our peers, and ourselves."

Masnato, who plays guitar, banjo, and piano, writes and records his musical soundtracks. He would like to work in an animation studio after he graduates. "I have much more confidence in my work than when I first came here," he said. "I feel ready for whatever lies ahead."

Kenyon's art program, he feels, has already immersed him in the experience of being a working artist. He's been able to use facilities like a state-of-the-art digital imaging classroom. His professors are all active artists themselves, who exhibit widely and welcome students into their studios. Senior majors like Masnato get semi-private studios of their own.

Art facilities on campus will expand dramatically, meanwhile, when the College opens two new buildings. A gallery building is scheduled to open this fall, while a new studio art building is under construction. More space, and more tools, for future students who like to explore just about everything.