The Harvard Crimson

Visitas 2021

arts

“We know what art is! It's paintings of horses!” — Jack Donaghy, 30 Rock

The Arts Board of The Crimson is more than just another content board. Yes, we write stuff about art, but — more than that —we care about art. We're the type of people who create March Madness brackets for Taylor Swift songs, who have watched The Irishman (all 3.5 hours of it) 6 times, who write senior theses on celebrity culture. If this sounds cool to you, then comp Crimson Arts!

The Arts Board of The Crimson is more than just another content board. Yes, we write stuff about art, but — more than that —we care about art. We're the type of people who create March Madness brackets for Taylor Swift songs, who have watched The Irishman (all 3.5 hours of it) 6 times, who write senior theses on celebrity culture. If this sounds cool to you, then comp Crimson Arts!

We write about Taylor Swift and Frozen 2 and Harry Style's dress and Justin Beiber's music video for 'Yummy' and, essentially, anythign and everything going on in the world of art and culture. We also cover Harvard's arts scene: from Ben Platt's "Man of the Year" celebration to the Hasty Pudding's tearly musical comedy to the Handel and Haydn Society's latest performance.

Aside from being a part of the wonderful, idiosyncratic, and outrageously witty community that is the Arts Board, there are plenty of other perks to comping as well! Our writers have attended the Cannes Film Festival, sat down to interview Will Ferrell, and regularly get access to early movie or television screenings, music performances, and guest speaker events — all free of charge.

We, like all Crimson boards, welcome everyone regardless of prior journalism experience. Our comp is designed to teach you everything you will need to know as a writer, from interviewing techniques to crafting a perfect lede. All you need to do is show up — and write!

Requirements

Want to know more? Awesome! Here's what you'll have to write in order to be elected to the Arts Board:
  • 2 reviews (reviews of movies, albums, books, theater, and exhibits)
  • 1 feature (longer pieces that do not fall under the category of criticism—e.g., event coverage)
  • 1 profile (longer, interview-driven pieces featuring an artist or cultural figure)
  • 1 Culture article (formerly known as Arts Blog)
  • 2 additional pieces for Arts

Articles are pitched out by editors at our weekly Writers' Meetings, which take place on Mondays at 7 p.m..

In addition to writing articles, compers must attend our weekly comp seminars at 6 p.m. on Mondays(i.e., directly before Writers' Meetings). At these seminars we'll teach you everything you need to know about arts writing, even if you have never written a complete sentence. We'll also have fun.

Did you start comping arts but got distracted? It's cool. We've kept track of everything you've already written and the articles still count towards your comp. Come back soon. We miss you.

Questions? Comments? Strong opinions about Harry Styles? Email comp directors Sofia Andrade (sofia.andrade@thecrimson.com) and Joseph P. Kelly (joseph.kelly@thecrimson.com).