Thanks to the Poet StoryLab and MexiCali Biennial, Giselle Fausto ’26 helped shape how audiences experience contemporary art on both sides of the border.
The StoryLab sees collaborating with the MexiCali Biennial, a nonprofit contemporary visual arts organization that showcases exhibitions in Whittier and Calexico, as a natural fit that resonates with its priorities and themes of prioritizing Latinx stories. For Giselle, it’s an opportunity for the art major's work to gain new levels of exposure.
Already a StoryLab intern designing on the organization’s soon-to-launch website, she has expanded her skills by redesigning the Biennial’s internal signage system, creating public-facing vinyl decals, and more to support the gallery space.
“When you’re working in class, it seems hypothetical,” Giselle said. “But when I go to the lab, I get to talk to the attendees viewing my work.”
Fausto has long been passionate about graphic design, and the experience has been integral in further developing her skills.
“Graphic design has a nice balance between creativity and methodical thinking. You’ll have problems to solve, but you also have to think about them in a way that is sophisticated and beautiful. That challenge keeps me really engaged.”
Meeting local artists, teachers, and other members of the Whittier community over the past few months has been a significant benefit for Giselle as well.
“They really tailored the internship to support and develop her interests, which has been meaningful to us as faculty members who want to see our students get opportunities in the areas that they're most interested in,” said Associate Professor of Art History Kate Palmer Albers, one of the directors of the StoryLab.
Fausto credits Whittier with giving her the complementary connections, tools, and knowledge. She hopes other Poets will pursue similar internships to grow themselves.
“I think that having hands-on experience is one of the best things you can do,” Giselle said. “You need internships because working in the field is very different from working within a classroom. And I definitely feel that I've grown as an artist just from getting this hands-on experience.
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