SERIES
Member Feature: Gina
WAM COLLECTIVE MEMBER FEATURE
Gina Watylyk

Name: Gina Watylyk
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Hometown: North Riverside, Illinois
College: College of Liberal Arts
Major and Minor: Technical Writing and Communication, with Minors in Chemistry and Art History
Campus Involvement: WAM Collective member, Account Executive and Editor at CLAgency, Community Advisor at Pioneer Hall, Office Assistant at Froniter Hall, member of American Chemical Society (ACS)

What does sustainability mean to you?
To me, sustainability means not biting off more than I can chew. Working three jobs, participating in extracurriculars, and taking a full course load takes its toll, and I have to be cognizant of making time to relax to ensure my mental health and wellbeing.

If you could have dinner with any artist  living or dead, who would they be
Michelangelo, but only near the end of his life when he stopped being stuck up. His later works are very self-critical and mysterious, and it would be so neat to talk to him about them and find out what he was thinking when he created them. Especially his mural of The Last Judgement, which takes up an entire wall in the Sistine Chapel— the coolest work of art I have ever seen in real life.

A person posing in front of a statue

What is your favorite WAM Collective memory?
The clouds exhibition party! It was fun to plan the event with the collective and then share all of our hard work with the student body and Twin Cities community. The exhibition included a lot of interactive pieces, and the event was really well attended, so I enjoyed seeing my friends come out and engage with the art.

Fave spot in the Twin Cities?
Main Street in Northeast, between the Stone Arch Bridge and Saint Anthony Main theatre. It’s peaceful, with lots of restaurants and a quaint cobblestone street. It also has the best view of the city, placed perfectly behind the Mississippi River.

An album cover

Top three albums?
Fleet Foxes- Helplessness Blues
Sufjan Stevens- Illinoise
Twin Peaks- Wild Onion

What are your favorite ways to practice self care?
I enjoy going to the movies, and I try to go at least once every two weeks, even if it means going by myself. I feel like I focus on the film a lot more when I’m in a theatre. My favorite is the foreign film festival at St. Anthony Main every April— I try to go once a day! Also getting enough sleep is important.

What are you passionate about?
I am really passionate about making art and science accessible to people who don’t have a background in the subject. Also, I love memes and will talk about them for hours.