Semere Draws Interest in Spanish Painter Goya
By Akiko Tanishima
Corsair Staff Writer

History professor Mario Semere fascinated a crowd Friday night when he held a lecture on Spanish painter Goya at the Santa Monica College Concert Hall.

Fans of Semere anxiously waited for the doors to open, so they could be a part of “Art in the Evening.”

The series of art lectures has been held for years at SMC, and was honored to add Goya to its repertoire.

Goya, an influential painter of the nineteenth and twentieth centur sometimes called the father of modern art was known for his contemporary works depicting the French invasion of Spain and the violence that occured.

Semere has taught Western Art at SMC since 1961 after finishing his master’s at UCLA. Glasgow said that Semere has a fanbase both with SMC and UCLA because he used to give lectures at the university.

“I am a big fan of Mario,” said Kristen Glasgow, a second-year art history major. “I’ve always come to this lecture, and I’m taking all of his classes and I’m also helping him to grade papers,” said Glasgow.

The audience members were not only from SMC, but also from surrounding areas. “I’ve been coming to this art lecture series for many years,” said Elaine Weiner, an audience member from Manhattan Beach.

“I particularly like this speaker, Mario Semere. He actually is the main reason I came. After I heard his lecture once, every time I see his name, I come again. He is wonderful.”

Semere said he enjoys community attendance at the lectures. “Many years ago, I thought that was really right that people in the community should come to hear the staff teach the students. That’s why I have lectures here,” said Semere.

Weiner added, “I feel like sort of being back in school. I enjoy what he does… He picks up the environment, the country, the family, and all personal information of the artist. I like the size of this hall and I like the visuals. I like audience as well. They are very interesting. I think they are special kinds of people.”

Semere used many slides in his lectures, talked about the artist’s background which is usually not written in textbooks, and also compared the contents of paintings with present day events. These facts helped audiences to understand the artist more easily.

Ayala Fishman of San Fernando said that even though it was her first time attending, she thoroughly enjoyed the evening.

“It was really worth listening to,” she said. “His lecture was very interesting because he compared Goya’s work with other French painters in the same period and compared his own paintings for one subject in different times in his life. I definitely will come to his next lecture,” said Fishman.

On Friday, Oct.18, in the SMC Concert Hall, the next “Art in the Evening” lecture series will be about Norman Rockwell and will be given by Eleanor Schapa, an art history professor.

Schapa has taught architectural history, modern art history, and American art history at SMC and UCLA.