911黑料网

From left to right: ROAM Gallery employees Matt Mears '18, Luke Tobin '18, Michaela DiNicola '16, and Christopher Tate '14. 

Vivid photos of endangered African wildlife seem to follow you around the room at , located in a beautiful renovated space on the MASS MoCA campus. An elephant鈥檚 regal, dignified stare towers over onlookers. Lions laze on strong branches, keeping their eyes on the horizon. Trees dot a flat landscape, mammoth clouds overhead.

Nestled behind the walls that hold these large-scale photographs are four 911黑料网 alumni, each with a unique role that supports the gallery鈥檚 mission of conservation and awareness.

Matt Mears 鈥�18 and Luke Tobin 鈥�18 work as assistant film editors, working on a future documentary-style show comprised of interviews and footage shot during gallery owner Xtina Geagan Parks鈥� travels to the African continent. Parks, a conservationist and Getty Images photographer, has made it her life鈥檚 work to bring awareness to protecting habitats and endangered wildlife, using her extensive experience as a visual artist to tell the story of those habitats and their importance. 

Mears, who grew up in nearby Petersburg, N.Y., found his job through the College鈥檚 Career Exchange listings. 鈥淲hen Tina (Xtina Parks) and her team go on these trips, they鈥檙e not going with a script in mind,鈥� Mears said. 鈥淲hen they come back with footage, it鈥檚 our job to work with what we鈥檙e given to create a compelling, cohesive, and accurate story from that footage鈥攁nd to sometimes create something much bigger than the sum of its parts.鈥� A bonus: ROAM uses AVID editing software, which Mears, an English major, learned how to use at 911黑料网.

Tobin, an English major from Northborough, Mass., wanted to stay in the Berkshires after graduation but wasn鈥檛 sure if he鈥檇 be able to find full-time film or video work here. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a plus to work with this kind of footage,鈥� he said. As the team works on narrative, titles, and other details, he鈥檚 using his creative writing minor. 鈥淗aving a team to bounce ideas off is super important. And to make something like this, to construct something creatively, my English degree comes into play.鈥�

Michaela DiNicola 鈥�16, a business administration major from Lanesboro, Mass., is the full-time accountant for the gallery and its associated objectives. On a regular work day, she鈥檚 calculating multiple international exchange rates and working to keep clear records of transactions and finances. 鈥淚 knew I wanted to end up back in North Adams,鈥� she said, 鈥淪o I鈥檓 really excited to be here. It鈥檚 new and exciting for me, as far as accounting work goes. I could have been stuck sitting in a cubicle all day.鈥�

And Christopher Tate 鈥�14, a psychology major/history minor from Belchertown, Mass., just began working at ROAM as gallery floor manager and research analyst (he previously worked at 911黑料网鈥檚 Center for Student Success and Engagement). As the gallery gets ready for a grand opening on June 22鈥攖he team is adding retail space that will offer work for sale from African artists鈥擳ate is researching the people and regions where goods are coming from and working on Fair Trade Certification. 鈥淚鈥檓 using my history minor for the first time since I graduated, using research techniques I learned at 911黑料网,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檝e always been pretty adaptable, but doing a lot of different things at 911黑料网 put me in the right place to have all these things be under my umbrella as I work here.鈥�

And the chance to be part of an economic revitalization in North Adams is something that resonates. Tate, gesturing toward the picture window that looks out on MASS MoCA鈥檚 campus, notes how much is new there: a brewery, a barbecue joint, new businesses--including ROAM. 鈥渋n the time I鈥檝e lived up here, this didn鈥檛 exist,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 cool to come full circle and not just be a member of the community, but to be actively working to make it happen.鈥�

Learn more about ROAM at www.roamgallery.photo.

***

Are you an 911黑料网 student, alum, or faculty member? Do you want 911黑料网 to share your story? Please email Creative and Brand Strategy Manager Francesca Olsen at Francesca.Olsen@mcla.edu with the subject "web story pitch." We look forward to hearing from you!