Aliza Nisenbaum, Visual Arts, and Tom Kalin, Film

Introduced by Carol Becker, Dean of Columbia University School of the Arts

School of the Arts faculty members Aliza Nisenbaum and Tom Kalin discuss the solo exhibition, Aliza Nisenbaum, on display through June 27 at Tate Liverpool. 

“The exhibition captures the stories of British frontline NHS (National Health Service) workers and highlights the impact that Covid-19 has had on their jobs and home lives. Sitters include a professor of Outbreak Medicine, a respiratory doctor who became a father during the first wave, and a student nurse who comes from a family of nurses who all chose to return to frontline work.

“Throughout August [2020], Nisenbaum got to know the selected NHS staff, talking to them via video link from her studio in the US. She uses these conversations to include elements of their personality and interests within her paintings. They are shown alongside things that have given them support and hope through this difficult time, such as pets or musical instruments.”