"If the New School Murals Could Talk" student video project
Abstract
A video project created by undergraduate students in a University Lecture course at The New School taught by Professors Julia Foulkes and Mark Larrimore in Fall 2013.
Dates
- 2013
Creator
- Chang, Yun Hee (Filmmaker, Person)
- Chapich, Haley (Filmmaker, Person)
- Nam, Kayeon (Filmmaker, Person)
- Spool, Ari (Filmmaker, Person)
Extent
0.04 Gigabytes (1 MP4 video file)
Language of Materials
English
Scope and Contents
A video project created by undergraduate students in a University Lecture course at The New School taught by Professors Julia Foulkes and Mark Larrimore in Fall 2013, titled >New School Histories. The course is described as follows:
When the New School for Social Research opened its doors a hundred years ago, it offered courses in the social sciences and public affairs – and a new vision of higher education. It was not a university; it did not offer degrees. The founders thought that people would come to the school for “no other purpose than to learn.” A century later, the New School has changed in almost every way. Design, the arts, a spirit of activism, and degree programs dominate. But the school continues to strive to offer disciplinary experimentation, political involvement, and a global lens that offer a critical perspective on higher education. In what ways have these values been realized (or not), and how? We construct answers to these questions by assembling a history of the school from scrapbooks of newspaper articles, memoirs, artwork, and interviews. The basis of the course are the academic and artistic works of The New School’s faculty and students since its establishment. We will also participate in university centenary activities throughout the semester.
Students who collaborated on the video project were Yun Hee Chang, Haley Chopich, Kayeon Nam, and Ari Spool. Ari Spool is the voice of the murals on the video; Haley Chopich appears on-screen conducting the interviews.
Completed in mid-January 1931, José Clemente Orozco’s fresco mural cycle, "Call to Revolution and Table of Universal Brotherhood," is a five part, socially-themed work created on what is now the 7th floor of the New School's building at 66 West Twelfth Street. The murals adorned the public dining room and an adjoining student lounge. Later, the "Orozco Room," was converted into a space for meetings and special events. The mural cycle is the only surviving example of this Mexican fresco form in New York City.
The video was filmed on site in the Orozco Room. Work to improve the conditions of the room and restore the murals commenced in 2023, at which time the mural panels were covered by a temporary protective wall and the Orozco Room closed to visitors. This work is still in progress, as of May 2026.
Sources
Email from Ari Spool to Wendy Scheir, April 9, 2025.
New School Course Description Archive https://courses.newschool.edu/archive/
Preserving the Orozco Murals https://thenewschoolartcollection.org/preserving-the-orozco-murals/
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research use. Please contact archivist@newschool.edu for appointment.
Conditions Governing Use
In accordance with The New School's Intellectual Property Rights Policy, copyright is held by the filmmakers. The responsibility to secure copyright permission rests with the user.
Biographical Notes
Yun Hee Chang is a 2015 graduate of the Bachelor of Fine Arts program in Illustration at Parsons School of Design.
Haley Chopich, who appears as the onscreen “interviewer” in the “If the New School Murals Could Talk” video, is a 2014 graduate of the Fashion Design BFA program at the Parsons School of Design.
Kayeon Nam is a 2015 graduate of the BFA Fine Arts Program at Parsons School of Design, BFA Fine Arts.
Ari Spool, writer and “voice” of the murals in the "If the New School Murals Could Talk” video, is a 2015 Liberal Arts and Media Studies graduate of the Schools of Public Engagement at The New School. Spool was a member of the Riggio Honors Program while at The New School, and in 2013, ran a write-in campaign as a candidate in the New York City mayoral race. After working in the internet technology sector at companies such as GIPHY and Snap Inc., Spool co-founded the website optimization company Surface AI in 2025.
References
“Ari Spool.” LinkedIn. Accessed April 28, 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ari-spool/.
“Chang, Yun Hee.” Finding Aids: New School Archives and Special Collections. Accessed April 28, 2026. https://aspace.archives.newschool.edu/agents/people/7668.
“Haley Chopich.” LinkedIn. Accessed April 28, 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/in/haley-chopich-77273b83/.
“Nam, Kayeon.” Finding Aids: New School Archives and Special Collections. Accessed April 28, 2026. https://aspace.archives.newschool.edu/agents/people/7669.
Vilensky, Mike. “Write-In Brings 'the Ruckus': Unlikely Candidate Running as Long Shot for New York Mayor.” Wall Street Journal, October 11, 2013.
Woods, Charlotte. “New School Student Runs For New York City Mayor.” New School Free Press, November 7, 2013. https://www.newschoolfreepress.com/2013/11/07/new-school-student-runs-for-new-york-city-mayor/.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Ari Spool and downloaded from YouTube using 4K Video Downloader tool in 2025.
- Art in universities and colleges (Subject) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Digital moving image formats (Type of Material) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Documentary films (Subject) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Student projects (Type of Material) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Title
- Guide to "If the New School Murals Could Talk" student video project
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Jason Adamo and New School Archives staff.
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin