Diego Borgsdorf Fuenzalida ’24 and Jaspa Ureña ’24 Awarded Curatorial Apprenticeships for First-Generation and Students of Color

Claremont, Calif. (April 18, 2023)—Pitzer College students Diego Borgsdorf Fuenzalida ’24 and Jaspa Ureña ’24 have received an award from the Pitzer College Art Galleries to complete in-depth curatorial apprenticeships. The Benjamin Godsill ’00 and Anna Burns Student Apprenticeship Award provides the chance to work with two of Los Angeles’ most dynamic non-profit arts organizations: Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE) in Hollywood and Fulcrum Arts in Pasadena.  

Borgsdorf Fuenzalida studies Anthropology and Spanish at Pitzer. His thesis project will address the return of objects and archival documents from the Chilean exile, triggered by the Pinochet dictatorship, to cultural institutions in Chile. Based on Borgsdorf Fuenzalida’s recent fieldwork at the Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos in Santiago, Chile, this research contributes to studies of object repatriation, memorialization, and nation-building in museums. Borgsdorf Fuenzalida is excited to begin a curatorial apprenticeship at LACE, which has a long legacy of community engagement.  

Ureña is an abolitionist educator, DJ, and anti-disciplinary artist whose visual illustrations are made exclusively with Instagram’s Story function. They are completing their degree in Africana Studies with an Art minor at Pitzer. As a neurodivergent food justice advocate and former organic farmer, they are excited to begin their curatorial apprenticeship with Fulcrum Arts this spring. Ureña is extremely passionate about utilizing art as a vehicle for empowerment, transformative change, and collective cultural evolution. 

The apprenticeship award was made possible by a generous donation in 2021 by Pitzer alumnus Benjamin Godsill ’00 and his wife, Anna Burns, as a testament to Godsill’s commitment as a Pitzer graduate and their shared belief in the College’s mission. 

Offered on a competitive basis, the award seeks to create opportunities for individuals in the museum field by offering in-depth curatorial experience and providing a professional bridge to long-term museum careers. 

Applications for Spring 2024 Apprenticeship Awards will be announced on October 23, 2023. 

Pitzer College Art Galleries is grateful to Benjamin Godsill ’00 and Anna Burns for their vision, generosity, and commitment to fostering change in the museum world and for the support of our partner organizations, LACE (Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions) and Fulcrum Arts, for joining us in supporting this program through hands-on learning and mentoring.