Student Thrives as Instructor and Artist with Support from Fine Arts Library


Person standing in front of a wall featuring lighted tubing
Aaron Peters with a portion of his thesis work

Aaron Peters was introduced to the Fine Arts Library early in his academic career at Ohio State.  

“After I was accepted into my program, I visited campus during a special weekend for accepted graduate students,” he said. “I remember getting a tour of the Wexner Center for the Arts and then going down to the Fine Arts Library and meeting Courtney Hunt, the art and design librarian.” 

That brief encounter would be the first of many that Peters, currently a third-year Master of Fine Arts candidate studying sculpture, would have with Hunt in his time at Ohio State. 

“Within the first week or two of the program, I was in a course that prepared graduate student instructors for teaching,” said Peters. “Courtney came to that class and told us about all the resources available to us and our students. We were shown the Fine Arts Library, but also told that we could set up appointments for our own classes to come down and learn more about it.” 

Peters said that he found immense value in bringing his classes to the library to speak with Hunt. 

“In every class I teach, there’s an assignment where my students have to start doing research right away,” he said. “I always set up a day where I bring my students into the Fine Arts Library—or, during COVID, hold a virtual session—and introduce them to Courtney. She gives a great presentation on how to find books in the library, use online resources, this whole great rundown. She’s very friendly and informative, and it’s always a great experience.” 

Peters has found Hunt’s expertise useful not only for his students, but also for his own studies.  

“She’s always been helpful in finding things that pertain to my research,” said Peters. “I took a class on artists’ notes, and Courtney was helpful in finding resources not just in the Fine Arts Library, but also relevant artists’ notes that are housed in different libraries across campus.” 

“We have these awesome things—notes, sketches—from renowned artists before they were well-known,” he continued. “It was really revelatory to look at notes from these artists to see what they were thinking years before they were famous and how they approached their work. The class was amazing, and Courtney was there the whole time to help us, even showing us some of her own research from when she was in grad school.” 

Beyond his interactions with Hunt, Peters noted that spending time browsing the stacks of the Fine Arts Library has led to unexpected impacts on his own artistic practice. 

“There was an assignment where we had to pick an artist and prepare a presentation about their notes,” he said. “I don’t even remember the artist who I’d originally thought of, but I remember going into the library and, just by chance, finding a book from the artist Fred Sandback. He’s this very minimalist artist who worked in the 70s and 80s. Going in looking for one artist and then finding this other artist—that really turned some things around for me in my own art and thesis work.” 

“That’s just one example of thinking you’re going in to find one thing and finding something else,” continued Peters. “That isn’t the first or only time that’s happened for me.” 

When asked why other students, both graduate and undergraduate, should visit the Fine Arts Library, Peters said that while reaching out for help can be daunting, it is an important step toward maximizing your time at Ohio State. 

“I’ve learned that it’s totally okay—even encouraged—to seek help at the libraries for your research, to lean on others and the resources available and to tap into that knowledge,” he said. “They’re really these wells of knowledge on how to research, how to find what you’re looking for.” 

To learn more about the Fine Arts Library including location, contact information, recommended resources and more, please visit our website