Selfie museums were the inspiration for Concordia's exhibit at this year's LCMS Youth Gathering, and hundreds of teens put the creative space to use for photos and videos.
The LCMS Youth Gathering may be over, but your pictures from the mountain-top experience live on!
It’s a good thing, then, that CUWAA provided such a scenic backdrop for capturing on camera your Gathering moments and memories.
What is a selfie museum?
Concordia’s booth for the 2022 Youth Gathering was inspired by the hugely popular selfie museum phenomenon. Selfie museums exploded onto the national scene in the late 2010s, with the first cited example, 29Rooms by Refinery29, cropping up in New York City in 2015. A simple Google search of “selfie museum” will likely reveal that there’s a museum near your hometown.
These “art installation” spaces are designed to provide a creative space for guests to pose in photos or videos, which they can then share on social media platforms. Each installation or exhibit within the museum offers its own unique aesthetic, usually featuring some combination of colorful backdrops, oversized props, and inspirational decals or phrases.
Concordia’s Lead Graphic Designer Andrea Michel took on the challenge of bringing Concordia’s selfie museum to life for the Gathering. Scroll down to read a bit about the inspiration behind each installation and to view some of our favorite pics of Gathering participants in each space.
Fly like a…Cardinal
Michel brought a piece of the actual CUAA campus to Houston with this exhibit. CUAA’s Kreft Center for the Arts building actually dons a pair of student-painted cardinal wings. It’s a favorite spot for students and supporters alike to stop and take flight…or at minimum, take a picture.
Hangin’ in a hammock
On the CUW campus, springtime is the best time for kicking back in a hammock. For a Falcon, there’s no better way to spend a pleasant spring day than hanging in a hammock with a good book and the cool breeze rolling off the lakefront.
A bicycle built for you
The city of Ann Arbor is replete with hiking and biking trails. In fact, Ann Arbor has been ranked the 4th-best city in the U.S. to get physically fit thanks to its ample pedestrian options. It’s right in line with Concordia’s mind, body, spirit focus!
Basking on the bluff
Both our campuses are known for their scenic waterfront property, but the Mequon campus’s bluff, in particular, offers a breathtaking view of Lake Michigan. Of course, the serenity of the scene makes us think of the peace we have because of the salvation found in Christ: “Saved through the water…by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” 1 Peter 3:20-21.
Picture yourself at Concordia
Although our campuses are miles apart, we still feel close in spirit. The dorm-room exhibit gave future Cardinals and future Falcons a chance to be roomies in a little bit closer proximity. Learn more about Res Life at CUW here and at CUAA here.
Bench strength
Both CUAA and CUW boast an impressive number of varsity-level sports for their respective sizes. CUAA’s roster totals 24 athletic programs, while CUW has 30. At CUAA, 64 percent of the undergraduate population participates in one or more intercollegiate programs. At CUW, 38 percent of all traditional undergraduates call themselves a student-athlete. Naturally, we wanted to give our future Falcon or Cardinal athletes a chance to show off their skills with sports-themed selfie museum exhibits.
— This story is written by Kali Thiel, director of university communications for Concordia University Ann Arbor and Wisconsin. She may be reached at kali.thiel@cuw.edu or 262-243-2149.
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