Khang Tran, COL ’27, Rockville, MD
This summer, I had the incredible opportunity to intern at The Art Vacancy (TAV) — an art organization based in New York and Paris that champions emerging artists across all disciplines and builds inclusive platforms beyond the typical gallery model. My role spanned several facets of the organization, from assisting with exhibition preparations to engaging with artists and helping out with digital outreach.
What drew me in from day one was its mission: to break down elitist barriers in the arts by providing visibility and support for local and emerging artists, while bridging divides between curators and creators. A large majority of my work was in marketing and communications, which involved tasks such as managing social media posts, writing short blurbs, and crafting announcements that sought to balance clarity with the poetic tension of the artworks themselves. The diligent blending of concept and clarity in messaging taught me how narrative and visuals can amplify one another, which became a creative exercise in itself. I learned how to shift between artistic registers, and pushed myself out of my comfort zone. This reminded me that creativity is not just about producing new, but also about listening to the artist’s vision and translating it in ways that resonate with a broad audience. In this process, I sharpened both my aesthetic sensibilities and my ability to think critically about communication.
By the closing of the internship, I had grown beyond my technical skills. I learned interpersonal skills from event coordination, digital outreach, exhibition preparation, which was a reinforcement to the importance of inclusive and emotionally resonant art environments. I’ve grown more confident in navigating the art and humanities and more committed to cultivating places of equity and inclusivity.
Overall, interning at TAV was a path of creative immersion and personal growth. By supporting artists with integrity and building meaningful exhibitions like Our Dirty Dishes, the organization models how art and community can intersect in deeply thoughtful, accessible ways. I am immensely grateful to Penn Career Services for their support in making this opportunity possible, and I am excited to carry forward the lessons and inspiration into my future pursuits for many years to come.
This is part of a series of posts by recipients of the 2025 Career Services Summer Funding Grant. We’ve asked funding recipients to reflect on their summer experiences and talk about the industries in which they spent their summer. You can read the entire series here
