LDSOA in NYC

A group of 32 students and three faculty recently returned from spending the maymester term studying art and design in New York City. There’s no doubt that New York offers advantages that the traditional classroom cannot, and it was in recognition of this fact the NYC Maymester program was developed in the spring of 2014. Focused on contemporary art and design, this intensive, three-week long program uses the city as its campus, and significant class time is devoted to visiting its world-class museums and galleries. At the same time, participating students benefit from more intimate experiences, visiting artists and designers in their studios and networking with alumni who work in arts-related fields in New York. Experiences ranged from MoMA and the Whitney to design firms in midtown, artists’ studios in Bushwick, and galleries in Chelsea and the Lower Eastside.

While this program is fairly new, students and professors both highlight the importance of the opportunity to visit NYC, explore the art world and meet alumni who there as working artists. 

“There’s no doubt that New York City offers advantages that the traditional classroom cannot, and the point of this program was to make the most of being in a city with incomparable museums, galleries, and artists. We returned home tired and with heads spinning, but also undeniably energized by the knowledge that so many artists and intellectuals are dedicated—with stunning, often provocative results—to the practice of contemporary art and design.”

— Dr. Isabelle Loring Wallace, Associate Professor of Contemporary Art, Associate Director of Research and Graduate Studies

“Looking back on my trip, I can't help but recall the great experience I had at the Jim Campbell exhibition hosted by the Museum of Moving Image. I fell into Campbell's digital wonderland expecting little and walked out feeling enchanted, maybe even hypnotized, by the display. I can still feel the work resonating clearly and deeply within me on both a personal and academic level. While in my eyes the show by itself was incredible enough, my experience was heightened with a discussion of the methods and themes Campbell used, a discussion that was highly personalized to our individual interests as students. I think we would all agree in saying that seeing artwork in a book or on a screen is nice, but after seeing work like this in person, I really believe that nothing really compares to seeing it firsthand. I guess that goes to say that despite what I've tried to write here, I don't think I can adequately tell you what it was like to experience this exhibition or for that matter what it was like to catch a glimpse of the art world of New York City. That is where I find the beauty of this program: it offers a chance for students to see what is meant to seen. Not just read about it. Not just analyzed through reproductions. But SEEN. After all, if vision is that grand unifier of visual art, it should be given high priority in learning to understand art in its many forms, right?”

-Nic Walter, Maymester 2014

We are excited to see all of the wonderful ways our students are learning about the world this summer--from afar or right here on campus. Check out the NYC Maymester highlights and more pictures here. To learn more about the program and make plans to attend next year, visit the program page here.