What Happens During Intersession, Part 1
The very first intersession at RIT seemed relatively quiet in Rochester. Very few members of the photography faculty were in the halls of the School because many of them participated in exciting international activities. We hope this will be a trend for future intersessions. Students and alumni alike had unique opportunities during this 3 weeks prior to the start of the spring semester. There were five trips in total, below are three and the other two will be featured in a future blog post.
Professors Roberly Bell and Meredith Davenport led a class in Dubai for the first time, titled City as Site: Dubai and Beyond. Students spent 12 days in Dubai and had the opportunity to travel to RIT’s Dubai Campus. Students were surrounded by new visual references and personal awareness of new cultures. The hope was students would develop creative projects related specifically to this region of The United Arab Emirates with a focus on Dubai and Sharjah. The diverse and multicultural society of the UAE along with the regions dramatic landscape serves as terrific backdrop for learning. Below are some snapshots shared from the trip.
Professor Michael Peres taught a workshop in Umea, Sweden for PhD students in the Molecular Biology School at Umea University. This was the 5th time this workshop was conducted. Umea is 40 miles from the Arctic Circle and is very cold, snowy and dark this time of year. The workshop’s curriculum explores imaging the invisible using a light microscopy. The emphasis of the course investigates concepts of workflow, best practices for image formation, image processing and image archiving to share a few.
Professor Willie Osterman, Assistant Dean Debbie Kingsbury and Art Historian Peter Gabak took a group of honor students to Italy for a 14-day cultural and art history class. There were 3 photography students in this group, and all students submit individual project proposals based on their area of study. Participants raised half of their own funds in advance of the trip that visited Rome, Florence, Naples, Pisa, Siena, Sorrento, Herculaneum, and Pompeii. It was nothing short of spectacular. The College of Imaging Arts and Sciences Honors Students have the opportunity to take an annual leadership course. The course alternates from international to domestic every other year and incorporates alumni visits. Other international trips have journeyed to Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Germany, Scotland, Ireland, England, and Northern Italy. Below are a few snapshots shared from the trip.