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NaturallyAesthetic

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  • Gender
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  • Location
    Midwest
  • Interests
    Painting, photographing, music-making, storytelling, reading
  • Program
    Art History

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  1. Hi there! Does anyone know of any MFA programs that are still accepting applications, or have a summer semester? Any leads would be much appreciated!
  2. My significant other sent me a valentine, but decided to package it in an official envelope from the University of Iowa. Mini heart attack.
  3. Ebonie, your Three Sisters painting reminds me of Ghanaian street art!
  4. The tome will be gifted to the Rock Island County Historical Society, and will actually only amount to about 20 pages! The more I dig in to the research, the more I realize that the park and cemetery I am studying actually predate City Beautiful and are really more an extension of the Garden and Parks movement, which is just as fun! Both movements coincide in their emphasis on the importance of urban greenspace. Because I am also something of a scientist, half of my research will be presented in poster format and will catalog the species, approximate age, and location of each tree within the park and cemetery grounds. I'll be generating a map through GIS of tree locations, coupling the map with species and age information, and compiling a photographic catalog of bark patterns. I might also throw in some soil and slope data! That portion of my research will be gifted to the Friends of Riverside Park, to distribute to visitors who want to know more about the trees at the park. In regards to big boxes, what kind of art projects did you and your friend have in mind? You might enjoy reading Big Box Reuse, by Julia Christen! It's a fast and photographically oriented adventure that also proves pretty informative and artistically interesting. Thanks for your interest!
  5. Thanks so much! I appreciate the encouragement. : )
  6. For those of you unable to seek wilderness in the coming week, I invite you to distract yourselves with my new and improved art website! http://verosmithart.webs.com/
  7. Thank you for sharing your experience, OnceAndFutureGrad! I'm in a similar boat as jilly, and I am slightly ashamed to admit that I was once one of those GradCafers who only existed for acceptance into a program. When I began this process, I kind of got into the mindset that pursuing a PhD would be the only way to go about accomplishing my goals. This mentality is due in part to the fact that I came from a rural town where most people did not have four year college degrees, let alone doctorates. Prior to college, I had only met two people that had PhDs: a slightly addled history teacher at my high school, and an uncle whom I rarely saw but always thought of as the epitome of sophisticated. I really had very little idea what the whole thing was about, and sometimes worry that I am still too naive. I am pursuing graduate study because I need the credentials to curate or to teach or to continue my research, but also (and mostly) because I am fascinated with the world and that fascination is emphatically visual. Out of those four reasons, I only really need the doctorate to curate. Teaching is something I more or less find myself doing, almost by accident. Inevitably, I end up guest lecturing for professors across campus, leading art classes for children, or giving music lessons without really paying attention to the process that led to the situation in the first place. Research is something I can't escape either - I constantly have some project going, either to inform a series of paintings or photographs or for a journalism piece I am writing. The format of the research and the ultimate usage of the research is what might be subject to change if I end up in a graduate program for art history, but not the spirit of exploration engendered by actively seeking new knowledge. The first rejection letter I got was pretty hard to read. However, I am now more hopeful than ever. Good things will come, probably in unexpected forms. I'm beginning to think that recognizing the guises of the good is not only crucial to happiness, but also contingent on diligent practice. Congrats on becoming an EMT! And on translating Old Norse! And on giving good advice!
  8. I'm doing the same thing for some programs! In fact, some schools require that you apply directly to the PhD, regardless of whether or not you have your masters. As to acceptance rates of people with only BAs, I haven't been able to find that information. In terms of encouragement, here are some things I've been telling myself when most discouraged: If you don't get into a program this year, you can always try again. If you don't get into a program this year, you can take a year to relax (with 60+ hour work weeks, hopefully!), gain valuable functioning-outside-of-academia-skills, and take time to dissect your intentions and life direction a little more. If you really love what you are trying to do, you will find a way to do it. You're great! Hope that helps, and best of luck!
  9. Oh man! That makes me very sad, indeed. Congrats to you and your national juried shows! Though I didn't get serious about the studio major until my senior year, I've managed to show in a lot of local and regional exhibitions, but nothing on the national level! Interestingly, many of my peers are almost more interested in my perspective as an artist on a given art historical quandary than any art historical training I can bring to the table in my senior seminar for art history. However, those are my peers, and not the established scholars that will be reviewing my application. Only one school I've applied to has stated that my studio background is an asset to their program, so I definitely can relate to your experience! I hope to find a balance between art historical work and actually creating, but I know it won't be easy.
  10. I really like the purity of color in your works, Hicks! Thank you for sharing!
  11. Even though I'm not applying to MFA programs, I LOVE this forum! Here's my photoblog that hasn't been updated in a shamefully long time: http://verosmith.blogspot.com/
  12. I am also freaking out! However, my freak outs tend to mingle with obsessive compulsiveness. Subsequently, my apartment is really organized, and I've applied to countless jobs (everything ranging from coffee shops to DNR grunt work, as well as a lot of museum jobs) to give myself alternatives if every school I applied to is all "Oh hey, yeah, about your application - you're not quite good enough, sorry." I too am a BBC/NPR addict! I particularly like the BBC's coverage of American politics. In terms of top choices, it's really between University of Iowa and Yale. U of I has strong research happening that coincides with my interests well AND I want to focus on the American Midwest so it makes sense to, you know, stay in the Midwest. The professors I want to work with the most took time to speak with me in detail about their program, which was wonderful! Because of my background in studio art, the facilities of Iowa are very attractive! The departments have a good relationship and I would love to continue creating and exhibiting. Additionally, my significant other is about two years away from completing a doctoral program at U of Iowa, though I'm trying not to let that influence this process too much - perhaps in vain. Yale is Yale, obviously, but their material culture program is top notch, and my experience with the faculty has been extremely positive. So yes! Jitters, sleepless nights, excitement, fear - it's all colliding and coalescing!
  13. THAT'S AWESOME, Hicks! What medium do you work in?! I've been considering doing a dual MA/MFA for studio and art history, but I am a little weary of trying to juggle multiple departments.
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