Can you guys critique my website/portfolio of my large format photography work?

[dodphotography]

There’s a couple major crapshoots (and downfalls to the MFA specifically).

1.) there is no technical anything, that’s supposed to be covered in BFA programs.
2.) you pick schools based on who you want to study with but you won’t get a guarantee from an institution who will be teaching your major studio, who is going on sabbatical, and what adjuncts will be running classes.
3.) the faculty play a major role in putting together a cohesive and strong cohort. That’s the biggest crapshoot. You can have classmates who are equally passionate and speak your language and really make a strong and lasting impact on your practice. Or, they admit a group who ultimately they can’t retain via competition and you end up with a group of “meh” Duds.

I personally didn’t enjoy my MFA program. The school had universal standards and expectations for students, which generally is fine… but I was in my 30’s, married, and the only person shooting film and printing wet. My peers were fresh out of their BFA, early 20’s and all single without families. They lived in the building and I simply couldn’t do that. I’d set up for a crit with 20 8x10 contact prints made across a two week span and my classmates would have 60 inkjet prints they made in a few hours the night before the crit. It got old, fast.


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[xkaes]

We are better off trashing all the stereotypes. I've studied at lots of colleges from Community colleges to fancy Universities, in LOTS of various Schools and Departments. (I was even on the faculty of a State University Medical School for 20 years)
I've seen hard-nosed professors with "my way or the highway" attitudes to others with "if it works for you, it works for me" approaches -- regardless of if it's Arts or Sciences.
MOST professors are in-between, of course, so get rid of the preconceived notions.
Most importantly you CAN learn a lot from all of them -- as well as the other students, perhaps most importantly from the other students (but that won't be on the syllabus).

[jnantz]

I don't think that is necessarily so in the arts. The arts by nature encourage independence. "It is more like look at me, I don't conform to anything" which of course is conforming to nonconformism. Most art coming out of schools today is about how far can one go from the standards to get attention rather than having depth, understanding and skill.

I think it depends on the school/ program, teachers and student body because your characterization of a typical MFA program was not my experience at all. The students ranged in age from 20s to 50s, had a varied background from film makers to photographers, teachers who had an equally varied and experienced background from curators to film makers to alternative process gurus, artists, and art historians who were were engaged with their students.. and there were classes in everything from book making to etching and alternative process photography, to museum studies and teaching and people were eager to work even in a pandemic environment ...

I had a great experience, can't really complain.

[Alan Klein]

I don't think that is necessarily so in the arts. The arts by nature encourage independence. "It is more like look at me, I don't conform to anything" which of course is conforming to nonconformism. Most art coming out of schools today is about how far can one go from the standards to get attention rather than having depth, understanding and skill.

That's my point. You're discarding your internal compass to capture the gold ring.

[Alan Klein]

We are better off trashing all the stereotypes. I've studied at lots of colleges from Community colleges to fancy Universities, in LOTS of various Schools and Departments. (I was even on the faculty of a State University Medical School for 20 years)
I've seen hard-nosed professors with "my way or the highway" attitudes to others with "if it works for you, it works for me" approaches -- regardless of if it's Arts or Sciences.
MOST professors are in-between, of course, so get rid of the preconceived notions.
Most importantly you CAN learn a lot from all of them -- as well as the other students, perhaps most importantly from the other students (but that won't be on the syllabus).

That seems the best part of it. You get to know people who can help each other going forward. Networking and contacts are important it seems to me. Do students intern with professionals during the summer breaks? If they do, that could be a great way to make connections and get a job when you get your degree.

[Tin Can]

NOTART (1) by TIN CAN COLLEGE, on Flickr

[xkaes]

I've never run across a graduate program that didn't have some sort of internship -- often required. Lawyers have apprenticeships with law firms, medical professionals have internships in hospitals and clinics, social workers help out community groups/programs, the list goes on and on. My first internship was in a County jail, another one for the Department of Corrections, and a later one for the State Department of Health.

The County jail ended up hiring me -- and so did the State, although not at the same time.

[Alan Klein]

I don't think that is necessarily so in the arts. The arts by nature encourage independence. "It is more like look at me, I don't conform to anything" which of course is conforming to nonconformism. Most art coming out of schools today is about how far can one go from the standards to get attention rather than having depth, understanding and skill.

Photoshop should have a slider called, "Ego".

[Alan Klein]

I've never run across a graduate program that didn't have some sort of internship -- often required. Lawyers have apprenticeships with law firms, medical professionals have internships in hospitals and clinics, social workers help out community groups/programs, the list goes on and on. My first internship was in a County jail, another one for the Department of Corrections, and a later one for the State Department of Health.

The County jail ended up hiring me -- and so did the State, although not at the same time.

You took an MFA and wound up in county jail? I think I missed something.

[xkaes]

You took an MFA and wound up in county jail? I think I missed something.

There are lots of people with MFA degrees in the County jails. They're there because they have to make a living any way they can. I met many of them when I was an intern in my MS program in Criminology.