The Announcement: San Francisco, Here I Come!
Today I’ve been painting my studio walls back to a ‘Navajo White’ because I am moving out of Brooklyn on Thursday. For the month of May I’ll be traveling, as well as parking my stuff at my parents’ home in New Jersey. The day after Memorial Day, I will be driving across the country to call San Francisco my new home.
photo by flickr user -nathan
I was accepted into San Francisco Art Institute’s graduate program. I will be pursuing my Master of Fine Arts degree in the two-year program with a concentration in New Genres. I like to describe the program as the newest traditional area of study. There are traditional areas like Painting, Drawing, Sculpture, and Printmaking, and now there’s an area called New Genres, which encompasses relatively new media like sound and video art, as well as installation and performance. All in all, it’s the perfect continuation for a kid from Carnegie Mellon University’s undergraduate program—an emphasis in choosing material that best articulates an idea, rather than an idea conforming to the limits of a certain material.
Here’s a quick list of the artists/professors that will be shaping my first semester (I registered for classes earlier today!):
Tim Sullivan
Will Rogan
J.D. Beltran
Jennifer Rissler
Robin Balliger
Renée Green
At SFAI, graduate students become teaching assistants (TA’s) in the second and final year of study. However, I’ve elected to take J.D. and Jennifer’s Teaching Practicum class, and if all goes accordingly, I’ll be required to TA an undergraduate class this fall. That’s actually one of the top things I’m looking forward to. And to any undergrads who might be googling my name and find this—I’m a good guy, I swear! (Some readers might wonder what the big deal is with TA-ing. In art school, undergraduates don’t TA. So if you were an undergrad and a TA for your stats or psychology professor, I was the art kid totally envious of you back in the day. “You get to grade papers?! OMG, you’re so lucky!” I relate the position of a TA to that of a bartender. Let that simmer.)
The move out of New York City is stressful like any move, but the gorgeous weather these past few days has literally brightened my spirits. I’m excited to take some time away from NYC and explore a brand new city. I’ve only lived in NYC for three years, but I grew up about 20 miles west of the city in New Jersey. NYC has always been my ‘big city’ and I am both sad to say goodbye and terribly excited to go somewhere unfamiliar.
I’m giving myself this summer to get acquainted with San Francisco. I have several fraternity brothers living and loving every moment out there, so I’m excited to join the crew. I’ve got a plan to purchase a bicycle and become one of those commuting bikers I never imagined I could be, but ITTET, there’s no point in going to one of the greenest cities with a car and no budget for gas. I hope my body will not react negatively to this sudden jolt of physical activity, but hopefully my youthful exuberance will counteract any physical agony.
My hunt for an MFA begins in a city I’ve been to for only three days. It’s all so wild and exactly what I never dreamed I would be doing when I was a kid. I’m living in the moment and it’s amazing! Now the question is, is The One out there? Ah, don’t think about it. Don’t think about it!
