Hey, I'm Ashley Kanaley. I hope to give you an idea of what life is like at Syracuse University as a junior printmaking major. I come from the much teased but beautiful New Jersey. Its a tiny little town near the Delaware Water Gap. I love it here in Syracuse. Its a nice cross between a small town and city environment. There are many things to do without being so distracting you don't get your work done. Plus if you drive in any direction for twenty minutes you are out where its quiet again with hiking and mountains, and skiing if you like that.
SU is a good mix of a small school within a larger one. I know everyone in my classes and in the art building, but when I walk across the quad, I rarely see anyone I know. You can be well known and blissfully unknown. I also really enjoy having an art school and a liberal arts school available to me. I am a psychology minor and would hate to be influenced only by art classes. I enjoy the freedom of being able to take anything from art history to math to political science. It also allows for a diverse group of friends. I have my art friends I see in the studio and in class and then there are my other friends that don't know much about art. I find it to be a great influence to have many people from different backgrounds and ideas surrounding me at all times. SU gives you many options because there are so many people.
The printmaking department just had a gallery show in the art school's Coyne Gallery. It was up from February 14-22nd. I'll have to see if I can get some pictures. But all the printmaking majors and students were given the opportunity to share their work. We had a great opening, a good crowd and quite a bit of food. It's an excellent opportunity for your resume and meeting new, possibly helpful, people.
It was actually scheduled for that very purpose. We had a visiting artist that week, Dr. Eric Avery. Look him up he's wonderful (docart.com). He gave an open lecture to the public, visited one on one with the print majors, gave talks in the studio, showed his work, and even printed a linocut edition with all the print majors. I love when the visiting artists come because you get to experience their lives and see what real artists in the field are doing and seeing, not to mention the great feedback they give you on your work.
