Last spring, Pacific University reluctantly said goodbye to its long-time, beloved photography professor, Jim Flory, but the art department is steadfast in its photography course offerings.
“The art department has a really strong commitment to photography,” said Terry O’Day, art department Chair. “We are always going to teach photography courses and it’s really important to us – that studio itself is important to us.”
Luckily for the department, it found a more than capable replacement for Flory in professor David Brunn. Brunn most recently taught at the Art Institute of Portland, which faced financial issues leading up to its 2018 closer.
“David has a lot of experience in photography, he’s taught at several different institutions and he’s teaching the full schedule of photo courses that Jim taught,” O’Day said.
Not only does the department want to keep photography at Pacific, it also wants to keep the old fashioned dark room, as it ties into the larger strategy of how art courses are taught.
“All of our disciplines sort of have this new / old, traditional and contemporary kind of approach so that students get introduced to the range of everything,” O’Day explained. “In addition to becoming familiar with techniques relevant to the job market.”
An approach sophomore Kylie Halland, Art Club co-president, feels is a successful one when taking classes to maintain her art scholarship.
“I think in general the department does a very good job of incorporating all different styles of art so we get a holistic artistic experience both inside and outside the classroom,” Halland said.
One example of how the art department is expanding that well-rounded curriculum experience is through courses in 3D modeling, design classes and others that are taking full advantage of new tools available to them. Through a partnership with the Berglund Center, these newer courses utilize Pacific’s recently debuted Makerspace to introduce more contemporary approaches to art and design.
Despite not being attracted to those disciplines herself, Halland believes it opens up an even greater artistic variety for other students.
“I think it’s a wonderful blend of both the scientific and artistic aspects of Pacific, and it’s great they’re trying to show that more,” Halland said.
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