This program is intended for those students interested in exploring the development and diffusion of arts and culture in a global urban context.  Students will work to understand the mechanisms by which visual, theatrical, musical, architectural, culinary and other artistic endeavors take form within and between world cities, and in turn transform those cities. They will explore the operations and effects of globalization as a collation of extensive homogenizing and diversifying relations. Students will probe such problematic phenomena as Coca-Colonization and McDonaldization, cultural imperialism, cultural appropriation and the privatization of culture.  In so doing, students will investigate institutional structures and initiatives that foster and sustain vibrant artistic communities, while also uncovering the basic market forces that operate in sectors such as the global entertainment and media industries.  Students will write about, read, and discuss challenges posed by globalization of the arts, as well as intervention strategies for cultural survival.  With seminars, lectures, guest speakers and films students will discuss arts and cultural development, nonprofit and governmental issues that come to light in a global context.

Students will have the option of either doing a major individual or group project on one of the program’s major themes or an in-program embedded internship in which they associate with a business, governmental, or nonprofit organization that works at the intersection of the arts and culture.  

Students who chose to do the in-program internship  must do so in consultation with the faculty and Academic Advising.  Please go to Individual Study for more information.  Interested students should consult with the faculty about their proposed internship placements prior to or during the Academic Fair, March 2, 2015.  The internships should be located in the Seattle/Portland I-5 corridor or on the Olympic Peninsula within a reasonable distance (i.e., Mason or Grays Harbor Counties).  All internships must follow college procedures. While students can seek out their own internship possibilities that reflect their artistic or entrepreneurial interests, we will also work with campus resources and the faculty member's contacts to identify internship possibilities.