This is an opportunity for students to work on faculty-driven scholarly and creative projects. By working with faculty in a studio and research “apprentice” model, students will gain hands-on experience in visual arts studio practices, film/media production practices, the creative writing workshop focused on craft, critical research and writing, library and archival research practices, and much more.

Naima Lowe (experimental media and performance art) creates films, videos, performances and written works that explore issues of race, gender, and embodiment. The majority of her work includes an archival research element that explores historical social relationships and mythic identities. She is currently working on a series of short films and performances that explore racial identity in rural settings. Students working with Naima would have opportunities to learn media production and post-production skills (including storyboarding, scripting, 16mm and HD video shooting, location scouting, audio recording, audio/video editing, etc) through working with a small crew comprised of students and professional artists. Students would also have opportunities to do archival and historical research on African-Americans living in rural settings, and on literature, film and visual art that deals with similar themes. Students are generally best equipped for this option if they have taken at least one full year of studies in Media or Visual Arts in a program such as MediaWorks, NonFiction Media, or its equivalent.