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I'm at MCAD adjunct faculty member Ed Charbonneau's "Painting as Object" class, and standing with him and some students in the hallway.

The group is critiquing junior Kayleigh Fichten's work -- a painted canvas with some trash bags attached to it, and which is draped over a fixture instead of hung on the wall.

Why do you have it positioned this way? Why the trash bags? The trash bags are very haphazard ... I think it's about a landscape filled with trash. ... The definition of landscape has changed ...

It seems they're going beyond what even Fichten was intending, and she says, "I didn't think of that."

That segment was fairly mild, but I hear the critiques can get quite heated among students at MCAD. It seems students are either being critiqued or critiquing others' work at least once a week -- not counting all the informal sessions they have with friends throughout the day.

That kind of immersion is just part of life here. Like students in many other disciplines, I'm sure I got away with my share of sub-par history papers and various projects. But here, if you're going to grow as an artist, you've got to keep your mind open and your skin a little thick. (Though they're generally constructive and supportive.)

Sophomore Katie Eckerson says that has helped her gain confidence in expressing her opinion. Still, she says:

Education News

On Campus Blog

Alex Friedrich

Author

I’m at MCAD adjunct faculty member Ed Charbonneau’s “Painting as Object” class, and standing with him and some students in the hallway. The group is critiquing junior Kayleigh Fichten’s work — a painted canvas with some trash bags attached to it, and which is draped over a fixture instead of hung on the wall. She…

Why you'll grow a thicker skin after going to MCAD

Go Deeper.

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