Intermedia and Performance Art - Winter 2027

In this intermedia studio course, students will explore storytelling and activism through photography, video, and performative action. Working across these transdisciplinary methods, students will develop a cohesive body of work that is diverse in medium while maintaining a consistent visual and conceptual throughline. Through exercises in image-making, writing, video, and live performance, students will investigate how narrative identity can function as tools for critical inquiry and social engagement. To contextualize and inform their creative practices, students will engage with topics including feminism, gender, body politics, race, and class. We will look to historical and contemporary artists, including Bas Jan Ader, Demian DinéYazhi’, Carla Rossi, Cassils, and Pope.L—whose practices use image, body, and performance to critically examine identity, power, and politics. Through research, discussion, screenings, critique, and studio experimentation, students will consider how artists construct narratives and use performative strategies to communicate complex ideas and challenge dominant ways of seeing.

The course is designed for students with intermediate to advanced experience in digital photography who are interested in expanding their artistic practice through activism, storytelling, and performance. Students will begin the term by creating episodic photographic works, focusing on conceptual development and the planning of series through storyboarding. Building on these strategies, students will transition into video scripting and editing as well as the development of performative actions. Students will study and experiment with elements of performance including gesture, stillness and movement, repetition, props, site manipulation, sound, and written/spoken language. An introduction to Adobe Premiere Pro will provide students with foundational tools for compiling, sequencing, and editing their photographic, video, and performance-based material. Through iterative projects, research, critique, scoring, scripting exercises, and video screenings, students will develop the conceptual and technical strategies necessary to create ambitious, interdisciplinary, and performative bodies of work.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

• Learn to create and compile a diverse range of works that share a connected concept and narrative as a cohesive series.
• Learn to utilize script editing, prop, and site manipulation.
• Study of historical and contemporary performative artists with focus toward discussing tenets of performative action – gesture, stillness/movement, repetition, sound, language - written and spoken.
• Introduction to video editing using Adobe Premiere Pro.
• Explore photography and videography as a creative tool to develop a body of work that speaks to your personal viewpoint.

COURSE OUTCOMES
Students will complete the course with:

• Foundation of narrative building through storyboarding, performance production, and an introduction in video editing.
• Understanding of core tenets of performative action – gesture, stillness/movement, repetition, sound, language - written and spoken.
• Experience participating in critique, exploring artistic vision, and realizing a personal project.
• Ability to apply technical skills and photographic knowledge/vocabulary to personal practice.

IMPORTANT NOTES FOR STUDENTS

• Weekly attendance is vital to student success in PCNW courses. We require that students attend the first meeting in order to retain their spot in the class. A waiver may be granted if permission is given by, and subsequent arrangements made with, both the PCNW Registrar and Faculty. Please see our Education Policies for details about attendance policies and academic expectations.
• PCNW adheres to a strict payment, cancellation and refund policy. Please review our Payment & Refund Policies prior to registration.
• Intermediate and advanced courses have prerequisites which students must satisfy prior to enrollment. Prerequisites may be waived based on experience or prior courses taken through other institutions. To verify that you meet the prerequisite(s) for a course, contact Jennifer Brendicke, Registrar at jbrendicke@pcnw.org.
• Students are required to provide their own camera, unless otherwise noted in the course description. If you have questions about camera equipment or resources, contact us at pcnw@pcnw.org.
• Additional materials and supplies, not covered by a materials fee for a course, are the responsibility of the student. Detailed information about course expectations, required texts and materials will be provided at the start of the quarter.
• Students should prepare to spend several hours per week completing assignments outside of class, which may require use of the PCNW facilities; view our Rental Rates for details about additional fees. Rental fees for use of PCNW Facilities are a separate cost from tuition.

Images © tom manzanarez