NYC: Art, Culture and Entrepreneurship

Thursday, August 26, 2021

Application Process

To apply, please follow this link and follow the prompts.

The entire process is completed online and should take no more than 30 minutes to complete. Much of the application involves reading through important items, such as the risk waiver, and checking the box when you are finished. The application includes one small writing prompt, a personal statement. Once you complete all the application materials you will click submit!

Closer to the application deadline, the program faculty will reach out to schedule a short interview to discuss your participation in the program. Starting the application does not commit you to the program; once you are accepted by the faculty, you will be asked to place a $400 deposit to confirm your spot. Once the minimum number of students is met, the program will be confirmed!

If you have any questions, please free to contact us anytime using the form to the left.

Sunday, August 22, 2021

Class Description

FINE 3330:

Topics- NYC: Art, Culture, and Entrepreneurship

The arts, culture, and entrepreneurship are integrally linked to the history, identity, and life of New York City (NYC). Perhaps more than any other city in the world, artists and the creative industries engage daily in making, designing, selling, exhibiting, distributing, and collecting artistic works. With so many forms of creativity and means of distribution, NYC catalyzes creative entrepreneurship and breeds a highly competitive urban environment where designers and artists are required to excel and curate professional visions of themselves and their practices.

Traditionally an entrepreneur is someone who identifies an opportunity and chooses to act on that opportunity. Like most artistic endeavors, being an entrepreneur is also about developing an entrepreneurial mindset, an awareness and focus on identifying an opportunity through creatively solving a problem and a willingness and passion for moving forward and communicating value. Contemporary definitions of entrepreneurship in the arts encompass practices that include design thinking, empathy with an audience, situating questions, collaboration with others, and inclusivity instead of exclusivity. Businesses and artists alike choose to define what they do, who they are, and how they engage communities in solving real-world problems.

NYC attracts and is home to designers and artists of diverse ethnic, cultural, and geographic backgrounds, all of whom use their entrepreneurial mindsets to find ways to communicate their unique views in their chosen professions. Through experiencing and examining the role that arts play in the cultural and commercial life of NYC creatives via lectures, tours, interviews, studio visits, and discussions, this domestic study abroad will critically reflect upon the values that influence professional artistic practices and guide students through an exploration of the personal power of entrepreneurship in the context of the arts and an arts-based careers in NYC.

Though details will be confirmed at the beginning of 2022, the course is tentatively scheduled to go to NYC from June 5 - 17.

The High Line Canal, NYC

The Guggenheim Musuem, NYC

Why go?

In addition to affording you an opportunity to broaden and deepen your professional goals, this domestic study provides an opporuntity to experience one of the most vibrant and fascinating cities in the world. Visiting the cosmopolitan metropolis is a lifetime goal for millions of people since its inception as New Amsterdam in 1626.

There's something incredible about exploring New York City's many neighborhoods, districts, and attractions that you won't find anywhere else in the United States or most cities worldwide. In fact, there is so much to see, experience, and eat that it's impossible to do in a single visit. Below are are a few things you may want to consider exploring during your visit.

Art and History

"Hórama Rama" by Pedro & Juana, PS1

New York City offers some of the best museums, art galleries, and historical attractions in the country. In addition to our scheduled museums and galleries, you may wish to check out a few of the following:

Public Parks

Hudson River Park

In a city as large as New York, space is key to sanity. Understanding this, city planners designed many parks to ease the sensation of claustrophobia and add natural beauty to the concrete jungle. If you are feeling the need to chillout and relax, here are are parks to consider:

Central Park
Byant Park
Brooklyn Bridge Park
Washington Square Park
Hudson River Park
Prospect Park

Fashion and Shopping

Star Struck, NYC

New York City offers one of the best shopping experiences in the world. Walk the streets, and you'll be amazed by the diverse sense of style New Yorkers embrace. From urban to classic, vintage to futuristic, you'll find it all in NYC. Shop from top designer stores, vintage shops, or knock-offs right on the side of streets. You're guaranteed to find everything you want. If you want to simply browse or power shop, check out a few of the following:

The People, Neighborhoods, and Cultural Diversity

The Apollo, Harlem, NYC

When millions of people entered the United States through Ellis Island at the turn of the last century, many decided to stay and take root in New York, essentially adding to the melting pot of cultures. By doing so, many neighborhoods grew to reflect the cultural, racial, and economic diversity of their inhabitants and, in so doing so, created unique architecture, businesses, and restaurants. A few suggestions:

Landmarks

Vessel, NYC

As a city of such history, architectural evidence of practically every era is combined to make a unique mixture of past and present. A few landmarks that you may want to check out include:

Live Music

Birdland, NYC

There are music gigs in New York every day of the year, many of them performed by some of the most famous artists from around the world. Though there are big arenas such as Madison Square Garden and Brooklyn's Barclays Center, Radio City Music Hall, you can find clubs large and small and experience the music scene close up. Some venues to consider are:

Tentative Itinerary

High Line Canal, NYC

This domestic study has been designed to give you a combination of structured class time and free time so that you can get the most out of your NYC experience.

Though details will be confirmed at the beginning of 2022, the course is tentatively scheduled to go to NYC from June 5 - 17 and with the following itinerary:

Pre Trip - We will be meeting a few weeks prior to the trip to discuss the class's structure, expectations, assignments, logistics, and packing suggestions.
Day 1 - Arrive in NYC, check-in and get settled, Times Square
Day 2 - The Museum of Modern Art, The Guggenheim Museum, Central Park
Day 3 - Professional Lectures, classtime, the High Line
Day 4 - Soho /Chelsea Art Galleries, Grand Central Terminal Station

Day 5 - Professional Lectures, classtime
Day 6 - Work and free day
Day 7 - The Whitney Museum of American Art, Rockefeller Center
Day 8 - Work and free Day
Day 9 - Statue of Liberty - see only, The National September 11 Memorial & Museum
Day 10 - Professional Lectures, classtime
Day 11 - Work and free day
Day 12 - Check out and head back to Denver
Post Trip - In case you wish to stay a few days longer in NYC, we will complete the class and turn in assignments a week after completing the trip.

Statue of Liberty, NYC

Rockefeller Center, NYC

Central Park, NYC

Tentative Accommodations

We are tentatively planning on staying at the Chelsea International Hostel, one of the original and oldest hostels in NYC. Located in one of the safest neighborhoods in Manhattan, the Chelsea is centrally located just north of Greenwich Village and south of Midtown Manhattan and near various bars, restaurants, and shops. In addition to being within walking distance to most of the attractions NYC has to offer, it is also conveniently near many of the NYC subway lines, including A, C, E, F, 1, 2, and 3.

As the largest independent New York hostel, the Chelsea is maintained 24 hours a day by a highly motivated staff. The front desk team is comprised of real locals familiar with all five boroughs of New York City.

Amenities Include:

Free Wi-Fi in all areas of the hostel
Large outdoor shared courtyard
Full kitchen facilities
24-hour front desk staff
Lockers for luggage storage (additional fees apply)
Lounge area with television
Free towels and linen
Free city maps

Miznon Restaurant Chelsea

Chelsea

Paradise Cafe Chelsea

Credits, Eligibility, and Costs

Course Information

3 Credits
FINE 3330 - Topics - NYC: Art, Culture, and Entrepreneurship

Eligibility Requirements

Minimum 2.5 GPA at time of application
Review the full Eligibility Policy for more details
Non-CU Denver applicants must review the Non-CU Denver Student Policy

Cost

$3,530
Included: tuition and fees, shared accommodations, farewell lunch, ground transportation, & health and evacuation insurance
Not included: airfare, some meals, and personal expenses

Financial Aid

CU Denver students may be able to use their existing financial aid for Global Study programs. Note that Maymester programs are considered part of the Summer term for financial aid. For more information and to discuss your personal aid package, contact the Financial Aid and Scholarships Office at 303.315.1850 or financialaid@ucdenver.edu.

Please add “Study Abroad” to the subject heading when sending emails to the above email address, as this will ensure that your message is routed to a study abroad financial aid advisor. You can also schedule an online appointment to meet with a Financial Aid advisor.

Scholarships

We encourage you to seek additional scholarships for which you or your program may be eligible. See if your academic department or college/school offers study abroad scholarships, or visit the following websites to learn about external funding:

studyabroad.com
goabroad.com
iiepassport.org

Faculty Information

Brian DeLevie,

Associate Professor

brian.delevie@ucdenver.edu

Brian DeLevie is a digital artist, designer, author, and Associate Professor of Design at the University of Colorado Denver. He has served as the Co-Founder and Director of The Comcast Center for Media and Technology and the Center for Arts as Systemic Change, Chair of the Department of Visual Arts, and Head of the Digital Design program at the University of Colorado Denver. Through his research, he has presented and published numerous papers investigating the confluence of design, innovation, culture change, and experiential educational practices in higher education. His body of creative and artistic works investigates themes of technology, memory, history, and Holocaust issues and has been exhibited and screened widely both nationally and internationally and led to a Fulbright Fellowship to study the influences of Film, Television, and the Internet on German culture.

Rebecca Heavner

Lecturer

rebecca.heavner@ucdenver.edu

Becky Heavner, MLA, is an instructor, a landscape architectural designer, and an illustrator based in Denver, Colorado. She received a BFA in Communication Arts and Design from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1985 and an MLA from the University of Colorado, Denver in 2012. She has been recognized with national publications, product, and advertising awards. In 2011, she received a merit award from the American Society of Landscape Architects. Currently, she is teaching illustration, design, and creative practices in the College of Art and Media at the University of Colorado in Denver.