Vizzers unleashed creativity downtown at Viz-a-GoGo 18

Viz-a-GoGo 18, the 18th annual showcase of digital wizardry conjured by students in the Master of Science in Visualization program at Texas A&M University, returned to downtown Bryan in 2011 with [screenings] (http://vimeo.com/vizlab/videos) of student work at the Palace Theater and a weeklong exhibition May 2-7 in the old Texas Furniture Company building that featured student drawings, paintings, photography, multimedia installations and interactive games.

The May 6 screening coincided with Downtown Bryan's First Friday event, a celebration of the visual and performing arts that included art demonstrations and exhibits, horse-drawn carriage rides, live music and happy hour specials at the numerous restaurants and bars that dot the historic district.

Viz-a-GoGo 18 was sponsored by the Arts Council of Brazos Valley, the Texas A&M Academy for the Visual and Performing Arts, the College of Architecture and the Department of Visualization.

Since 1989, the Master of Science in Visualization program at Texas A&M has provided a steady stream of aspirants for the burgeoning field of digital and electronic visualization. Vizzers are true Renaissance men and women, gifted with a unique left-right-brain ambidexterity, facilitating a mastery of both art and science.

The program's graduates have achieved success as creative directors, computer animators, university professors and software designers, with the majority working in the animation, visual effects and electronic gaming industries. Aggie Vizzers can be found among the creative talent at Pixar, Blue Sky, Industrial Light and Magic, Dreamworks/PDI, Electronic Arts, Rhythm & Hues, Reel FX and Sony Pictures Imageworks.

After almost a decade of outstanding achievement in visualization education in its Visualization Laboratory, the College of Architecture established the Department of Visualization at Texas A&M, and in January 2009 an undergraduate visualization program was introduced.

The Department of Visualization nurtures a unique, synergetic studio environment combining academic rigor with creativity, fun, camaraderie and collaborative problem solving.

Find more detailed, behind-the-scenes information on the Viz-a-Gogo Twitter, Blogspot, and Facebook pages:

[VizaTweetTweet] (http://twitter.com/VizaTweetTweet) • [Viz-a-BlogBlog] (http://vizablogblog.blogspot.com/) • [Viz-a-GoGo 18 Facebook] (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Viz-a-GoGo-18/186866508012034)

[See more photos on the viz website.] (http://vvvvvv.viz.tamu.edu/?p=2308)