College faculty, staffers reveal creative pursuits at IAC event

Faculty and staff from the Texas A&M College of Architecture discussed their creative pursuits March 10, 2015 in a unique presentation format at a downtown Bryan event co-sponsored by the [Institute for Applied Creativity] (http://creativity.arch.tamu.edu/) .

In front of a big crowd at the [Grand Stafford Theater] (http://grandstaffordtheater.com/) , artists, scientists, amateurs and a group of student entrepreneurs spoke at [PechaKucha Night] (http://www.pechakucha.org/) , where participants made presentations illustrated by 20 slides, each of which automatically advanced after 20 seconds.

“We hope PechaKucha nights will encourage individuals and groups to collaborate and network across traditional boundaries, which is part of IAC’s mission,” said Carol LaFayette, director of the institute, which co-sponsored the event with Advent GX, an economic development company.

“PechaKucha nights also help bridge the gap between academic and civic communities, help us learn about our local neighbors from all walks of life and spark new friendships among those who may not meet otherwise,” said LaFayette.

Among the night’s speakers were:

• Karen Hillier, artist and professor emerita of visualization , who showed work from “ Unforgotten ,” her images of everyday objects she saw during childhood visits to her grandparents’ home;
• Russell Reid, assistant professor of the practice in visualization and landscape architecture , who reflected on the process of making art from analog to digital and vice-versa;
• Glen Vigus, who led the audience through the history of photography and a sampling of his work, and
• Ben Nguyen, senior information technology associate, who discussed the world of 3-D scanning and printing.

The next PechaKucha Night is scheduled June 2 at 7 p.m.  Anyone wishing to make a presentation can sign up [online] (http://www.pechakucha.org/cities/bryan/contact/new) .

PechaKucha nights, now in more than 800 cities, began in Tokyo in 2003 as an event for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public.