July 4th to July 15th, 2023

My Artistic Journey envisions: "Connecting with the International, Linking the Global" to enhance students' self-cultural identity from the inside out,, emphasizing the importance of international competence through international exchanges. It aims to strengthen students' cross-cultural understanding and cultural sustainability concepts through practical experiences and reflection. The program consists of three main components: pre-departure
training courses, overseas field visits, and post-return results sharing sessions.
1. Masterclass at Zurich University of the Arts, Switzerland
On July 6th and July 7th, students participated in a photography course at Zurich University of the Arts, led by Professor Matthias Buenzli. The course covered various types of photography, such as Portrait Photography, Fashion Photography, Documentary Photography, Street Photography, Conceptual Fine Art Photography, and Still Life Photography. Students learned about classic photography works, camera functions like
Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO, and participated in practical exercises in the studio. They also had the opportunity to present their work in English and receive feedback.
2. Visit to the 2023 Les Rencontres de la Photographie in Arles, France
Les Rencontres de la Photographie, founded in 1970, showcases exhibitions in historical sites across Arles, including espace Van Gogh, Place de la République, ÉGLISE SAINTE-ANNE, Église des Trinitaires, and other notable locations. The festival featured an exhibition
called "SØSTERSKAP," which brought together photographers from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, focusing on using photography to explore the tensions between subjectivity, collectivity, and politics within welfare states. The festival's main visual identity was derived from artworks related to this theme. Additionally, the students had the
chance to explore the city of Arles and its famous locations, including the Café de Nuit, depicted in Vincent van Gogh's "Starry Night."
"SØSTERSKAP" -It uses photography to investigate the frictions between subjectivity, collectivity, and politics within welfare states. Some of the topics discussed in "Søsterskap" include family life, gender roles, labor, race, and colonialism.

ZOFIA KULIK Zofia Kulik (1947-) is a Polish artist whose work tells stories of authoritarianism, death, rule, power games within the church, and the broader patriarchal culture. Her work also explores the relationships between men and women, as well as between individuals and the masses. Her artworks feature thousands of graphic elements, symbolically posed models, flowers, vegetables, leaves, skulls, bones, dead animals, male nudes, found objects, decorations, flags, or curtains. These visual elements are combined in a format reminiscent of a tapestry, stained glass, or other forms, all presented in black and white. Kulik skillfully cuts templates and conducts multiple exposures in her darkroom, resulting in each photographic work resembling a crafted artifact.
CASA SUSANNA- Curated by Isabelle Bonnet and Sophie Hackett In 2004, two antique dealers discovered 340 photographs dating from the 1950s to the 1960s at a flea market in New York. These photographs featured men dressed as women, portraying respectable housewives, girl-next-door types, or kind-hearted homemakers. Behind these photographs lies a suggestion of a vast cross-dressing community, comprised of white, middle-class American men, including engineers, pilots, and civil servants. Susanna and her wife Mary's home in the Catskill Mountains, just a few hours from New York City, served as a refuge for them. These cross-dressers defied the gender norms of their time and openly rejected rigid male stereotypes. "Casa Susanna" can be considered the first known transgender community in the United States.
3. Visits to Art Spaces: Foundation Beyeler (Switzerland), Kunsthaus Zürich (Switzerland), Museum Folkwang (Germany), Red Dot Design Museum (Germany), Carrières de Lumières Art Light Show (France), Musée du Louvre (France), and Musée dOrsay (France).
4. On-Site Sketching: Cologne Cathedral in Germany, Van Gogh's Retreat in Arles, and the Louvre Museum in Paris, France.