As the 2022-2023 academic year winds down for the summer, the Drexel University departments are hosting events to highlight their seniors and their final projects before graduation. The Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design is putting on WestPhest 2023: 12 events showcasing art from the Westphal departments taking place from June 2 – 17 in locations mostly around Drexel’s campus.
Along with these art exhibitions, there will be seven live performance events from Drexel’s ensembles and performing arts groups ranging from the all-college choir to an outdoor music jam night. All of these shows will take place on Drexel’s campus from June 9 – June 11.
The first WestPhest event was the Drexel University Photography Senior Thesis Exhibition from 6-9 p.m. on June 2. The event took place at the Leonard Pearlstein Gallery in the URBN Annex building on 3401 Filbert St. The showcase featured themed collections of photography from sixteen different seniors. Each thesis consisted of around six to 20 photographs, while one student was given a small room to display nearly 50 polaroids, three video screens and multiple physical display elements.
The projects explored themes of nature, humans, personal interaction, wildlife, food, gender and architecture. The photographs had variation in editing and color choice; black and white photos were a common aesthetic while many others went after bright, vibrant colors. It was great to see fellow students as well as relatives showing up to support the graduating seniors. The lobby of the URBN Annex was alive with chatter as people enjoyed the complimentary beer and wine along with a delicious spread of snacks inclusive to all diets.
As of June 9, there will be ten more upcoming exhibitions included in WestPhest 2023. The Digital Media senior showcase was held on June 4 from 2-6 p.m., and featured work from the “Animation & Visual Effects, Game Design & Production, and Digital Media & Virtual Production programs, along with members from the College of Computing and Informatics,” according to the WestPhest website. However, the event can be viewed after the date through a livestream on the Drexel Westphal YouTube channel.
For the complete list of WestPhest 2023 events as well as additional info on each exhibition, visit Drexel Westphal’s website.
A complete list of spring performing arts exhibitions can be seen on Drexel’s Performing Arts webpage.