Instead of writing a research paper at the end of the semester, students from Greenfield Community College's History of Photography class were asked to make a little local art history themselves. The students were given the task of designing and curating their own photography exhibition using all their talents including photography, writing, communications and design.

"It was such a welcomed project, especially the by GCC community," said Chelsea Dacres-Smith, who taught the class. "One student came up to me in the class and said she was so happy to be recognized in the community." The exhibition, called "Possession," was displayed in the mezzanine of Green Field's Market in downtown Greenfield during the month of November. "It was a class where everyone was represented. The class as a whole chose the work that people did for personal enjoyment or other classes," said Matt Mazur of Sunderland.

Mazur is a journalist that used his writing skills to help come up with the theme and title. Other students helped in writing the press release, or the descriptions of the work, while others did the actual photography. All the students were asked to bring their skills from other parts of their lives to the table and work together. The exhibit featured mostly black and white images that had something of a ghostly feel. Mazur said the name of the exhibit was chosen because it captured the spirit of varied photos, which were taken by different students, so they didn't necessarily have a particular theme.

The name could signify different things to different people - spiritual possession, romantic possession or physical possession. Mazur said the project was a nice alternative to the stress of having to scramble to write a term paper at the end of each semester, but that doesn't mean the students got off easy. It was a challenging project. It takes a lot of time and effort to put up a show like this, something Dacres-Smith knows first-hand. "This is the first time I've done something like this for a class," Dacres-Smith said. "We usually do fieldtrips and essays or terms paper based on works they have seen. I thought this would give them hands on experience as an artist who might also work at a co-op or museum."

Dacres-Smith was a collections manager for a contemporary art museum before becoming a teacher. Mazur said she brought a wealth of knowledge about the industry, which is a great help to the students, especially those who plan to pursue a professional art career. "To do an art exhibit in this class was perfect because it gets your feet wet a bit," he said. "Also it's a nice was to bring people into a world they do not have access to." Mazur said this kind of project is an example of what makes GCC special, especially for students who have previous degrees like himself who are here to expand their thinking, not just to get a degree. "I think they are providing interesting alternatives to doing the run of the mill standard college experience," he said. Dacres-Smith hopes this becomes a regular project for the class, but next time she would like the students to be able to find a place where they can keep the exhibit up a little longer. It would be nice to see it up for a whole semester. For more information about the Art Program call 413.775.1224.