Finding tangible connection through creative ability and fresh skills returns to the Selkirk College Tenth Street Campus for the annual Digital Arts Showcase year-end show.
After a two-year pandemic hiatus, students graduating from the two-year Digital Arts Program will present the best in illustration, photography, film and animation on the evening of Saturday, April 9. The community is invited to a transformed Mary Hall banquet room to soak-in the burgeoning talents of learners who are on the cusp of a diversity of career pathways.
“This is one of the best ways we can share our work and the accomplishments we achieved by completing the program, to prove to ourselves that we were able to make it through,” says graduating student Marina Nagibina. “The show also represents our class as a very skilled and talented group of people that are ready for any challenges and opportunities.”
An important piece of the experiential learning element of the program, students are required to plan, brand, market and set-up the event. As learners grind through the final weeks of course work, projects and exams, they prepare to welcome the public for a three-hour feast for the eyes.
“The Year End Show is a celebration of completing two hard years of work for the students,” says Digital Arts Program instructor Kevin Corbett. “For many, it will be their first opportunity to showcase artwork publicly and it is a good opportunity to make connections locally with some of the show’s attendees. Every year at a least a couple of students find work just by displaying art at the show.”
The Journey Beyond Creativity
Nagibina is an international student who is originally from Vladivostok, Russia. A multidisciplinary artist who has always expressed herself through art and photography, Nagibina’s first post-secondary experience was earning a degree in economics. She learned design software on her own and made first steps in the industry as a desktop publisher and graphic designer.
When COVID-19 hit in March 2020, Nagibina was working as a desktop publisher on a cruise ship. The employment uncertainty of the pandemic pushed her to research more specialized education to gain additional skills. That’s when she discovered Selkirk College’s renowned Digital Arts Program.
“I really appreciate our instructors and the way that they supported us, understood what we face as students, their knowledge and their experience. If not them, the program would have been completely different,” Nagibina says of her two-year Selkirk College education. “I also really liked the wide range of courses that are available so you can experiment and find what you are truly passionate about.”
Upon graduation in late-April, Nagibina plans to start modestly as a graphic or web designer where she can continue to develop her skills. Ultimately, she wants to work independently and create a collective of talented artists with different skillsets that can take on any project that comes her way. For now, she is part of the student-led team putting together the year-end show.
“It is interesting to see how everything is planned step-by-step in the creation of the event,” says Nagibina. “Our main goal is to represent what we feel as digital artists, and the way we create and visualize our ideas. We wanted to express how some might feel spending so much time in front of a computer is boring, but for us it is part of an exciting and creative process.”
Helping Guide the Industry’s Future
In his first year as Digital Arts Program faculty, Corbett is also a Selkirk College alumnus who graduated with the Class of 2015. When not teaching, he runs his own clothing company/podcast/social media account called Lifeform and is a screen-printer at Nelson’s Big Cranium Design.
Bringing industry-veteran knowledge and skills to the classroom is the focus for Corbett, but his days as a full-time learner are still fresh which helps add depth as he mentors the Class of 2022 through the year-end show process.
“I really enjoyed my time studying at Selkirk College and it’s been awesome to be able to give back to the school by now contributing to the education of current students. Helping plan the show makes me feel like I have almost come full circle.” says Corbett. “One thing that hasn't changed is the stress involved in planning the show. But, it's all worth the hard work when the students are having fun with each other, celebrating their accomplishments and talking to the public about their art. The show has always been something that I look forward to every year and I am excited to have had a hand in making it happen in 2022.”
The Digital Arts Showcase year-end show runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, April 9. Admission is free and everyone in the community is invited to come check it out. Find out more information here.
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Selkirk College student Marina Nagibina (middle with poster) and members of the Digital Arts Program’s Class of 2022 are currently getting set for the annual year-end show that takes place at Mary Hall on Nelson’s Tenth Street Campus. The one-night event goes Saturday, April 9 between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. Admission is free and the entire community is invited to check it out.