What Students Really Say About Farmington


So, how did you come to choose Farmington?
My uncle, upon hearing UMF was doing some interesting things, recommended that I come check it out when I was a junior in high school. I came up to check out the campus and was immediately hooked. The location was exactly what I was looking for (someplace to start a completely new life) and more importantly, the people were wonderful. The professors I was going to work with, and the community in general had a great investment in education and learning in all of its forms.

What's your major?
I'm double majoring in Music (composition) and Art (New Media). Originally I started out as an Arts Administration (music) major, then moved to Music. Then during the spring semester of my sophomore year, I became interested in more of the arts after taking a drawing class that completely changed my thoughts about art. The following semester I took Contemporary Art Practice and Theory and that cemented my pursuing art as a full part of my education.

What's are the Music and Art majors like?
Both of them are extremely personalized. If you need to talk to a professor about your work, they are there when you need them. But that's not what I want to stress about them. The Music program is extremely involved with contemporary scene, whether it's music for the grand concert hall, the rock club, or whatever else. Students are encouraged to expand their listening and composing habits and to sharpen their ears for critiquing each others work. The Art major encourages investigating whatever medium works for you, be it video, animation, sound, social experiment, installation, performance, or more traditional ones. And with a focus on utilizing concept as a device to convey meaning in a work, it is quite different from the more traditional approach of focusing on craft.

What are some interesting classes in your major?
For music, any and all of the music history classes with Steve Pane (especially ElectroAcoustic Music) are wonderful as well as the higher level composition classes with Phil Carlsen. For Art, Contemporary Practice and Theory with Kate Randall drastically changed my thinking about making art. The Video and Animation classes with Dawn Nye have informed my process in making tremendously as well. Right now, I'm taking my Senior Seminar in Art, and the class is proving to be a greatly rewarding and intense challenge.

Do you get a lot of work? Are your classes here hard or easy?
As I've gone through the Art program, I've come to fully appreciate every aspect of making art. And whenever I see a student in an Art class expecting to get an easy grade, I tell them that isn't how the UMF art program works. The professors expect you to put an incredible amount of effort into investigating your work and your process. An example: Last spring I put about 200 hours into an animation I was working on.

What classes, outside your majors, have stood out?
Intro to Sociology with Kristina Wolff was especially intense and interesting.

Was there a class at Farmington that changed your view?
Just about all of my classes have changed my views in one way or another.

Are there any professors here you feel you've really connected with?
Steve Pane, Phil Carlsen (my music professors) as well as Kate Randall, Dawn Nye and Sarah Maline (my art professors and my thesis advisor) have all influenced me greatly. I consider all of them my friends and take their criticism of my works with even more appreciation.

What would you have liked to have known before coming to Farmington?
I'm glad I came to college without knowing what to expect- the blank slate allowed me to take each new experience with an open mind.

What other colleges did you apply to? Did you visit them?
I applied to Colby, Bates, and Umass Amherst, visited Amherst, but Farmington really stuck in my mind.

What do like best or find unique about Farmington?
The sense of community, on and off campus, is the best part about Farmington.Ê The conversations about trends in art and music with my professors between classes and discussing the world at large with the local characters in the town coffee shop will be the things I always remember about this place (as well as getting my fortune told by what appeared to be a deranged cowboy-no joke about that one).

What's your favorite memory about Farmington?
Going to gallery openings for a free meal (kidding- and to see new work) concerts put on by my music professors, not sleeping for 2 1/2 days trying to set up my first installation (and breaking down at the end of that streak only to dream of a continuous roll of paper that kept messing up the printer) Viking funerals on the sandy river, Outdoor Communion services for broken ukuleles in the middle of a blizzard, and much much more.

Do you live in the residence halls?
I did for my first two years, and then moved off campus to several apartments around town.

Do you work on campus?
I've worked in the Math Clinic, the Electroacoustic Lab and the VAPA/SPVI Lab.

Are you involved in any student clubs or organizations?
I've been involved with 100.1 WUMF, the Art Renegades, and the Ministry of Experimental Arts.

What are some things Farmington could do better?
It's kind of a consequence of being in a small school, but it'd be wonderful if there were more performers to perform student compositions as well as more space to exhibit and install artwork.

Would you recommend Farmington to your brother, sister or a friend?
For those looking for an intimate education or who are interested in exploring new ways to create art, I've always recommended Farmington.