Courses

ENVS/THEA 380
The Deepwater Horizon Tragedy: A Scientific and Artistic Inquiry

 

In the summer of 2011, seven students explored the Deepwater Horizon oil spill from a artistic and environmental perspectives. The course began with classroom lessons followed by a 10-day trip to the Gulf Coast region, which included visits to laboratories, research institutions, tours of the wetlands, as well as visits to affected communities to meet the people who live there.

Deepwater course pic

By exploring the gulf oil spill from both an artistic and scientific standpoint, students were able to learn the science of the Gulf Coast region and the ecological impact of the oil spill. They also learned artistic tools and methods that will enable them to understand science at a deeper level, and make the research and the meaning of that research visible to an audience through their art. The course concluded with a multidisciplinary performance created by the students and encompassing all of the different skills learned in this course.

The course was co-taught by Barry Chernoff, director of the College of the Environment, and Leigh Fondakowski, head writer of THE LARAMIE PROJECT, a play based on interviews with the townspeople of Laramie, Wyoming in the aftermath of the brutal beating and death of gay University of Wyoming student, Matthew Shepard.

Creative Campus

The Creative Campus Website is made possible by a grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation

Contact: Andrew Chatfield
achatfield@wesleyan.edu
860.685.2806