International Center of Photography (ICP)

After our intense (and early!) day visiting NBC studios, we dragged ourselves a couple of blocks away to visit the International Center of Photography, or ICP. ICP is a small graduate school in the middle of Manhattan that focuses exclusively on higher-level photography degrees. The school, while small with only 80 students, is incredibly diverse (nearly fifty percent of the student body is made up of international students) and owns a state-of-the-art underground darkroom and classroom facility as well as a large gallery in midtown Manhattan.

We began our investigation of ICP by visiting their gallery, the primary exhibition of which was a show of contemporary fashion photography. Unfortunately, photographs in the museum were prohibited, so I cannot share any examples. A quote from Paris Vogue at the beginning of the showing described fashion photography as an art that tried to peel away the layers of societal norms to reveal something that was "monsterously human." Many of the pictures shown certainly conformed to that definition: the odd exaggerations of form and color in many photographs served less to flaunt the clothes that the models were wearing and more to emphasize oddities and social quirks. Put into this context, fashion photography immediately became much more interesting than my previous assumptions of its being a strictly commercial endeavor allowed. In addition to the contemporary fashion exhibit, which took up the entire first floor, there was a plethora of fine-art and older fashion photographs to be found in the lower level.

After visiting the gallery we continued to the ICP classroom center. We began by getting a brusque introduction to the facility and its programs by one of the administrators, and then proceeded to be led on a tour of the underground complex by a Carleton alum who works there as an assistant. ICP has an incredible amount of photography equipment, with darkrooms, studios, computer labs, and room-sized printers appearing at every turn. For such a small facility, I was amazed at the quality and quantity of the resources the students had available. Based on our brief visit, I think that this institution is ideal for someone who is attracted to the vibrant New York lifestyle and who wishes to take advantage of the photographic possibilities of the city.

Comments

[International Center of Photography Communications Dept]

Thanks so much for visiting ICP! We'd like to clear up one fact...while ICP does offer 1-year certificate and Master's Degree programs, we are also open to students of any age. Each year, The School at ICP offers more than 400 courses that range from traditional film and darkroom practice to digital media, as well as certificate and master's degree programs. Students range from beginners in our Teen Academy, to professionals looking to brush up their skills in our continuing education programs. We hope you'll check out all that we have available at www.icp.org/school.