"My classes are concerned with seeing and training yourself to see things you wouldn't see before," says Hirzel, who is also considering a concentration in biology. "The ability to notice and see makes both good science and good art."

Similar experiences with the friendliness of the department have left Alex H. Gourevitch '00 certain he wants to concentrate in VES.

"I really like the teachers; they seem laid-back and friendly," Gourevitch says. "The students seem friendly. They're creative and intelligent."

However, students also say that their interest in VES has developed since they have been at Harvard.

"If I wanted to study painting as an undergraduate, I should be at a painting school," says James S.F. Wilson '00, who has tentatively decided to concentrate in English.

"Harvard's not really an art school," Wilson says. "Harvard probably has better resources for studying English than painting."

Wilson says the English department has the added benefit of many long-term professors.

In VES "there are many visiting professors which is good because you are exposed to different things, but it's not like the English department where you can build a rapport," Wilson adds.

"For someone like me with an interest in the department, the visiting professors are great because they provide exposure to different things," Wilson says.

Friendliness Without Rapport

Wilson's enthusiasm for VES courses taught by visiting professors is not atypical among students.

"Right now, we may have too many [visiting lectures] but it's exciting. All the classes are oversubscribed," Phelan says. "A lot of people within the University would really like to take an art class. If there's a demand, we should try to meet it."

Phelan says this despite the Buell committee recommendation that the department recruit senior professors in photography and the studio arts.

"We've done that, but it's terribly difficult," Guzzetti says. "The people you want to attract are not pursuing careers in academia. You have to identify these people and persuade them that this is something they want to do."

Diversification