Dyson College of Arts and Sciences

W W W . P A C E . E D U / D Y S O N 15 Illusion Versus Reality: Creativity That Goes Beyond the Surface A Pomeranian dog and an octopus, respectively, bark at the edge of or tread water in giant holes in the ea h and ice. Next, ruptures on the ea h, signals of climate change and collapse, appear as sinkholes. A glimpse at the Manha an Bridge, accompanied by loud traffic, provides an actual sense of location. It is DUMBO (Down Under the Manha an Bridge Overpass), Brooklyn, across the river from Pace University's New York City campus, and as pa of an outdoor group exhibition in March and April 2024 titled The DUMBO Projection Project, Volume III, Professor of A Jillian McDonald's (MFA) work, Animals on the Verge, was being projected onto the neighborhood's iconic infrastructure. On how this project came together, she said, "I had one of my hole drawings on a table, and while positioning a bear [with the use of AR], had an aha moment: the situation seemed real, as if the bear was si ing on the edge of a deep hole. I always love making videos that slip in and out of fictional film space, when something is convincing one minute and then the illusion slips." Experiential learning meets the a s On this, she collaborated with Ben Pfeifer '26, Film and Screen Studies, suppo ed by the Amelia A. Gould Undergraduate Research Assistantship. Through her video animation and video courses, McDonald discovered Pfeifer to be a great match for a creative collaboration. Animals on the Verge, produced in 2022, required the addition of more animal scenes and the creation of a condensed version of the video for the DUMBO project, and that's where Pfeifer stepped in. He filmed the new animal scenes, interspersed them in the original video, and edited a ten-minute version. McDonald and Pfeifer worked on other projects suppo ed by the Assistantship. In Sweet Spot and So Spot, a pair of videos featuring McDonald's hand caressing numerous mosses and mushrooms in various landscapes, Pfeifer worked on color correction, sound matching, and added new scenes that McDonald shot. Pfeifer also completed a reedit of a video McDonald made in the forest as pa of a residency at Stony Brook University. In addition, they are working together on several video projects: Chandeliers! and her newest work, Tunnel and Radio Skies, funded by the Canada Council for the A s and Pace. Of his experiences, Pfeifer said, "Professor McDonald's mentorship was truly valuable. She provided very insigh ul instructions while also allowing me to explore and discover things on my own." ative Expression Center for Undergraduate Research Experiences (CURE) Summer Undergraduate Research "Professor McDonald's mentorship was truly valuable. She provided very insightful instructions while also allowing me to explore and discover things on my own." —Ben Pfeifer '26 their fields with an undergraduate student. Ben Pfeifer '26 working on the Animals on the Verge project.

• Cover