Fire at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn destroys studios and artwork of students (feb 15)

[MrBigCheese]

The Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York had a massive fire break out last night around 2:30 am in the senior painting studios. BFA painting students who were almost completed with their thesis presentations lost all of their work with only weeks until senior gallery shows were scheduled to start. No one was seriously injured, luckily, but this is a devastating loss for our school’s young professionals who are just about to embark on a career, now without the fruits of four years worth of intense labor and dedication. Hundreds of paintings and artworks were destroyed, as well as the supplies and studios.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/16/ny...ire.html?_r=2&

[-Tragedy-]

Goddamn... I'd be a mental wreck if I were in that situation.

Hopefully they'll still be able to be graded and pass their course... I don't know how they'd be graded though given the situation.

A horrible thing to happen for those just about to embark on their careers.

[Reutte]

I have a friend who goes there and thank god, her stuff was in a different part of the building away from the fire so she's good but one of her roommates had her paintings right below the area that caught on fire and they don't know if they've been damaged by the fire/heat/water/smoke. I feel so bad for all the students who've lost all their work.

[Elwell]

This is absolutely horrible.

[Velocity Kendall]

Aww fuck.

[velderia]

That photo turned my stomach...

@Reutte: I'm so glad your friend managed to get her stuff at least. Thank goodness..

[Medelo]

Ugggh this is terrible. I really feel for those students. (

[Brain]

Having just lost everything that wasn't digital after having a river go through my house, I can sympathise, but I wasn't about to graduate. A tough, tough blow for the guys and gals there. The experience will make or break their resolve. I hope the institute assists as best they can.

[Maledict]

Four years of work? And they were on the cusp of graduating?

Either this is a serious coincidence, or it was a very bitter or jealous student or one that was very poor performing. Is there any suspicion of foul play?

Regardless of the cause, I'd be a fucking more of a wreck than I would've been if that happened. That be more than enough to push me over the edge.

[Qitsune]

Four years of work? And they were on the cusp of graduating?

Either this is a serious coincidence, or it was a very bitter or jealous student or one that was very poor performing. Is there any suspicion of foul play?

Regardless of the cause, I'd be a fucking more of a wreck than I would've been if that happened. That be more than enough to push me over the edge.

It's a school. There are student works there all the time. And every winter and spring, there are students about to graduate. It's not the coincidence of the century. It's very sad for the students who lost their work, but the timing itself is not a reason to suspect foul play.

[Candra H]

That's really painful. Four years work gone in one night. I hope they figure something out with grading etc so those students don't have to do the work over.

[QueenGwenevere]

The really sad thing is that it's not just grading and graduating that gets screwed up... Senior year is the time when students build up the body of work that will get them started in the real world after they graduate. Now they don't have that. They'll have to spend yet another year rebuilding a body of work.

If the school wants to do something really helpful, maybe they can give the affected students free studio space for a year after graduation...

[Candra H]

Thats a good point. Taking the work forward with them in a portfolio. Without that, I guess all the goodwill in the world isn't going to help if they don't have anything to show potential clients/employers.

So yeah, not just four years down the drain, but possibly another year on top trying to rebuild what they lost.