CAPSTONE PROJECTS

BXA seniors are required to complete the BXA Capstone Project. The goal of the capstone project is to give a student the opportunity to weave together the interdisciplinary elements of their curricula into an integrated project. The creation and completion of such a project can be an important integrative and fulfilling capstone for students. These projects have included thesis papers, outreach projects, poetry readings, musical and dramatic performances, and visual art exhibitions.

For more information on how to register for the BXA Capstone Project course, contact Ari Blackford, ariblackford@cmu.edu.

Applications are available in MMCH 107, or click here (PDF).

Some recent BXA Capstone Project examples:

ELIZABETH BARSOTTI, BHA '09 CREATIVE WRITING AND BOOK ARTS
“Husband and Wife” is an interdisciplinary project which explores marriage and gender through art, craft, and writing. Project work includes letterpress books with original poetry, paintings, altered furniture, quilts, and collected objects, and was originally displayed as a two-gallery art exhibit in November 2008.
>> CLICK TO DOWNLOAD PDF OF PROJECT

BRIAN CALLAHAN, BHA '09 ANTHROPOLOGY AND MUSIC PERFORMANCE
"Technology v. RIAA v. the People" This project is a look into how technology has changed the music industry, how the industry has responded to those technological changes, and the attitudes and reactions of consumers towards the music industry in response to the industry’s response.

CHRISTOPHER CORNWELL, BHA '09 ENGLISH AND ART
“Psychophonic Odyssey” is a narrative comic which breaks from the established conventions of contemporary comics by encapsulating the history of the medium and by incorporating elements of other media and art practices through a meandering pastiche of styles and content. The comic’s narrative examines contemporary American culture and juxtaposes it with the county’s history, focusing on American mythology of the past and present, folk tales, and popular culture.

MAGALI DUZANT, BHA '09 VISUAL CULTURE STUDIES AND ART; WITH A MINOR IN PHOTOGRAPHY AND DIGITAL IMAGING
"The Parkhurst Slides" A photographic book exploring the found and appropriated image. The photographs use cinematic techniques to re-tell the story of a New England family from the 1940s thru 1970 using family snapshots.

VICTORIYA KOVALCHUK, BHA '09 CREATIVE WRITING AND COMMUNICATION DESIGN
"A Fictional Autobiography" This project is a series of linked stories written over the past two years at CMU. A designed book houses these stories, which share the pages with original family photographs, abstract drawings and also poetry.

NATHANIEL KRAUSE, BHA '09 ARCHITECTUTAL VISUALIZATION, MUSIC PERFORMANCE, AND FILM MEDIA
"Face to Face" A short narrative film that explores the creative process through the inadvertent interdisciplinary interactions of three students.

EMILY LEE, BHA '09 CREATIVE AND PROFESSIONAL WRITING & ART; WITH A MINOR IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
"Sequence" The goal of this unique illustration book is to explore a love of narratives both through imagery and words. Throughout the course of this semester, the project has been focused primarily on the process of experimentation involved in designing a book, rather than the finished book itself.

MATTHEW SIFFERT, BHA '09 PSYCHOLOGY AND MUSIC HISTORY; WITH A MINOR IN JAZZ PERFORMANCE
"What Does Miami Think Now?" This project investigates the sentiments of the Cuban
community in Little Havana, Miami, towards the future of US-Cuba relations. Siffert spent spring break of 2009 in Miami -- shortly after US President Obama changed visitation policies to the island, and Cuban Raul Castro shifted high ranking officials in his cabinet -- interviewing members of the Cuban community on the subject. This work is a collection of case studies, recounting the perspectives of five Cuban exiles.

JESSICA THURSTON, BHA '09 URBAN DESIGN AND PROFESSIONAL WRITING; WITH A MINOR IN HISPANIC STUDIES
"The Book of Robot City: Brownfield Redevelopment in Hazelwood" is a collection of papers and proposal submissions that detail the development of the Hazelwood, Pennsylvania-based brownfield site. The 178-acre site is being redeveloped using robotic technology to create
educational, commercial, and social space that will benefit the economy and the community of the Pittsburgh region.

NISHA ASNANI, BHA '08 HISTORY AND MUSIC PERFORMANCE
"Jazz from Paris to Pittsburgh" A historical and vocal study of Jazz music as performed in Paris and the United States culminating in a one hour concert with historically detailed program notes.

MICHAEL MCPARLANE, BHA '08 CREATIVE WRITING AND ART
"Untitled" Pen and ink drawings; found objects. This piece is an ongoing exploration of the nature of language and symbol, of the feeling body disrupting its own speaking. Initially, it began as a series of drawings throughout a book of poems, the fungal ink overtaking the page to create new texts or obliterating the old completely to create a new symbolic language. Divorced from text and placed on blank paper or found sculptures, they take on an entirely different architecture, one of simultaneous chaos and birth.

BREANNA ZWART-MATTHEWS, BHA '08 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND DRAMA
"A Journey through August Wilson's The Piano Lesson" my role as the dramaturg in The Piano Lesson was to help the cast, crew, and audience immerse themselves in the world of play. A major component of this work was recoreded in a casebook, however, the work was best reflected with the connections made on and off stage. It was a journey into a world with multiple layers and dimensions, one that went beyond critical thinking and demanded a growth of self.

STEVEN GOLDBERG, BHA '07 CREATIVE WRITING AND MUSIC COMPOSITION
"Steve Goldberg and the Arch Enemies" A 10 track baroque-pop recording arranged for guitars, voices, strings, brass, flute, and percussion. Songs about spies, knights, and French cuisine.

ANDREA HAMILTON, BHA '07 ART AND VISUAL SOCIOLOGY; BA ETHICS, HISTORY, AND PUBLIC POLICY
"Iconic Images of Drug Users in Popular Cinema" A research thesis. This project is a character study of select film icons in American cinema. The goal is to establish the epitome of stigma and glamour as it relates to drug use within film, and turning points in character development when the two become conflated.

STEPHEN SPENCER, BHA '07 PSYCHOLOGY AND INDUSTRIAL DESIGN
"The New Self Contained Self Rescuer" The SCSR (self contained self rescuer) is a federally required device that coal miners carry with them at all times. The device supplies a nominal hour’s worth of oxygen to a miner in a n emergency (such as an explosion or fire). Inspiration to redesign the device came from the astonishingly high failure rate of these devices and constant negative press surrounding the devices. The new design focuses on wearability, intuitive form, and physical user interaction.

MICHAEL CHOW, BSA '06 CHEMISTRY AND ARCHITECTURE; BA FRENCH AND FRANCOPHONE STUDIES
"Green Chemistry in Architecture" A research study on how chemistry is beginning to affect architecture and making it more sustainable by taking a more prominent role in recent research and discoveries.

JOHN TROLLMAN, BHA '06 PROFESSIONAL WRITING AND COMMUNICATION DESIGN
"Bigger Isn’t Better: An Information Design Study on General Motors’ Downfall" A study in information design that delves into the history of General Motors Corporation and why they are failing as a result of the classic American “Bigger Is Better” mentality. A series of nine 20x20” panels.

JESSICA VAUGHN, BHA '06 ART AND SOCIAL HISTORY
"Twice as Good: Print and Collage" An exhibition of 2D work consisting of prints, painting, and drawings that focus on contemporary political icons Condoleezza Rice and Barack Obama. Through the use of drawing, painting, and printmaking the exhibition focused on the complexities of their representations as it relates to contemporary culture, social history and cultural norms.

DIANE LOVIGLIO, BHA '05 ANTHROPOLOGY AND ARCHITECTURE
"A Feasibility Study and Plan of Action for Pittsburgh’s Habitat for Humanity To Build More Environmentally Sensitive Homes" Optimizing the ability for a non-profit to build affordable green housing, using Pittsburgh habitat for humanity as a case study.

JOHNATHAN MARTOFEL, BHA '05 FILM AND VIDEO PRODUCTION AND MEDIA STUDIES, MINOR PHOTOGRAPHY AND DIGITAL IMAGING
"Sofia for Now" Produced, shot and directed a feature length film that portrays the coming-of-age of a 17-year-old Hispanic girl who is trying to find her mother in Pittsburgh.

JOYCE MISHAAN, BHA '05 DRAMA AND CREATIVE WRITING
"We, the People: Democracy and the Audience, from Greek Theatre to Rock n' Roll" A reflective look at democracy, mass culture and the role of the audience from two perspectives: ancient Greece and contemporary America.

JOSHUA MULKEY, BHA '05 PSYCHOLOGY AND VOICE
"Steh’ ich einsam in der Ferne: The Life and Decline of Robert Schumann" A biographical and psychological survey of the 19th-century German composer Robert Schumann and his decline into mental illness, with a focus on Schumann’s own interdisciplinary beliefs.

MARY TUCKER, BHA '05 AMERICAN HISTORY AND DESIGN; MINOR BUSINESS ADMIN.
"Graphical Integrity And The American History Textbook" A study of the changes or lack of changes in information graphics in high school American history textbooks from 1900 to the present.