A wide shot of a ceramics studio, featuring students working with pottery wheels and other tools.
Image of Jan Tichy

Jan Tichy

Professor

Bio

Associate Professor, Photography, Art and Technology (2010). BFA, 2002, Jerusalem School of Photography; MFA, 2007, Bezalel Academy of Arts, Tel Aviv; MFA, 2009, School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Exhibitions:  Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; Santa Barbara Museum of Art; Kunsthalle Osnabrueck, Germany; Richard Gray Gallery, Chicago; The Broad Museum, Michigan State University. PublicationsArtforum; Art in America; Frieze; Domus. Bibliography: Aesthetics of Terror; Chicago Makes Modern; After Architecture. Collections: Museum of Modern Art, New York; Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago; Israel Museum, Jerusalem; Magasin 3 Stockholm Kunsthall. AwardsNathan Gottesdiener Foundation; Council for Advancement and Support of Education.

Personal Statement

Jan Tichy is a contemporary artist and educator. Working at the intersection of video, sculpture, architecture, and photography, his conceptual work is socially and politically engaged. Born in Prague in 1974, Tichy studied art in Israel before earning his MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he is now Assistant Professor at the Department of Photography. Tichy has had solo exhibitions at the MCA Chicago; Tel Aviv Museum of Art; Richard Gray Gallery, Chicago; CCA Tel Aviv; Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art; Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago; No Longer Empty, NY and Chicago Cultural Center among others. In 2011, he created Project Cabrini Green, a community-based art project that illuminated with spoken word the last high rise building at the Cabrini Green Housing Projects in Chicago during its month long demolition. In 2014 Tichy started to work on a long-term, NEA supported, community project in Gary, IN—the Heat Light Water Project.

image credits: profile photo- Hynek Alt, documentation - Jan Tichy

 

Courses

Title Department Catalog Term

Description

This course explores the techniques and aesthetics of black and white photography, from exposure to final prints. Students will develop skills in analog darkroom and inkjet printing, contrast control, lighting techniques, and the impact of scale, paper, and film choices. Hands-on projects and darkroom experimentation will deepen technical abilities and creative expression. An adjustable film camera is required.

Class Number

1578

Credits

3

Description

This course examines historical and contemporary philosophies, critical frameworks, and theoretical approaches that shape photography and visual culture. Designed to prepare students for advanced discourse, whether in graduate studies or as practicing artists navigating the broader art world, the class emphasizes the integration of theory, research, and artistic practice. Through weekly critical readings, discussions, and informal writing assignments, students will analyze key concepts, articulate ideas, and conduct theoretical research connected to their own creative work. The course also incorporates visits to photography exhibitions and collections around the city, fostering engagement with contemporary photographic dialogue.

Class Number

1540

Credits

3

Description

This course embraces the concept of projection as a broad field of art practice. Starting with the magic lantern, the course investigates the history of projection related practices that shape the parameters of visual perception and communication. Deconstructing the concept of the screen, the course focuses on projection in sculptural and installation contexts.

Microcontrollers and Adobe software is used in unorthodox ways to shape visual elements for digital light projection. History of visual, technical and conceptual use of light is accessed to investigate the interactions of projections with objects and space.

Class Number

1139

Credits

3

Description

This course embraces the concept of projection as a broad field of art practice. Starting with the magic lantern, the course investigates the history of projection related practices that shape the parameters of visual perception and communication. Deconstructing the concept of the screen, the course focuses on projection in sculptural and installation contexts.

Microcontrollers and Adobe software is used in unorthodox ways to shape visual elements for digital light projection. History of visual, technical and conceptual use of light is accessed to investigate the interactions of projections with objects and space.

Class Number

1592

Credits

3

Description

Public Light and Space examines concepts and develops plans for art projects based on light, space and public interaction. The projects are conceptualized and planned in response to the opportunities afforded by specific locations around the city of Chicago. Particular attention is focused on elements such as digital light projection, controlled light sources, and light-responsive materials.

The course investigates concepts and understandings of public space and the history of art in these spaces. The class offers a critical examination of the active role played by light and its dynamics in selected art movements.

A series of technical workshops builds proficiency to lend support to the development of the final, publicly exhibited project. Visiting artists, critics and Chicagoans assist in refining the project ideas, as they are being chosen and developed.

Class Number

1123

Credits

3

Description

Public Light and Space examines concepts and develops plans for art projects based on light, space and public interaction. The projects are conceptualized and planned in response to the opportunities afforded by specific locations around the city of Chicago. Particular attention is focused on elements such as digital light projection, controlled light sources, and light-responsive materials.

The course investigates concepts and understandings of public space and the history of art in these spaces. The class offers a critical examination of the active role played by light and its dynamics in selected art movements.

A series of technical workshops builds proficiency to lend support to the development of the final, publicly exhibited project. Visiting artists, critics and Chicagoans assist in refining the project ideas, as they are being chosen and developed.

Class Number

1533

Credits

3

Description

Taken every semester, the Graduate Projects courses allow students to focus in private sessions on the development of their work. Students register for 6 hours of Graduate Project credit in each semester of study.

Class Number

2346

Credits

3 - 6