"Not only is traveling and meeting new people crucial in forming one’s worldview, but studying in a place that is foreign to you truly challenges the way you analyze subject matter."
My name is Nazrawi Belay. I am from Atlanta, Georgia, and am a rising sophomore at Columbia College. This past summer, I was fortunate enough to have studied both Art and Music Humanities at Columbia’s Reid Hall campus in Paris, France. The second I had heard of this program, I knew that I wanted to be a part of it. The prospect of studying art and music in one of the world’s most influential cities in both fields was an opportunity that seemed impossible to pass up. Moreover, I had been studying French at the time, so spending a summer in Paris was a no-brainer.
During the six weeks of the program, I felt fully immersed in all things concerning art and music. Every day, I was engaged in these subjects for hours at a time, be it through classroom learning or the many excursions we’d take as a cohort. I had some of the most enlightening discussions with peers and professors that helped me view art from angles that I would have never thought to look from. I remember part of our homework was to find a piece of architecture in the city that we found interesting and draw up a sketch to present in class. It was so eye-opening to occupy the mind of an artist from a non-artist’s perspective, revealing how art can reflect an artist’s psyche and thought process.
Since the program, I’ve realized just how important study abroad is to the development and formation of one’s beliefs, values, and goals. Not only is traveling and meeting new people crucial in forming one’s worldview, but studying in a place that is foreign to you truly challenges the way you analyze subject matter. For example, one of our assignments was to pick a painting from the Musée d'Orsay and contextualize it in its artistic movement and setting. After having been in France for weeks at this point, I took my observations of how the French approached nature and applied it to the contents of the art piece. This connection was only made possible through my first-hand experiences with the country and its people.
I have genuinely learned so much more than I could have imagined during this program, and I thank my professors and classmates for being what makes Columbia Summer Core in Paris such a special experience. The program was so impactful that it even influenced me to return to my roots in guitar and start playing music again! I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to study at Reid Hall and am so glad that this was the start to my journey in study abroad.
