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Don Werthmann is a Professional Faculty member in the Digital Media Arts Department at Washtenaw Community College, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. His professional teaching career spans over twenty years, which is inclusive of the film and digital eras, and augmented with website design and development. As a Michigan native, Don’s passion and appreciation for various forms of visual art and art history emerged when he was a teenager, which eventually led him to earning B.F.A. and M.A. degrees in Photography from Wayne State University, in Detroit. Immediately after obtaining his undergraduate degree in the mid-1980's, he worked as a freelance camera and lighting assistant in commercial, automotive studios in the Detroit area, producing national-level print advertisements and catalogs for many well-renowned auto manufacturers.
In the early-1990’s Don discovered a strong calling to transition into a career in photo education, which led him to spending over eight years at the Santa Fe Photographic Workshops, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. His tutelage under some of the most influential names in the photographic industry took incremental steps from student work-study, to teaching-assistant to being the Operations Manager for six years. Don was an instructor of two different, weeklong workshops for four years as well. During this pivotal phase of his career, Don learned to complement his instructional designs and learning outcomes with the organizational strategies and expectations practiced the commercial sector.
The opening of the new century demanded earning a graduate degree and a simultaneous transition from film to digital capture workflow technologies. The combination of all these professional credentials uniquely position Don to teach with depth, the widest range of photography courses among his peers, which is evident in a list consisting of fourteen course titles ranging from beginner to advanced to study abroad opportunities. In over thirty years of career experience, his life is immersed in photography and education. As an artist, Don is a practitioner in the genre of social documentary as his images are infused with curiosity, the lyricism of everyday life, and a naturally unfolding tapestry of events presented to the camera. He also enjoys producing expressive portraiture in the studio and on-location.
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Don Werthmann
Professional Faculty — Photo
WCC Digital Media Arts Dept.
[GEO Visiting Faculty] |
