Bergman, Sky  

Art and Design

2.24/4.00

17 evaluations


ART 221


Freshman
A
Required (Support)
Aug 1999
Sky is an inquisitive and extremely knowledgeable person. She never hesitates to help and guides students through the process of becoming better students/photographers. I would definitely recommend taking as many courses as possible from Sky! A++++


Sophomore
A
Elective
Jan 2001
I loved this class. Sky makes photography so enjoyable. The projects were fun and I learned so much. I would deffinetly recommend her class to anyone who has basic knowledge of photography and wants to better themselves as photographers.


Sophomore
B
Elective
Jun 2003
Sky is a fantastic teacher. I loved this class. I learned a lot and had fun. This is not an easy A class though. Infact, I thought it was very difficult. She is a strict (but fair) grader and their isn't a whole lot of time to get the projects done. If your worried becuase your not an art major and you don't know anything about photograohy, don't be. I was the same way. She starts at the begining and doesn't expect you to know anything. She is incredibly patient and helpful. I really recomend taking this class with Sky!


Senior
C
General Ed
Oct 2003
She is one of the most anal professors ever. If you are late prepare to die because she will ride your ass like mad. Avoid her.


Sophomore
A
Required (Major)
Jan 2005
I really enjoyed Sky's class. She really knows her stuff and makes sure you understand the material. There isn't very much time to complete the projects so DON'T WAIT to get started on them, there is a lot involved in getting your prints done. She really does start at the beginning and doesn't assume you know anything about photography. I had never really used 35mm and had never been in the dark room before, but by the end of the class I could load film and print with the best of them.. well, not really, but you get my point ;) It's true she takes off from your grade if you're late, leave early, or skip, but this is only because you really really need to go to class every time because it will hurt your grade even more if you're not there. She is a fairly hard grader, but she tells you what she wants and lets you be creative with that in your projects. I thought the tests were pretty easy. She goes over what will be on them the class before which REALLY make it easy to study. You should still read the text because she doesn't cover everything in class and it's a good idea anyways. Finally.. I would recommend this class to anyone.


Freshman
B
Required (Major)
Mar 2005
Dreaded going to her class. She has little sense for artistic photos when she grades-- she wants everything standardized and uninteresting. Tests are easy, and you cant be late/ miss a class unless you car was hit by a meteor AND there is a solar eclipse.


Sophomore
B
Required (Major)
Mar 2006
Shes horrible. Knows just about nothing concerning photography. Dont be late, or your grade will be shot. Feels like middle school? Thanks bergman, you eliminated any desire for photography I once had. You supress creativity and stress conformity. WHAT KIND OF MESSAGE IS THAT FOR PHOTOGRAPHY? Get some real credentials and some sign of logic and then maybe you can teach high school photography.

ART 222


Senior
B
Required (Major)
Apr 2006
Sky is a detail-oriented teacher and talented photographer. Given the amount of students she has every quarter, those who never take the time to speak with her personally might feel she doesn't care about them, but she truly does care about, try to understand and help her students. In terms of workload, projects do take a lot of time and one must be disciplined to keep up, but they are not difficult in and of themselves. If you take her classes -- talk to her, she's always willing to help out.


Senior
A
Required (Major)
Oct 2007
It was great to learn from someone who is actually a professional and not just a teacher. The disgruntled here are only bummed that they didn't get the easy A they thought they signed up for. Sky has allot to offer to anyone who is actually here to learn. (strange concept for so many I know...) Overall, I would say she is an excellent teacher of photography. Show up on time, and put in an honest effort and you will do fine.

ART 223


Junior
B
Required (Major)
Apr 2006
I highly recommend Sky for both Intermediate B/W and Artificial Lighting. She explains how to do the projects and also tells you exactly what material you will be tested on. Her grading was very fair, and although she stresses attendance (because it's truly important) she didn't dock my grade for missing 2 labs. My projects have pushed the envelope as far as subject/content matter and she has been nothing but encouraging. You must approach her if you want to talk though because class sizes are usually large and obviously she can't make the rounds. She is always available to give helpful suggestions and she knows her sh#t.

ART 224


Freshman
A
Required (Major)
Aug 2014
My favorite professor so far at Cal Poly! Sure, she doesn't give As for lazy work, but honestly, we're here to learn, so put in some extra effort! As long as you fulfill her requirements for an assignment, and don't do a sloppy job, you'll do great! I love her passion for teaching and how willing she is to help you try new things.

ART 260


Sophomore
N/A
Required (Major)
Apr 2015
My most significant concern with Sky as an instructor is the impression I get from her as a student— oftentimes I’ve felt that she has not been interested in the kind of artist I want to be, but rather, the kind of artist she wants me to be. I understand wanting to push students to explore different avenues of self-expression, but it’s felt more extreme than that— as if I have to constantly defend myself and my work to her and even when I do, it’s still not adequate because it is not in her style. As a student, I want my professors, especially the ones of my concentration, to be on my team; to feel as if they support the vision of where I want to go with my art and career. I have had to fight a lot of people in my life when it comes to my art, and I was hoping it wouldn’t be the case with professors, but unfortunately it has still been a challenge. That being said… I don’t feel that Sky intends for me to feel this way, or, at least, I sincerely hope she doesn’t. I don’t think she knows how I feel, and I’m hoping that through sharing my story she might be better equipped to mentor her students. I’m not an expert when it comes to everyone else, but I know that my experience would have been exponentially better had I been questioned about my own truth, my own dreams, and then provided the tools to address them.

GEOG 294


Freshman
A
Required (Major)
Nov 2016
Fuck this guy. Id like to stick my tounge up his ass.

ART 325


Sophomore
A
Required (Major)
Dec 2014
A sweet person, though she assigns way too much work at once.

ART 383


Sophomore
A
Elective
Jun 2017
I took this class thinking that I would learn about video editing, and I definitely didn’t. Instead, I learned about all the $400 camera equipment that I had to buy if I was “serious” about videotography. What I hated about this class the most was all the time that I wasted: she spends every other lecture watching everyone’s rough cuts of each project, which can easily take 2-3 hours. Sorry, I don’t need to sit through every version of every persons projects. What she should have done was make that into individual work time, and then meet with each student individually to go over their rough cuts. SOMEONE PLEASE suggest this to her if you take her class. I also hated the fact that she assumed we all had camera equipment prior to taking the class. The first lecture she goes over everything you “need” for the class, which includes a high end DSLR, tripods, microphones, lighting kits, and more. She says that this class “doesn’t have a textbook, so buying equipment is in place of that” but, like, c’mon, no one buys their textbooks outright, and even if they did, this equipment easily doubles or triples the cost of any regular textbook. Finally, I hated the structured projects Sky assigns. There was absolutely no creativity. For an Art and Design course, I expected a little more creativity. Also, I wanted to reiterate that I didn’t learn a single thing about video editing. She only teaches you about what camera equipment you need to be a videotographer. If you use Premier Pro, you’re better off teaching yourself through Youtube and google, because she only teachers Final Cut. Honestly, I know that other professors teach this course besides Sky, so if you’re debating taking it a quarter that only Sky teaches it, just wait to take it with someone else.

ART 468


Senior
N/A
Required (Major)
Apr 2015
She doesn't want to show you how to become the artist you want to be; she wants to show you how to be the artist she wants you to be. Namely, her. Grades are based on how much you listen to her subjective advice on your own work.


Senior
N/A
Elective
Apr 2015
Sky has a lot of good points-- it's obvious she puts a lot of time and energy into prepping for her classes. That being said, I would only recommend her as a photo professor in the sense that you build a very thick skin under her instruction. It's hard to explain... Sky seems to want to break students down rather than give them encouragement; I'm assuming because she believes that criticism is about being demeaning rather than constructive. All the criticism she's ever given me has either been a difference in style or simply bullying. Once when I was younger, she looked at a group of photos I was proud of (for the most part-- I am very critical of my own work) and said, "I think you think these are good and they're not." She was smirking as she said this, too, making it even better, haha. For much of my academic career I allowed what she said to get to me and essentially make me question myself and my love for photography. I didn't enjoy photography until I stopped taking what she said personally. I have to thank her for building my character in this way, but damn, I can't believe she's a teacher sometimes with the lack of communication skills she has.