- Sweet valley Rye, about the university's new Digital Media Zone and goal of bringing "the next Silicon Valley" to Toronto, by Lauren Strapagiel
- Breaking the silence, about diversity in Sports & Recreation, by Takara Small
- It's a bird... It's a plane... It's Ryerson's new programs!, about the university's planned push towards professional programs, by Shaheer Choudhury
- A place to call home, about Ryerson's plan to shed its commuter school image and build more residences
The roof is on fire, Maple Leaf Gardens style
2010-07-10A small fire broke out on the roof of Maple Leaf Gardens just after midnight on Friday. "The cause has been determined as construction workers using a blowtorch during the previous day," said Capt. David Eckerman of Toronto Fire Services. Maple Leaf Gardens is undergoing renovations to be transformed into Ryerson University's new athletic centre. It will also host a Loblaws Ltd. grocery store. Emergency services responded to a call at the historic 60 Carlton St. building after passerbys noticed smoke rising from the arena. "We decided the best route to the fire was using our aerial ladder to get up to the roof, where we found a small fire underneath some siding next to a ventilation shaft," Eckerman said. The fire was extinguished within minutes, with damages estimated at $5,000. There were no injuries reported and Ryerson has not reported a setback to the March 2011 project deadline.
Undercover RCMP officer caught spying on G20 protesters at Ryerson
2010-06-23An undercover RCMP officer was escorted out of the Eyeopener office Wednesday by Ryerson campus security after refusing to leave. At around 4:30 p.m., RCMP Officer Leslie Tull was attempting to use the student newspaper's office to monitor about 10 quiet G20 protesters in Ryerson's Student Campus Centre (SCC). Dressed in plain clothes, Tull refused requests to leave while asking several people in the office if they knew how many exits were in the building and if the protesters could be kicked out. After repeatedly asking Tull to leave Eyeopener staff called security to remove Tull from the work space. Security was unaware of the RCMP's presence at Ryerson and was not dealing with any ongoing problems with protesters. Toby Whitfield, RSU president and SCC building management, had security escort Tull out of the building. "We want to provide a safe space for people to discuss G20 issues. People have the right to get together and talk and demonstrate." Whitfield said the protesters were just talking and are allowed to be in the building as long as they remain peaceful. He added he wouldn't be surprised if more undercover RCMP found their way into the SCC during the summit. "It's a reality check... I feel like it's going to happen again this week." Ryerson security was unable to comment but did say the situation had been resolved. There are currently no issues with protesters on campus.
Students paying more for poorer education: study
2010-05-05A new study suggests Ontario university students are paying more for less when it comes to their education, especially in terms of class size. The study, released at the end of March, was done by the Ontario Confederation of Universities Faculty Associations (OCUFA). It takes a look at the quality of education in the 1960s, comparing it to today and to the 1990s. The report mentions high tuition, poor facilities and little time with professors as factors that hurt quality. "You've got to put in money to renew quality," said Graeme Stewart, policy analyst for OCUFA. Higher levels of university enrollment has caused tuition fees to go up, Stewart said. However, the government has less money to work with because of cuts to revenue, he said. Stewart said a possible solution could be a tax increase, but people are already almost paying a tax for their education. "Tuition it kind of a tax, it's more of a tax on the middle class," Stewart said. But not everyone is convinced things are going downhill. Alex Usher, president of Higher Education Strategy Associates, said it depends on how someone defines quality. "We're buying something different than we were," Usher said. He said the costs in labour-intensive industries like teaching go up faster than the price of inflation. He also suggested that the typical method of instruction - lecturing - may need to change to educate greater numbers of students. Wayne Petrozzi, a politics professor, thinks students will continue to go to school in Ontario despite the higher costs. The Greater Toronto Area is the biggest source of enrollment, he said. "A lack of resources should never be a reason for a student not to attend university," Petrozzi said. "We need a more robust system with loans and grants for students." But some students wonder if their education will suffer. "I think [bigger class sizes] will affect studies in the sense the professor....might be more stressed out, said Orvin Lao, a fourth-year biology student.
Police continue to investigate Yonge and Gould collapse
2010-04-16Police now say it's unlikely that anyone is trapped under the collapsed wall on Ryerson's campus earlier Friday afternoon. According to Sgt. Phil Glavin, "We're pretty confident that no one is trapped under there... it's highly unlikely." Sgt. Glavin worked with search dog Dylan to scour the rubble at Yonge and Gould. Though Dylan detected a human scent on the first inspection, the police attributed it to the large crowd surrounding the rubble. Two further inspections found no evidence of people trapped. According to Const. Wendy Drummond, the Yonge Street bus will be affected for an undetermined amount of time. CP24 is reporting that an eyewitness saw two female pedestrians run out of the way as the wall fell. The news outlet also reported that two people sustained minor injuries. Police have not yet reported the reason behind the collapse. Witnesses said they heard two large bangs before the rubble fell. "We felt a rumble and then heard a crash. We just saw all the dust from the rubble," said Louise Tsukamoto, who was eating at Salad King at the time of the accident. Police shut down Gould Street between Victoria and Yonge Streets immediately after the crash, causing a major traffic buildup in the area. Some of the Salad King customers scattered immediately after hearing the crash while others still grabbed take-out containers, said Tsukamoto. Police asked all customers to leave the restaurant within five minutes of the collapse. "We were asked to leave because of the danger of being in the same building," said Brian Lau, the manager of Salad King. Toronto police are continuing to investigate.
Ryerson fashion grads: big fish in Canadian pond
2010-04-13The catwalk lights fade to black, and fashion editors, photographers and aficionados buzz with anticipation. A booming drum beat charges fashion week attendees with energy, swelling to a climax. Suddenly, Lucian Matis’ name illuminates the back drop and cameras flash as an austere model strikes a pose at the top of the runway. “I remember Lucian’s graduating collection at Ryerson and really being wowed by his level of theatrics,” says Jeanne Beker, Canadian fashion icon and host of Fashion Television. At this time, seven years ago, the Canadian designer Matis was a fashion student, slaving away on the final touches of his grandiose collection for Ryerson University's annual Mass Exodus fashion show. Those days, he lived in the studio. “All of the students knew that I had a bed under the desks and a kitchen in the cabinets. It was very intense,” says Matis. It’s this level of intensity that the Ryerson School of Fashion says is why they produce so many successful graduates. Ryerson alumni pervaded the LG Fashion Week line-up this spring. But both Canadian fashion media like Beker and designers like Matis recognize that fashion is a global business, and while many Ryerson fashion grads have been able to make a name for themselves in Canada, they struggle to stand out on the international stage. In the bustle before Matis’ show, Robin Kay, president of the Fashion Design Council of Canada (FDCC) and producer of LG Fashion Week, parts the crowd as she strides to her front row seat. An entourage of slim, young fashionistas in a uniform of trench coats and wrap around sunglasses flank Kay on both sides. They’re careful to follow behind obediently, but not come to close to the fashion queen, who wears a chic black number from Ryerson graduate David Dixon. When it comes to the Ryerson School of Fashion, she speaks in the superlative. “It’s the top,” Kay says. For the past 12 years, Kay has worked to market Canadian designers including Ryerson grads Lucian Matis, Evan Biddell, and Jessica Biffi, who have all shown their collections during LG Fashion Week in the past year. “Not just anyone can get on these runways. You have to have chops,” she says. David Dixon ia a Ryerson alumna who will celebrate a 15-year anniversary of his own line this year. He says that when he hires interns and assistants, he tends to pick Ryerson students because he can expect a high skill level. But he still wants to see the university do more work to market students. He says that other fashion schools have recently started to send their students' resumes to potential employers. “They’re not just putting on an annual fashion show and saying, ‘This is it.’" Beker says that while Ryerson’s fashion program is commended within Canada, it’s still not that well-known outside of the country, where it competes with larger schools like the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in New York City and Central St. Martins College of Art in London. Although Matis and Dixon are acclaimed in the Canadian fashion scene, their names aren’t on the tongues of international fashion editors. “I think of some of the great Ryerson grads of the past like Lida Biday and Joeffer Caoc -- some great Ryerson designers -- but they never really made it on the big international scene. Matis has made a name for himself certainly within our borders, but I don’t think he’s recognized outside of Canada too much. That still might take a while,” Beker says. But Robert Ott, chair of the Ryerson School of Fashion, says that Ryerson isn’t in direct competition with other international schools like FIT. He says that they are in a uniquely beneficial position as the only school in Canada that offers a bachelor degree in fashion. The Ryerson School of Fashion is also the only Canadian member of the International Foundation of Fashion Technology Institutes. Other members include FIT and the London College of Fashion. Ott says that Ryerson fashion grads “saturate” all areas of the Canadian fashion industry, and hold management and senior executive positions at companies including Le Chateau and Lulu Lemon. “We also have international partners, and specifically Abercrombie and Fitch has been very active in coming on campus to recruit our graduates to work for them.” Still, It’s hard to compare Toronto Fashion Week to fashion weeks in New York and Paris. “It’s a very enigmatic country, Canada. We look to Europe, we look to the States, we look to try and do it the way that those multi-million dollar brands and companies are doing it, and we can’t,” Beker says. Beker criticized this year’s LG Fashion Week for being too commercial, but someone has to foot the bill given limited financial backing from the government. “A lot of these corporate sponsors are hopping on board and riding on the coattails of fashion for their own benefit, but it’s nice that they can shed a light on our designers,” she says. Matis says that there is a lack of government support for fashion in Canada compared with countries like France. During fashion week, Robin Kay spoke at a press conference at Queen’s Park asking for fashion to be a designated cultural industry in Ontario, which would increase grants for designers. But for now, up-and-comers looking to develop and expand their own label migrate South to the States or eastward to Europe. After a striking show, Matis’ models strut out in single file for the finale and fashionphiles praise the designer with applause. But despite all this attention in Toronto, Matis says it’s time to move on to bigger things. He plans to show his next collection at New York Fashion Week next season. He says he will skip Toronto’s fall fashion week this year to make sure that his collection is runway-ready for his American debut. “You have to be international, you have to grow continuously. I feel like it’s a little bit slack right now, I feel like it’s not moving forward, so I need to move forward.”
Ryerson, OPSEU begin talks with labour board
2010-04-13Ryerson and the Ontario Public Sector Employees Union (OPSEU) participated in their first day of talks on March 31 to determine a bargaining unit for a recent union vote. The hearing was with the Ontario Labour Relations Board, and the parties will resume talks on April 13. Kiera Chion, an organizer for OPSEU, said one of the main issues stalling the vote has been the university’s reluctance to release documents regarding employees’ start and end dates. The documents would help clarify who belongs on the voters list, she said. “It should be easy for the employer to provide that information,” Chion said. The March 8 vote called for Ryerson part-time employees working less than 24 hours a week to have the option to join OPSEU. It also included work-study students. Chion said she’s concerned a number of instructors who are already members of other unions were allowed to participate. While Ryerson says 1,601 workers are eligible, OPSEU says the number is 1,100. Under the Ontario Labour Relations Act, OPSEU needs to have collected signed cards from 40 per cent of the affected group in order to call the cote. Chion said that she couldn’t comment on the number of instructors she alleges were erroneously put on the voters list, but that it was “enough to make a big difference.” Larissa Allen, assistant vice-president of human resources for Ryerson, said she hopes some progress in made on April 13. "There are a number of areas of disagreement that still have not been resolved," Allen said, but said that she couldn't give any more details.
Suiting up
2010-04-06For our last issue of the year, the Eyeopener has put together a package looking at Ryerson's attempt to change its image. Read the feature articles online or in Grad students are new programs' guinea pigs by Aleysha Haniff
Fashion blooms
2010-04-06Ruth Weil by Hillary Sampliner Hillary Sampliner never got a chance to meet her grandmother. But now her name — Ruth Weil — adorns every one of her designs. "I took over all her sewing supplies," says Sampliner. This dress, made of 100 per cent silk, was dip-dyed by Sampliner in her kitchen. Working with $50-yards of fabrics, Sampliner only had one chance to dye a certain colour. "People think I'm crazy but I love what I do," says Sampliner. Inside Wants Out by Désiré Bara-Assi Anatomy and the British military: an unlikely pairing but the inspiration for Desire Bara-Assi's line Inside Wants Out. After making the switch from wanting to become a doctor to pursuing fashion, Bara-Assi took another leap with his medically inspired line. "I call it my ‘evening wear army.'" Lilly Nichols by Kim Barr Remember when you cringed at your mother's old wedding dress? Eco-friendly designer Kim Barr thinks this moment should never happen. Wedding dresses are timeless to her. "I don't want people to be embarrassed when they pull out their old wedding dress." Barr's concern for eco-friendly designs stems from the amount of clothes tossed away every season. "Women spend a lot of money so it should last a lot longer."
This is a headline about Meta
2010-04-06Upon Refraction by Rebecca Petro Broken mirrors mean more than bad luck, they reflect our relationship with the environment. Rebecca Petro’s Upon Refraction, is made of layered mirror fragments and uses reflecting light to symbolize how nature is changing right before us. “As guilty as I feel saying that I really enjoyed the mild winter, things are really changing now,” Petro said. Approaching this piece, you will see your reflection placed on a natural landscape. Petro’s goal is to shed light on our connection and detachment to our surroundings. “I started building this thing and it kind of took on a mind of its own.” CrestFallen by Leif Parker Something as simple as an egg can evoke feelings of hopelessness. Leif Parker’s CrestFallen creates a realistic scene of an egg that has fallen from its nest. Viewers are left questioning its survival. “I was trying to find a way to get the most emotional energy out of the least amount of movement,” Parker said. Calling for close examination by its audience, the piece explores binaries such as life and death, and required actual bird parts to create. “We are taught not to touch birds because the mother won’t reaccept the baby bird,” said Parker, “There’s a sort of parallel in the art world, where you aren’t supposed to touch art.” [Editor’s note: Parker is the Eyeopener’s fun editor.] Rear Window by Michael Lawrie and Jon Friis Could a telescope display something other than reality? Michael Lawrie and Jon Friis created one that combines what is visible to the naked eye with scenes from the 1954 Alfred Hitchcock film, Rear Window, which their piece is named after. “We wanted to make an interactive experience that is really engaging,” Lawrie said. Using augmented reality — reality captured on video and added to afterwards — the artists invite you to look at buildings across the street and view scenes of the film in the place of windows. “Hopefully they kind of get the idea we were exploring which is taking these extraordinary cinematic scenes and pulling them into reality.”
Ryerson’s darkrooms fade to black
2010-04-06For decades, Ryerson's photography students have learned to dodge, burn and develop their own film. But as of next year, the darkroom is finally going digital. The university's photography program is planning to move away from film-based teaching, in favour of modern day techniques. Introductory film courses will be phased out and focus will be shifted instead to digital SLRs. "There are many wonderful and magical qualities to film, but it has always had many limitations," said Robert Burley, photography program director. "Digital imaging ... is simply faster, cheaper and more flexible. In most instances these are the qualities creative professionals are after." The move is unsurprising, considering both professional and consumer photography is now largely digital. However, some feel newcomers to the program will miss out on the unique and arguably more involved experience that film photography demands. "I think a lot of people these days are just picking up digital cameras and shooting as self-proclaimed photographers," said Yasmin Alsamarrai, a second-year photography student. "With Photoshop it's so easy to make a picture. Film is the root of photography and I don't think it needs to be forgotten." Jeff Harris is a 1996 Ryerson photography graduate, from a time when digital was nearly nonexistent. His most recent project is a collection of self portraits, taken every day over the course of a decade and all shot on 35mm film. "I think the nice thing about film is it ties you to the history of photography. It sort of helps you explain the nuts and bolts of an image," Harris said. "With digital you're indebted to Photoshop to help you make an image. Whereas, when you're working in dark room, you feel connected to the people a hundred years ago who used to do it too." While first-year students will no longer start with film-based processes, the plan is to offer such classes in later years — albeit, in a reduced capacity. Higher level students can potentially take courses in traditional film development, and a new graduate program called Film Preservation is in the works. But as Burley points out, cost is always something the school is looking to minimize, and film no longer made sense financially. In the old program, photography students would spend hundreds of dollars each year on chemicals, prints and other equipment. As more users move to digital, the cost of these supplies his risen dramatically, making their continued use impractical. "They were putting more money into maintaining the machines and chemicals than people who were using them," said Jonathan Hutchinson, a second-year photography student. It's a fact even photographic giant Kodak has realized — the company plans to leave the film business by 2015. But beyond cutting costs, DSLRs posses an excellent capacity for teaching new students. Burley calls the cameras a "wonderful pedagogical tool" for their ability to provide instant feedback and said they are much more forgiving than their filmbased counterparts. Students will be encouraged to purchase either a Canon or Nikon model for the start of term. Moreso, the digital shift of the last decade has drastically changed the way in which photographers operate. Tools like Photoshop and web design have become industry standards that can no longer be ignored. "When they leave the program, they shouldn't be encountering things they've never learned to do," explains Burley. "This is where everyone else is going, so it doesn't make sense not to switch."
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