"Send our Students to Venice" crowdfunding campaign raises $20,000

See it through exhibit in Venice.

By Rachel Teaman

Published June 21, 2018 This content is archived.

More than 100 friends of the School of Architecture and Planning donated $20,000 to a crowdfunding campaign that will send nearly two dozen students to Venice to participate in the school's See It Through Buffalo exhibit.

See It Through Buffalo is a documentary short produced by the school as a pensive-yet-hopeful, intrepid-yet-candid exploration the city’s urban context and the school’s complex relationship to the city over the past five decades.

The film on view at Palazzo Bembo in Venice. Photo by Nicholas Wheeler.

The film opened on May 24 in Venice as part of the Time Space Existence exhibition sponsored by the Global Art Affairs Foundation and the European Cultural Centre and runs in parallel with the Venice Architecture Biennale.

Students from across the school have been involved in the project from its conception. A team of five students played lead roles in the curation, production and installation of the exhibit. More than 20 students and faculty will head to Venice in August for a study abroad program and workshops organized around the exhibit. 

Read all of the Venice reactions

Support for global learning

In addition to broad support from alumni, faculty, staff and friends of UB and the School of Architecture and Planning, the crowdfunding campaign was supported by a challenge gift from Lori Duckstein in honor of her daughter, Sydney Gross, a former student of the School of Architecture and Planning.

"Thanks to such spirited support from our community, our students are able to participate in all facets of this one-of-a-kind global learning opportunity, from mounting an international exhibit to experiencing the full context of the Venice Architecture Biennale and the historic city of Venice," said Dean Robert G. Shibley. 

Leadership support for See It Through Buffalo has also been provided by the University at Buffalo; Robert Skerker, who served as executive producer of the film; Boston Valley Terra Cotta; Rigidized Metals Corp.; Peter Hourihan (BA '73); CannonDesign; Robert Shibley and Lynda Schneekloth; the Sydney Gross Memorial Fund; Sheldon Berlow; and Tony and Suzanne Kissling.