My Purdue: Ethnography of Photographs and Spaces at Purdue

 

This ethnography will look at Wetherill Lab of Chemistry on Purdue’s campus. Due to the large scale of the building and limited timeframe, this ethnography focuses primarily on the second floor of the building. Wetherill was the chosen subject of this ethnography because of its overall theme and large amounts of decor. In later paragraphs, I will explain what this theme is and what aspects of the building represent it. Another reason for choosing Wetherill was because I know it’s a place on campus always full of people and this affects how the building’s interior looks and how student friendly it becomes. Based on my observations of Wetherill, I can confidently say it is a building designed for students’ and possess a strong, identifiable theme unlike that of others around campus.

 

Wetherill’s make-up consists of large lecture halls, offices, standard classrooms, bathrooms, a café, and a student lounge. Walking through the hallways, I could identify most of these rooms and spaces, however, some rooms were locked and unlabeled on the general map. However, the hallway was capable to provide enough information to produce a detailed ethnography about the space.

 

The following image is a quick sketch done by me with the assistance of the building’s map located by its main entrance. In addition, my own prior knowledge assisted with labeling and identifying rooms and spaces.

 

Wetherill is the home of a plethora of visual elements. When one walks into the building the eye is immediately drawn up. Above the staircase leading to the second floor hangs a huge sculpture of a chemical compound—the first hint of what this building’s theme is. This sculpture attracts the eye with bright colored lights and a modern look. This decoration was likely put into the building not only to embodied its theme, but to attract student with an upgraded and modern appearance.

 

Once taking the hike up the grand stairs, a display is set up. The top of the display reads, “Shaping the Future Through Chemistry”—the second hint of the building’s theme. The display is a multimedia affair describing molecules. This display is not only at the top of the stairs as mentioned, but outside of the largest lecture hall in the building. I don’t believe this is coincidence because student gather around this display while waiting to gain access to the room. Since the lecture hall is so large, many students are left crowding the hallway waiting to get in. This display was placed in the area because it is high traffic and guarantees viewership.

 

The next thing one notices when walking through the halls of Wetherill is the huge study area for students. There are chairs, tables, whiteboards, and the works. The area is constantly full of people due to the high influx of students that have class in the building daily. One thing to add that may be important here, Wetherill does not house only chemistry class but other related courses as well which is likely responsible for the building always being packed with students. When renovating, Purdue likely kept in mind how many students have class in Wetherill daily and figured it would be an excellent place for a study lounge. This lounge could be easily identified as a place where students study even if there wasn’t a single person in sight. White boards are full of boilermaker event information and math problems. There are also a number of outlets easily accessible for students to charge laptops and cellphones. In addition, tables and chair desks provide a surface to write or read on. Even throughout the study area, chemistry themed décor hangs on the walls and carries on through some of the geometric shaped furniture.

 

A short distance from the study area lies the “Catalyst Café”, the name truly speaks for itself as far as the theme is concerned. The café area offers a variety of food and beverage options, including Starbucks beverages. This small café offers a row of bar-style seating, with each seat having an outlet for that students may plug in any devices. Student can be seen eating or studying here at all hours of the day, though the busiest times are before and after usual class hours. Much like the student study area, the café was likely intended to attend to the needs of the large amount of student travelling to or through the building daily. A place this busy is an obvious choice for a food or beverage retailer, and adding Starbucks beverages as an option is a clear nod to a college student’s favorite drink and stereotypical need for caffeine. This café is an easy run through option for students look for a quick bite, or a place to hang out and charge up devices. Disappointingly, the science and chemistry theme of the building does not seem to carry on through the café past its name. However, this is possible made up for by the view of the entrance way sculpture right over the sitting area.

 

Three additional signs of the building purpose include a sign indicating an active research area, a first aid locker, and eyewash station in very close proximity to one another. These items are all located in the farthest back hallway. These items carry on the chemistry theme, although not through décor, they do indicate that science activities take place in the building and there are labs present. Again, though not décor they are visual aspects of the building and can be used to help identify the buildings purpose. The active research sign is specifically important because it indicates an area of importance and makes people aware they should not be in that area if they aren’t supposed to be. I believe this is among the most important visual aspects because it can very easily involve a person’s safety.

 

One last visual aspect is the two walls dedicated to Purdue alums who won Nobel prizes. One wall dedicated to Herbert C. Brown can be seen in the front hallways, and the other dedicating Ei-ichi Negishi in the back hallway. Both walls look very similar. Each say the name of the person, the year they received the award and short paragraph detailing what they accomplished to receive the award. These walls are significant because it tells people that Purdue takes pride in its alumni and their accomplishments. The composition of these walls is also important to note because it isn’t just a picture and a paragraph, it’s meant to attract the eye and encourage someone to read about these people. Since both men’s accomplishment were in chemistry, even these hint at the theme of the building.

 

This building was particularly interesting to walk through. I can relate what I was doing somewhat to the work of auto-ethnographer Carolyn Ellis mainly in that like her, I felt like I was talking some of my own perspectives and experience into my observations. Though I wasn’t telling a story, I felt like my observation were led by my prior knowledge of this place and that effected my view of it. In addition, in gathering images for this ethnography, I felt as if I was channeling visual anthropologist Karen Strassler. Like her, I felt I was observing to understand and using photography to do so. Though not analyzing a culture, through observing visual aspects of Wetherill I felt as if I was putting pieces of a puzzle together much like she does to understand aspects of Javanese culture.

 

To conclude, Wetherill Chemistry Lab carries through it a theme of science and learning that can be picked up in all visual aspects. In addition to theme, it was clear that this space was meant for students through the study area, café, classrooms, and more. Wetherill was a place I’ve been time and time again, in which time I’d viewed each floor and had my own thoughts on the building. But through more intense observation I realized the thought and time put into visual aspects and began to understand their real purpose to not only entertain the eye, but to inform as well. Through this process, I channeled anthropologists discussed in class and whose work we’ve studied. With them in mind, I could observe visuals and try to understand their placement and reason for being in the space. Overall, Wetherill proved to be exactly what I had hoped and provided and plentiful of visuals to observe, and carried its theme throughout.