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Michael Godsil

Associate Professor; Professor of Practice in Art

Michael Godsil

Meet Professor Godsil

Years at Knox: 2005 to present

"My personal, creative photography is primarily of landscapes and nature details and is a mixture of color digital images and large format black & white images, made using a 4" x 5" field camera, analog film and traditional darkroom methods. Recent self-assigned projects have involved multiple trips to the American Southwest to photograph isolated, ancient pueblo ruins sites, a trip to Peru to photograph Machu Picchu and other Incan ruins, and a project photographing receding glaciers in Alaska, Montana, and the Canadian Rockies. Photographs from the ancient pueblo ruins and Inca sites are part of a sizeable solo exhibit titled 'Ancient Echoes in Stone.' The glacier images from Alaska were part of a recent solo exhibit, and fieldwork on that glacier project is ongoing. I also have many years of experience doing editorial, commercial and industrial photography on a freelance basis."

Education

B.A., Studio Art, 2004, Knox College.
B.A., Economics and Business Administration, 1976, Knox College.
Summer session in photography, 1975, Colorado College.
ACM program, 1973-1974, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan.
Multiple master workshops with various photographers, including Ansel Adams, John Sexton, Bruce Barnbaum, Ray McSavaney and Ellen Land-Webber.

Teaching Interests

Basic photography (includes analog black and white darkroom processing and printing methods), digital photography, photojournalism, and history of photography.

Selected Professional Accomplishments

Hired by FedEx to provide photojournalism coverage of the E.A.A. AirVenture event in Oskosh, WI: the largest fly-in and airshow in the United States, July 2012.

Hired by FedEx to provide photojournalism coverage of their delivery of a pair of Giant Pandas from China to a zoo south of Paris, France in January 2012.

Hired by FedEx to provide photojournalism coverage of their delivery of a pair of Giant Pandas from China to a zoo in Edinburgh, Scotland in December 2011.

Served as an external evaluator of departmental staffing needs, space needs and existing curriculum for the Department of Art & Art History at Juniata College, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, 2010.

Honors/Grants

Knox Faculty Research / Creative Work Grant: "Hot Ice," Photographing Glaciers in Iceland & Greenland, 2016-2017.

Publications

Invited by the Figge Art Museum to contribute an essay about the landscape photography of Gerry Eskin, to be published in their exhibition catalog for Eskin's "Scale" exhibition in 2010.

Presentations

"Landscape Photographs: Capturing a Spirit of Place," Figge Art Museum, Davenport, IA, August 18, 2016.

Class on Landscape Photography, Figge Art Museum, Davenport, IA. August 14, 2016.

Featuring Knox students' works from two 100-level digital photography assignments at the FATE regional art faculty conference at Monmouth College, Monmouth, IL. April 2, 2016.

"Fundamentals of Photographic Composition," Peoria Camera Club, Peoria, IL. February 23, 2016.

"General information for Making Better Photos," Taming Technology Conference for Delta Kappa Gamma. Bradley University, Peoria, IL, June 2013.

Presented a gallery talk about the photography exhibition "Locating Place: Perceptions of Space in 20th Century Photography", at the Figge Art Museum, Davenport, Iowa, 2012

Presented a gallery talk about the photography exhibition "David Plowden's Iowa", at the Figge Art Museum, Davenport, Iowa, 2012

"From Daguerreotypes to Digital Inkjet Prints: The Evolution and Challenges of Photographic Equipment and Processes", as part of a series of lectures the museum scheduled in conjunction with the "Tracks" exhibition of railroad photographs from the George Eastman House, presented at the Figge Art Museum, Davenport, Iowa, 2011.

Chair of panel discussion on, "Wet & Dry: Integrating Digital Photography into an Existing Analog Photography Program," Academic Conference, Wabash College, Crawfordsville, Indiana, 2008.

Gallery talk in conjunction with an exhibit of photographs titled, "In the Light: Photographs from the Sikkema Collection," Figge Art Museum, Davenport, Iowa, 2008.

Solo Exhibitions

34 fine-art photographs titled, "Old & New: Four Decades of Photography by Michael Godsil," at the West Central Illinois Arts Center in Macomb, IL. March 7-April 7, 2017.

Buchanan Center for the Arts, Monmouth, Illinois, 2011.

Earlham College, Richmond, Indiana, 2010.

Galesburg Civic Art Center, Galesburg, Illinois, 2008.

David Stawn Art Gallery, The Art Association of Jacksonville, Illinois, 2005.

"Ancient Echoes in Stone," Knox College, 2003.

Museum of The Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu, Hawaii, 1989.

Caterpillar Corporation World Headquarters, Peoria, Illinois, 1984.

"Photographs of the American West," Knox College, 1984.

Western Illinois University, Macomb, Illinois, 1984.

Selected Group Exhibitions

"Kelp Tapestry, Point Lobos, CA, 2015," and "Blue Window, Singapore, 2015" selected for inclusion in the juried national arts exhibition 64ARTS at the Buchanan Center for the Arts, Monmouth, IL. September 27-October 29, 2016.

Exhibited 6 photographs, Works by Knox College Studio Art Faculty at Cornell College, Mt. Vernon, IA. November 6-December 11, 2016.

"FATE Exhibition" of college & university art faculty artworks, Monmouth College, Monmouth, IL, 2016.

Juried national art exhibition "GALEX 50", Galesburg Civic Art Center, Galesburg, IL, 2016.''

"Artists First": juried exhibition of college & university art faculty artworks, Figge Art Museum, Davenport, IA, 2015

Juried national art exhibition "64ARTS", Buchanan Center for the Arts, Monmouth, IL, 2013.

Juried national art exhibition at Augustana College, Rock Island, IL, 2013

Juried group exhibition "Sacred & Spiritual Art", Galesburg Civic Art Center, Galesburg, IL, 2012.

Juried group exhibition "Photo Narratives from Western Illinois", West Central Illinois Arts Center, Macomb, IL 2012.

Invitational group exhibition "Take Ten: Ten Regional Photographers", Carl Sandburg College, Galesburg, IL 2011.

Juried national art exhibition "64ARTS", Buchanan Center for the Arts, Monmouth, IL, 2011.

Juried art exhibition "Journeys", West Central Illinois Arts Center, Macomb, IL 2011.

Invitational group exhibition "Knox College Faculty - Past and Present", Galesburg Civic Art Center, 2008.

Professional Service

Served as an external evaluator of departmental staffing needs, space needs and existing curriculum for the Department of Art & Art History at Juniata College, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, 2010.

Campus & Community Involvement

  • Faculty Advisor: Knox College Photo Club.
  • Served as a member of the Knox Biennial Review Task Force on alcohol & substance abuse policies.
  • Past-president Rotary Club of Galesburg and past assistant-district-governor of Rotary District 6460.
  • Secretary of the Galesburg Rotary Club Foundation.
  • Founding member and treasurer of the Galesburg Camera Club.

what students say

  • For me, Professor Godsil has been a tremendously positive influence in my life. I am a Chemistry major, therefore I rarely feel comfortable exercising my creative abilities. With the help of his passion and enthusiasm, Mike's courses allowed me to explore my artistic education while providing me with constructive guidance. When I enrolled in my first photography course, I anticipated it to be my last; but my experiences in Mike's courses compelled me to continue beyond just an introductory understanding in photography. Outside of the classroom, Mike has provided me with immense support as both a mentor and a long-lasting friend.

    Shelly Bhanot

    Chemistry major, Gender and Women's Studies minor

  • Michael Godsil has contributed in no small way to my Knox education. By working closely with him for the past few years, I have come to know him as a reliable, knowledgeable and concerned professor and friend. He is representative of everything I was promised as a Knox student: meaningful interactions with knowledgeable, concerned professors, actively engaged in the task of teaching.

    Veronica Kehoss

    Studio Art and Economics major

  • Mike teaches you how to think, process and learn, then do it all over again till the result is something you never imagined you could do. He recognizes talent and potential, and rewards hard work and perseverance. I will never forget the lessons learned; he went from being my strictest professor to my mentor and good friend, and will be for years to come. An excellent professor, one of the most caring individuals at Knox, and an excellent photographer!

    Farah Ahed, Karachi, Pakistan

    Anthropology/Sociology major, Photojournalism minor

  • Mike is more than a Knox professor; he became my mentor and friend. He genuinely cares about the students he teaches and often forms long lasting relationships with them. He encourages students to explore new types of photography and is always there for them if they need assistance, whether academically, socially or personally. He was one of the most caring and enthusiastic of my professors at Knox and I could not have asked for a better teacher, mentor and true friend.

    Evan Temchin

    Visual Communications major, Journalism minor, College Honors in Documentary Photography & Photojournalism