RUSTON, La. — Louisiana Tech University’s School of Design is presenting an exhibition that reflects on student experiences from a recent study abroad program in Japan.
The show, Japan Unpacked: Recollections of Study Abroad June 2025, is on view through Sept. 16 in the Bertha and Moffett Galleries at the F. Jay Taylor Visual Arts Center.
Seventeen students participated in the two-week trip over the summer, visiting Tokyo, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Hakone, and Kamakura. The itinerary included the Studio Ghibli Museum, the Edo-Tokyo Open Air Architecture Museum, and a range of historic and contemporary sites.
“As a designer, it felt like a reset,” said student Emily Leibowitz. “Being in a new visual landscape challenged me to slow down and truly see. The trip pulled me out of the monotony of my daily routine and into a space where small details carried meaning.”
The program was led by faculty members Nicole Duet and Bailey Craighead. Students kept sketchbooks and documented their experiences through photographs, drawings, and collected objects.
“This exhibition reflects what happens when students are fully immersed in a new culture,” Duet said. “Their sketchbooks, photographs, and artworks reveal not just what they saw in Japan, but how it shifted the way they see.”
The exhibition is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission is free.