u/Additional_Cellist54

I got accepted into a low residency MFA program and was originally placed in the interdisciplinary stream, but the school recently reached out and suggested I consider switching into their brand new Critical Ecological Practices stream instead. Since it’s the first year the program is running, there aren’t any graduates or former students I can look into yet, which makes the decision feel a bit intimidating.
My work is rooted in photography and installation, especially around memory, place, suburban transformation, disappearing landscapes, and how environments shape perception. I work a lot with mirrored imagery, architecture, agricultural spaces, and site-responsive installation. The faculty specifically said they think my practice aligns strongly with CEP, which surprised me because I’ve always viewed my work as more interdisciplinary/conceptual rather than explicitly “environmental.”
Now I’m trying to figure out if moving into a focused ecology-based stream would deepen my work, or if I’d feel boxed into a framework that’s too narrow over time.
I’m wondering:
If faculty specifically encourage you to switch streams, is that usually a strong sign you should seriously consider it?

Does being part of the first cohort of a new MFA stream sound exciting, or risky?

Has anyone here been accepted into a Critical Ecological Practices / ecology-focused MFA recently? If so, what does your art practice look like?

For people working in ecology-adjacent practices, what kinds of work are you making? Installation? Photography? Research-based work? Social practice? Land-based work?

Do you think photography + installation + memory/place-based work fits naturally within a critical ecology framework?

Is it reasonable to ask the school if I could speak with other accepted students in the CEP cohort before making a final decision?

Part of me feels excited because the themes genuinely overlap with my work, especially around land transformation and changing environments. But another part of me worries about losing the openness of an interdisciplinary stream.
Would genuinely appreciate hearing thoughts from anyone in MFAs or ecology-focused art programs.

I’ve been with my partner (31M) for 7 years, and I’m (31F) at a point where I don’t know what to do anymore.

In the beginning, things were exciting, but now it feels like we don’t even have a real relationship. He comes home, makes a mess, and drinks a bottle of vodka almost every night. We don’t have sex, and when he tries to be intimate, he’s aggressive. I’ve told him it hurts me, and he just says I’m “weak.”

We got engaged on Christmas Day, but it didn’t feel meaningful to me. I had always imagined something private, just the two of us, but he did it in front of his family. His mom and I already have a strained relationship, so it honestly felt more like something done for them than for us, which made it hard for me to feel happy about it.

At this point, I’m just not happy. My life feels like a loop: wake up, clean, go to work, come home, clean, make dinner, go to bed. Repeat. I don’t feel any desire to be intimate with him anymore, and I just feel sad and stuck.

I’m not looking for quick reactions or just “leave him” comments. I really want honest advice from people who have been in long-term relationships like this, especially if you’ve dealt with addiction, resentment, or feeling disconnected. Is this something that can realistically be worked through, or does this sound like something that won’t change?