For the second year, Ballroom Marfa presented its free, week-long DJ Camp.

This five-day program was a hands-on experience, with students learning directly on DJ equipment and experimenting with mixing songs and sampling music. The classes were designed to engage the imagination of students from all musical backgrounds, and throughout the week our instructor highlighted other aspects of DJ culture, such as dance and art. While getting practical experience on the equipment is a core component of the camp, the instructor also presented DJing as an art form with a rich culture and history, with portions of each class covering the history of the DJ and  music theory. During the week, students created DJ personas and design posters for display at the final event.

Our instructor DJ Faith Gay brings with her a strong musical background plus expertise as a visual artist. Faith received her BFA from The University of Texas in 1995 and has exhibited widely at D Berman Gallery, Austin, TX; Austin Museum of Art/Laguna Gloria, Austin, TX; McClain Gallery, Houston, TX; and Arlington Museum of Art, Arlington, TX.

Faith believes that music is a social instigator –- and its power to inspire, direct, and incite made it impossible for her to ignore the call of the DJ booth. Her love of music and art have been so intertwined for the last 12 years that she finds it hard to separate where the DJ starts and the artist beginsFor her, designing and adjusting musically to an event, club, or crowd takes just as much subtlety and orchestration as a site-specific installation.

In 2011, students useda large homemade Spin-Art machine to decorate salvaged vinyl albums. 

The camp concluded with a free public performance by the student DJs at the Capri event space.

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