Posted by Rachel Kim and Julia Leef
Christopher Weigl, a Skidmore alumnus from the class of 2011 and a graduate student at Boston University, was killed in a collision with a tractor-trailer while riding his bike on Thursday morning, Dec. 6, at Commonwealth Avenue and St. Paul Street in Boston, Mass.
The 23-year-old was hit by the 16-wheel truck at 8:30 a.m., according to BU Today, when the truck made a wide right turn onto St. Paul Street. He was wearing a helmet and biking in a marked bike lane. The Boston Police Department is currently investigating the accident.
Weigl, who was in the midst of obtaining his master's degree in photojournalism at the College of Communication, was president of the Photo Club at Skidmore and served as the photography editor for The Skidmore News.
In 2009 Weigl, along with Keith Petri '10 who was president of the Photo Club at the time, created the Skidmore Spur Charitable Calendar. As president the following year, Weigl continued the yearly tradition. The successful and provocative calendar, which has raised over $3000 for charity will be dedicated to Weigl this year.
"Chris was my mentor in photography at Skidmore. He was a really hard worker and really involved club members like me Lauren. He was amazingly talented," said Melissa Cohn '13. Cohn and Lauren Elsner '13 are currently co-presidents of the Photo Club.
"Chris, to me, was a friend, an inspiration, but also my mentor. His work was unbelievable and he was such an incredible person. I want him to be remembered at Skidmore," Elsner said. Elsner, along with the photography club, plans to hold a vigil in memoriam of Weigl on Tuesday Dec. 11.
Weigl's photos were also featured at the Communications department, which nominated him employee of the year when he was in his senior year. He served a freelance internship at the Panorama magazine and was a freelance photographer for Metrowest Daily News.
"From the wedding day to a simple human interest story, the capture of emotion in a split-second is a truly powerful, almost magical, ability. The seduction of photojournalism lies in its translation of a 4D space to a 2D plane. How does the photographer interpret that change? What decisions does he or she consciously make in capturing this story?" Weigl said on his website.
A vast array of his works can be seen on the site, which includes many photos from his trips to Cambodia, Thailand, Italy, New Zealand and Istanbul, Turkey.
"Chris was by far the most talented photographer I knew personally," Savannah Grier '12, who also served as art director on The Skidmore News, said. "Beyond that, he was just such a kind, warm-hearted perosn. I feel so lucky to have been able to work with him on The Skidmore News. I have always considerd our club to be like a family, and so losing Chris is losing a part of my Skidnews family."