“Come in! Sit down, or stand if you like. Let’s make some stuff together!”
Teaching is my art. When you enter my classroom, you might see a group huddled over a tablet looking up how to build a bridge, another gathering materials to make a sculpture about connections, and a few individuals working with headphones on, using paint or pencils. I am dressed in my lab coat hustling from one group to the next asking questions. In my classroom/studio I work with my co-learners to ask questions and seek answers, to pose problems and find solutions. “Tell me about this… what are you seeing? What is important? Why is it important?” My lab coat is a tool covering my clothes and providing pockets, it is also a message, “we are here to experiment”. The goal of my practice is to help my students to make meaningful connections between themselves and the world. My classroom/studio is a place for growth, collaboration, exploration and discovery. We are centered in what is valuable: what is important to one individual or group may not be to others. We work together to find topics, issues and techniques that spark curiosity. My students are experts in their own experiences and I am learning as much from them as they are from me. I am building an environment where relationships, trust and growth can occur. Creating this kind of space requires a flexible and creative tool kit. We work in themes. I curate my classroom to build context, connections and community. Our work together is as much about valuing each other as it is about making art. My art resides in the gathering of tools, pointing to resources, easing collaborative relations, facilitating critical responses and reflection, and pushing for my student collaborators and myself to grow. Along the learning path, we are collecting evidence of work in portfolios, photographing, documenting and storing, lists, resources, references, sketches and finished work, so when it comes time for reflection we are reflecting on our entire process as students and teachers. While I do make art on my own, I believe that the art classroom is the ideal environment for developing the inquiry based skills necessary for participation in a democratic society. The art classroom is a place where students can connect to their interests and develop critical processes for life-long learning. My teaching is my practice, as a socially engaged artist working for change.
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○ Share your Qualifying Review question and plans you have for your final year at Moore in thesis writing and thesis exhibition/project.
What does it mean when teaching is a process-based dematerialized art practice? How can teaching as an art practice manifest in the traditional school art classroom? Here are some questions I have that relate to teaching as artistic practice: What does a classroom look like when it is a space specifically for making by others? How are issues of power addressed? What does documentation of work look-like? How is authorship addressed? How, or indeed can, a classroom where these ideals are in play exist in a traditional school setting? During the next few months, I will be working to find answers to those questions. Specifically I plan to explore both the physical and the theoretical aspect of the classroom as a space for the production of other’s work. I will be looking at models of classrooms where students are recognized as experts on their own experiences. I will also be looking at pedagogical methods in which the teacher’s role is coach and organizer. In my experience as an educator, I am familiar with a number of physical classroom structures and their advantages and disadvantages. This year I will be creating a plan for my ideal democratic classroom environment and my pedagogical ideals. I plan to develop a manifesto/promise of how I can live those ideals within the limits of my environment. ○ How do you plan to use your MFA in Progress exhibition as an opportunity to work towards those goals of the final work, or to explore other concerns? My MFA in progress exhibit will focus on my role as coordinator of the art making of others, especially during a time when we cannot be together physically. Over the summer I worked with a small group of students, through Zoom, to create collaborative art works. I sent out a call on social media to gather students of middle school age, 4 parents responded that their students were interested. Our group met twice a week for about an hour. Each session we met we talked about the work we had done previously and what to do in the future. We used web-based, computer and mobile technology to create collaborative works. Each week I would scale back my leadership of the conversations and my input to allow for student leadership. The student’s collectively made 16 pieces of art which are on display in a virtual gallery on my website. Some of it will also be on display during my MFA in progress show. I will also be displaying a work in which I solicited knit and crochet pieces via social media. My role is the action of joining together these pieces using gold yarn in reverence to the Japanese art of Kintsugi, where broken pottery is repaired using gold, silver or platinum in order to recognize the healing of the object. Here I act as artist-curator using my skills to draw attention to the connections of individual artists. I am currently exploring ideas of authorship in collaborative work and issues of power. What is “mine” in the work I am showing? How do I draw maximum attention to the work of others while still recognizing my own labor? How do I ethically display the work of others? ○ Share some of the themes/Doctrines/Values that inform your work and creative process. What are some of the ethical considerations, audience engagements or social impact goals that your work has or will be confronting? There are several common themes and thoughts emerging from my research. One is that a classroom is a learning community and communities must be built. A classroom community must have a foundation of trust, safety and mutual respect in order to be most effective. These elements must be worked for and are every bit, if not more, important than lesson objectives. Another theme, the classroom is a space for making by others and the teacher’s job is to create that space. The teacher provides the space, the materials, the resources, the connections and the questions, the student does the work. I have also noted that the classroom requires a multidisciplinary approach to learning. No subject should be approached without connection to others and the world. The teacher in this classroom makes the connections to other teachers, subjects, community resources and beyond. And finally, the process of critical reflection is a recurring theme in my reading. Reflection, critique and refinement are necessary in every artist’s practice and in every teacher’s practice. The classroom is not a vacuum. The world is always changing and the classroom must as well. My explorations and research are leading me toward the idea of a declaration of pedagogical independence and teaching philosophy that manifests itself as a manifesto or pledge. By necessity it will contain discussions of ethics, of accessibility, authorship, ownership, and power. It will also contain hard won experience, successes and failures, and guidelines for my practice as I go forward. Most importantly, the manifesto must address reflection and critique as an essential part of teaching as an artistic practice. Teaching is by it’s very nature a format for social engagement. The relationships and influence that teachers and students have on one another cannot be measured in a year. An art teacher often has the opportunity to work with students for several years and the teacher and student can experience growth together. I have been a great teacher and I have been a terrible teacher and I have learned and grown because of both. In my research and my creative pursuits going forward I hope to refine my approaches, and continue to try new things in pursuit of being a better teacher, a better artist and a better human being. Emily Elliott
Participatory Art, Pedagogy and Ethics This paper is an exploration of the intersection of participatory art, pedagogy and ethics as they relate to teaching in traditional school settings. I am interested in teaching as an artistic practice which is a participatory art form requiring ethical and pedagogical considerations. I will begin with a brief description of an artistic teaching practice followed by a discussion of participatory art practices combined with ethical considerations and end with a discussion of pedagogical ideals. I believe that teaching is an artistic practice. Practice described by Caroline Woolard is “a way of doing things intentionally on a regular basis to develop an ability or awareness.” It seems obvious to me that teachers are intentional and regular in their application of their trade and if they are good teachers then they are developing their ability. But what about the art? Why and how is teaching an art? Where is the artwork? What is the teacher making? The traditional teacher is making lesson plans, worksheets, curriculum and other class materials, but one would hardly consider that art (or would you?). The artist teacher, of which a vast number of teachers are whether they know it or not, is making the space and the conditions in which student learning can take place. According to Ken Bain, author of What the Best College Teachers Do, the teacher needs to “create a natural critical learning environment”. The creation is of the physical, intellectual, emotional and communal place where deep learning can occur for each individual student regardless of the starting point. Teachers are most often given a roster of students, a handful of supplies and resources, and a classroom and told to teach. The roster usually includes students of varying reading, math and emotional starting points. The art is in the problem solving, creative solution finding and community building that teachers use to be able to effectively teach 30 students who are all at different starting points. Socially engaged artistic practice is, according to Nato Thompson,“participation, sociality and the organization of bodies within a space” which describes perfectly the modern classroom. So, how does a teacher create this critical learning environment? For those answers we look to socially engaged art, pedagogical works and ethics. First I would like to look at participatory art in the art institution by looking at the work and writing of artist Ernesto Pujol. Pujol is a social choreographer, a multidisciplinary performance artist and teacher. According to his guest critic profile on University of Pennsylvania’s website “Ernesto believes that the creative tools of socially engaged cultural producers are more relevant than ever to the sustainability of democracy”. In his work “The Listeners” 16 folks, who had been trained to listen, sat silently in a room and listened to members of the public who came to the exhibition. He selected a room that was slightly secluded and quiet that needed to be sought to be found. He trained his listeners to listen without judgement, and they listened to folks who came for however long they needed to. The piece is used as a “laboratory of an ephemeral listening school” or a model for what is critically necessary in the modern world. Pujol as an artist sets up spaces to create experiences for folks to have and think critically about. “The Listeners” is about the need in our modern society to listen to one another without judgement. This work exists in the context of art institutions but is still a piece of socially engaged art. The key factors of Pujol’s making in this context are his selection of space, the selection of listeners and the training of those listeners. In performative art like “the Listeners” the role of the artist is to set the conditions of the work but the product and effect are up to the individual participants. The art school is another art institution in which community based art lives. In his essay “On the Ground” Pujol addresses the role of the art school as a creator of “the next wave of cultural production”. He calls for art schools to centralize community-based pedagogical experiences as a main part of programming rather than a sidebar. He states “Community-based art places its emphasis on issues, on problem solving through culture, rather than the purity of mediums”. Problem solving, flexibility and interdisciplinary practice are key points for culturally engaged art practices. Pujol also emphasizes the role of the art school as an art institution responsible for the future of art and as such calls for ethical practices and long-term relationships with community partners, which are critical elements in an ethical society. Community or socially engaged art also exists in the context of the community artist in residence. The residency of the artist is usually prescribed by a funding entity for a specific function in a community center or in a school. In more ethical practices of community based art programming, planning for a project is done with the community to be effected. There are group building and trust building aspects to the planning stages and the project clearly benefits the community. In this type of program participants also receive compensation, and work credit for their labor. Community based art practices which are more community centered also try to create long-term impact projects, plans, and connections to outside resources. According to Helicon Collaborative, community based art practices should strive to fulfill certain ethical standards. They list:
One artist whose work exemplifies many of the ethical elements of Helicon Collaborative is Suzanne Lacey. “The Oakland Projects” a series of installations, performances and collaborations with youth in Oakland, CA that lasted from 1991-2001, is one such endeavor. Each project included “an extensive preparation period featuring coalition building, youth development and arts education.”There were connections to community and national organizations, lesson and curriculum planning with local schools and training for teachers. The students involved in these projects were taught all aspects of media development and credited with production. The length and the extent of Lacy’s commitment to these projects and communities exemplifies the principle of long-term impact. In 2017 Artist Jeanne van Heeswijk, along with a team of collaborators, created a series of events, actions and installations called Philadelphia Assembled. The projects were organized around “five principles, or what van Heeswijk terms "atmospheres": Reconstructions, Sovereignty, Futures, Sanctuary, and Movement”. Each “atmosphere” was the result of conversations van Heeswijk had with people from various parts of Philadelphia about the character of the city. Philadelphia Assembled is a communally authored collection of works about reimagining histories and context for a more inclusive narrative. Each atmosphere was approached by a group of collaborators and decisions were made communally about what projects and results were needed. The website includes a section for each atmosphere which has a complete list of the local participant/creators. Each recognition in this series of individuals and their humanity is an act of ethical praxis. According to Risë Wilson “whenever our work as artists bumps up against the real lives of people beyond ourselves, which is always, ethics come into play”. When working in a classroom as artists folks need to check their motives and their abilities in order to remain an ethical contributor to the classroom environment. For example, if a teacher is looking at the classroom only as a source of income or self-promotion they are not likely to act ethically in that environment and may cause damage and misunderstanding. An artist who is acting ethically in the classroom setting should be aware and transparent about roles of power, ideas, intentions, privileges, assumptions, abilities and connections that they bring to the classroom. Absent that honesty and transparency the necessary trust required to do work that is of value to the classroom community will not exist. And who is to determine what is of value to the classroom community? For those answers we can look to Paulo Freire. Freire writes “a pedagogy (which) must be forged with not for the oppressed”. The oppressed in the classroom context are the students and the teacher (who is also oppressed) is an ally or resource. In a school this means that the determinations of what and how to teach are made by the teacher and the students. Freire states “The starting point for organizing the program content of education or political action must be the present, existential, concrete situation, reflecting the aspirations of the people”. A curriculum simply imposed on students does not lead to learning outcomes which are as long lasting or impactful as ones in which students have a voice. A co-determined curriculum provides authenticity for students and teachers. Once a curriculum is co-determined it is then necessary to engage in deep and generative dialogue. Authentic dialogue requires trust between teacher and students and between student and cohort. This trust is a product of time, work and transparency between the parties about positioning and power dynamics in the classroom. These ethical issues are similar to those addressed earlier in relation to other socially engaged art practices. Freire calls for the elimination of the “banking concept of education”, in which the student is the empty receptacle for knowledge imparted by the teacher. This concept eliminates the idea that the student has anything to contribute to the conversation, the teacher is the alpha and the omega. In a classroom whose model is more like those of the ethical socially engaged art practices, the student is as knowledgeable as the teacher and the teacher acknowledges and respects that knowledge base. Christopher Emdine calls this co-teaching and student as expert. While some issues of power are inevitable in a classroom environment a recognition of the validity of the knowledge of students as a form of expertise is a necessary element to an ethical art practice classroom . In the pursuit of authenticity in the classroom Freire proposes problem-posing education. He states “Students, as they are increasingly posed with problems relating to themselves in the world and with the world, will feel increasingly challenged and obliged to respond to that challenge.” This is the same type of authenticity necessary in socially engaged art practices. Each problem needs to be chosen by the community and the individual in order for it to have maximum impact on student learning. In pursuing and investigating in problem-posing education individuals come to view the world and themselves as “in transformation”. The transformation is a product of constant reflection and dialogue during the process of learning in response to reality and pushes creative thinking and problem solving. The role of problem-posing learning and critical reflection in socially engaged art practice and in the art practice classroom are essential to their existence. Underlying all of these propositions is a need for authentic mutual respect and care in order for learning or a project to occur. Paulo Freire said “Dialogue cannot exist, however, in the absence of a profound love for the world and for people”. The teacher, in the case of the classroom, the artist, in the case of the SEA environments need to approach their collaborators with the intent to be a coordinator of the work to be done as opposed to the foreman. Suzanne Lacy’s work with The Oakland Projects referred to this as coalition building. An approach as an authority or overseer will limit the usefulness of the projects for the participants. As coordinators of learning we must trust the intent and abilities of our community. Christopher Emdin calls this “reality pedagogy”. In reality pedagogy the participant is met at their individual starting point and the trajectory of that individual is determined cooperatively. The coordinator becomes the learner, about the participant and their context, the participant is the expert. This approach to working creates a space where participants are intellectually, psychologically and emotionally recognized and are most likely to take on challenges and grow. Each of the preceding examples of socially engaged art, whether at the institutional level or the community level, faces significant ethical considerations. The questions which arise in socially engaged art practices are similar to those that need to be addressed in the art practice classroom.
In conclusion, I believe teaching is a socially engaged artistic practice. An art practice classroom is one where the role of the teacher is that of collaborator with the students. The teacher is also a learner and the learner is also a teacher. Each individual is met at their own starting point and is considered an expert in their own experience. In an artistic practice classroom projects and goals are made according to individual need and desire and curriculum is designed to meet them. Relationships and trust are built and worked on as a natural necessity for collaborative work. The teacher works to facilitate the work of the student, make connections outside of the classroom and seek resources to support student development. The artistic practice classroom exists for long-haul learning, one lesson may last a month or a year or continue into the next year. In an ideal environment the teacher in an artistic practice classroom would be supported by an administration whose role was also facilitator of student and faculty development. Not every environment is ideal, therefore teachers in an artistic practice classroom may need to be a bit revolutionary to support student growth. Vive la revolution! For as long as I can remember I have been drawn to process. As a child, the process of doing, problem solving and play. Once a process was performed and understood I lost interest and moved on to another. As a young adult, my fascination with process became about pushing a process in a new direction. In college, I was a photo lab nerd, I used alternative emulsion processes and fixed them onto materials for which they weren’t intended, like screens, wood, woven objects. My processes were often unsuccessful, but they led to a deeper understanding. I also used traditional fiber methods to create three-dimensional abstract objects. The processing of the wool from the sheep to the loom and object became a bit of an obsession. As a teacher, the learning process became paramount. How do you go about teaching a specific set of skills? How do you teach problem solving? How do teach about the art making process, from idea, to fruition? How do you teach higher order thinking with 5 year olds? These are the processes which have occupied the majority of my adult life. In the past few years, I have returned to my own creative process. I learned to knit in 2006, but the process of making wearable pieces did not satisfy me for very long. I soon began to push the process a bit farther. Altering patterns, inventing my own patters and designs.I made my first knit “painting” in 2012.For the first experiment I used left over yarn and random colors. That led to a larger piece which adhered to a specific color scheme. As I created more “paintings” I refined my process further. Larger pieces, planned pieces, more complex interactions within the image. I began to move my painting out from the canvas to invade the third dimension. My works began to drip and jump off of the canvas and grow into or out of the wall. I combined painting with the knitting and minimized the use of the canvas. With each experiment my process matured and showed more purpose and meaning. The series “thought”, begun in 2016, shows my thinking both in the creative process and the emotional process. This series is on-going, composed of 5 pieces thus far. Each one more dynamic than the last. I intend to continue this series, as my thought process evolves, during my pursuit of a Masters of Fine Art. I hope to learn new processes to meld into my own. I yearn to be in a community of artists. Artists who are processing their own ideas and, through intensive dialogue and collaboration, be a part of mine. I look forward top being in an environment where I can grow and develop my own thinking and art-making. I want to shift the focus of my work from my own internal processes to those of modern society. I hope to engage with a larger community through both art making and cultural interconnection. My goal, in pursuing a Masters of Fine Arts degree, is to enlarge my practice in connecting with communities of all kinds, in order to make art which more completely reflects the human experience. I will be pursuing my interest in processes and finding new ways to integrate them with the modern cultural processes. The MFA is a stepping stone on a path of life-long learning and creating. |
AuthorEmily Elliott is a driven art educator with twenty years of experience. She has taught all levels, from infant to adult, in subjects ranging from rock climbing to health to fiber art. She considers herself a teacher first and an art specialist second. Emily holds a B.S. in Art Education from Kutztown University. She is in the MFA in Socially Engaged Art program, where she is focusing on teaching as an artistic practice. Archives
October 2020
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