Watch the Webinar
This past semester saw a swift transition to remote arts instruction for many teachers. Amidst feelings of isolation and anxiety about the future, teachers and students had to adjust to a new way of learning and teaching. As humans so often do in times of crisis, our communities rose to the challenge. Teachers and students worked together to learn new technology; resources for remote teaching were shared throughout the art community; and genuine efforts were made to maintain a sense of community despite the imposed social distance. As we look towards the fall, and continued remote instruction for many schools, arts instructors still need a space to hear others’ experiences, share, and gather resources on navigating online arts instruction. With this new webinar series, a2ru hopes to provide that space.
In this special two-part series, we will be bringing together panelists who may not share disciplines, but are connected by their unique approach to the difficulties posed by the shift to remote and hybrid classes. Part I features three instructors who teach in fields that people see as inextricably linked to the “in-person” experience: Ceramics, Glass, and Experiential Learning. These panelists will offer practical strategies for how to teach studio-based classes online as well as transferring the value of experiential learning to remote education. They will also discuss how instructors can humanize the experience of teaching art online; what students really need from art education; the ultimate goals of experiential learning; and some of the opportunities and benefits that have presented themselves as instructors look for alternative teaching resources.
Moderator
Carole Woodlock is the a2ru liaison at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) in the College of Art and Design. An artist living and working in Rochester New York, Woodlock grew up in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Western Canada. Woodlock’s experimental films have won many awards and have screened at over 70-juried national and international festivals. Investigating notions of landscape, identity, and memory, Woodlock researches digital and analogue practices in contemporary art. Her recent artwork and writings developed out of a series of intensive solo 100+ mile walks through England’s northern countryside, specifically Yorkshire and the North York Moors. A full Professor in the School of Photography, Woodlock seeks to foster an arts-integrated approach to her teaching, mentoring, and scholarship.
Alex Lobos focuses in design, technology and emotional attachment as means to elevate quality of life. He is Professor and Graduate Director of Industrial Design at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and a Research Fellow Emeritus at Autodesk. At RIT, Alex leads a top-ranking graduate program focused on interdisciplinary collaboration, accessible technology and applied design research. Alex and his students have collaborated with Autodesk, AT&T, Colgate-Palmolive, General Electric, Makerbot, Staples, Stryker, Unilever and others, in projects covering topics such as learning futures, generative design, digital fabrication, sustainable behaviors, and everyday living. Alex has been juror for International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA), International Housewares competition and Bienal Ibero-americana de Diseño. He is a member of Autodesk University’s advisory council, holds two international patents and has been an industrial designer for General Electric. Alex grew up in Guatemala and moved to the U.S. as a Fulbright scholar. He holds a MFA from the University of Notre Dame and a BID from Universidad Rafael Landivar.
David Schnuckel is an artist whose work thinks through glass, a writer who examines issues related to glass, and an educator who challenges his students to seek provocative solutions to conceptual problems by way of glass.