School of Visual Arts

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Browsing School of Visual Arts by Content Type "Conference proceeding"

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    Critical Inclusion: Valuing Student Perspectives, Queering Practice, and Hybridizing Pedagogy for 4D Media Critique
    Weaver, Rachel L. (Www.Macaart.Org, 2016-10-28)
    Over the past decade, time-based visual media has attained the same ubiquity that the still image has enjoyed for the past 150 years. In this deliriously-mediated present, guiding students to use 4D media’s evolving languages of critique requires teaching strategies that address the strengths and blind spots of digital natives. Most undergraduate, internet-savvy students are natural critics of 4D media, and thoughtful educators will facilitate critique by valuing and harnessing these existing interests and useful perspectives. Vernacular media forms become an important and playful entryway to close looking and parsing. Colloquial and familiar viewing habits are eventually transformed by adoption of new terminology and critical angles. Situating contemporary 4D media works within greater art and design history is an extremely important way to effectively broaden perspectives and generate new critical conversations. Reading, continuous discussion, and exposure to artists, media works, history, and theory in the context of the studio classroom is just as important as 4D studio practice itself. Unless we are lucky enough to teach at an institution with a media+art history course, the 4D media educator is often saddled with the hybrid role of both studio practitioner and pioneering contemporary art/media/technology historian. This challenge, however great, is also an opportunity unique to our discipline. The 4D media educator must remain chameleon-like in negotiation of critical viewpoints, looking across disciplines, and responding swiftly to the unending torrent of hybridized art forms, expanding design needs, and emerging media technologies.
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    Fostering Creativity in an Educational Environment
    Dee, Meaghan A. (2016-05-31)
    Many believe creativity is something you’re born with, rather than a skill you can learn. But, being a professor of graphic design, I believe teachers can and should foster creative thinking, regardless of the subject matter. Every child is naturally imaginative, but as they grow up they’re taught to conform. One way to encourage students to uncover their originality is to build an environment that is free of judgment. To be creative is to be abnormal, in that it requires thinking in unique ways. In order to be comfortable with artistic expression, students must feel free to make “mistakes” — they must even be encouraged to do so. We’ve all heard the mantra “fail faster.” There’s no way to know if an idea will be successful until you try it out, so the more you can explore, the better. But this might be easier said than done, as fear of failure can be paralyzing. Twyla Tharp, in The Creative Habit, combats her fears by writing them down and physically destroying them. For any creative person trying to get “unstuck,” this sort of ritual can be a first step in getting moving on a project. Under this line of thinking, helping creativity flourish should be integrated into every graphic design course. I focus on creativity in my curriculum by implementing mini exercises, discussions, and by approaching each project with a unique methodology – so students have a chance to learn and make in diverse ways.
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    Intersections, International Symposium of Electronic Arts 2018, Durban, ZA
    Drum, Meredith (2020-06-26)
    My paper, Mediated Natures - Speculative Futures and Justice Panel, was accepted, through a peer-review process, as part of the academic conference of Intersections, International Symposium of Electronic Arts 2018, Durban, South Africa.
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    re[visualizing] sound
    Dee, Meaghan A. (2016-08-27)
    In the words of Robert Bringhurst: “writing is the solid form of language.” In addition to capturing the human language, designers and typographers also face the challenge of documenting other sounds, such as music and the language of animals. How do designers visually capture these other heard experiences in a meaningful way? In this presentation, I would explore various examples of codified systems that visually display sound with the use of typographic forms and symbols. One example is a design that I created for Oceans Initiative, where the visuals were created by playing a whale song into a cymatic visualizer – and while at first glance the poster appears to be abstract, in reality each form corresponds to a different musical note. Throughout history humans have found many ways of visually documenting sound. While this is primarily done through the use of letterforms, many other visualizations are common. One example is the musical score, which is a very accurate portrayal of sound, as it takes into consideration the loudness, length, and tone of sound. And yet in the realm of design there is often there is a disconnect between the sounds we hear and the designs we see. Warren Lehrer was among a handful of artists and designers to break ground in this area. Lehrer, in his piece “French Fries,” experimented with how to convey multiple voices in a book design by assigning each character their own typeface. More recently, many artists and designers use data collection systems to record accurate data and produce beautiful works of data visualization.
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    Transforming food waste into natural pigments: Raising community school awareness of food waste recycling opportunities through co-design methods
    Choi, Jung Yoon; Okumura, Hiromi; Kennedy, Brook; Lee, Chang Hee; Gendell, Avery (DRS Digital Library, 2024-06)
    In a world grappling with ongoing food scarcity, the issue of food waste in US school cafeterias remains a pressing concern, often without sufficient attention given to recycling. School communities play a pivotal role in shaping behaviors, as individuals are significantly influenced by their peers' actions and opinions, making them more open to positive reinforcement. This research explores design opportunity to raise awareness and encourage food waste recycling behaviors through a co-design approach. Students are invited to participate in the interactive exhibitions, where they learn and provide feedback about the pigment-making process from food waste using a toolkit for art painting. Through sharing their experiences, students help spread awareness and foster a commitment to recycling behaviors among their peers. Engaging students as active participants in these activities shows promise as a strategy to increase awareness of food waste recycling opportunities and empower school communities to support circular food systems.
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    Video Art and Indigenous Collaborations
    Weaver, Rachel L. (Department Of Visual Design, Universidad De Caldas, And Isea International, 2017-06-13)
    A presentation of collaborations with indigenous groups harnessing moving image media in non-commercial capacities and for creative revelation of struggle. Weaver has worked as a facilitator of creative decolonizing workshops within indigenous communitites. She has co-created experimental oral history and ecological documentary projects with Alaska Native groups, and is currently partnering with Maya communities on media art projects addressing struggles for tribal land rights in Belize.