Light Work to present panel about art school

Light Work to present panel about art schoolApril 15, 2008Jessica Heckmanjhheckma@syr.edu

A lecture and panel discussion will be presented on Thursday, April 24, from 5-6 p.m. in Watson Theater at Light Work. “Art School: A Group Crit” will be moderated by Doug Dubois from the Department of Transmedia in the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) and will include three artists and educators — Parsons Lecturer in Photography Bill Gaskins and VPA professors Sarah McCoubrey and Holly Greenberg.

The concept for this panel and lecture was directly inspired by an article that appeared in Art in America in May 2007. The article, titled “Art Schools: A Group Crit,” featured a series of essays about a range of issues confronting today’s booming art schools and university art departments. According to the article, “The education of artists has become a growing topic of conversation, both in the media and within academia itself, and many educators and students feel the field is in a transformative phase. Driving this conversation are both larger issues — such as technology, elitism, cultural diversity and globalization — and more art-specific ones, such as the runaway growth of the contemporary art market.”

The organizers hope the exhibition and panel will generate a dialogue among teachers, students and administrators about the past, present and future of training artists and also create a forum in which students, artists and scholars can offer their divergent views. The event is funded by a Division of Student Affairs UEncounter Grant.

Light Work is currently featuring an exhibition titled “Educating Artists: Photography Programs in Review.” This invitational juried exhibition was also inspired by the article in Art in America and features photographs by undergraduate and graduate students from colleges and art programs around the world, including students from VPA’s Department of Transmedia. The work was submitted by artists and teachers of photography who have participated in Light Work’s programs.

The panel discussion is free and open to the public. Paid parking is available in the Marion Lot and Booth Garage.

Light Work is a nonprofit, artist-run organization dedicated to the support of artists working in photography and electronic media. Light Work is a member of the Coalition of Museum and Art Centers at Syracuse University (CMAC). For more information, contact Light Work at (315) 443-1300 or jhheckma@syr.edu.