Guest Blogger Laura Reeder!

Contemporary Art and Social Justice in Seattle

It is impossible to begin my Seattle NAEA story without first describing what it is like outside of the conference center. Sascha and I found a great boutique hotel (moorehotel.com) that has a view of the sound with ships, mountains, and sunsets composing new variations each day. Wednesday we had BBQ Salmon at Pike Place, Thursday it was Sushi in Belltown after spending time in the (Frank Gehry) Experience Music Project.  Oh yes, and spring is HERE. Flowers are blooming in the multi-tiered gardens!

Despite with this tempting environment, it was a pleasure to head indoors to the conference where in the first day alone, my head was filled with so many inspirations that I list them as impressions instead of trying to describe it thoroughly…so here goes:

-         -  Marit Dewhurst, Kristin Congdon, and Kimberly Powell spoke my language when they urged us to consider deeper research into social justice and community-activism;
-         -  I bypassed workshops in Dale Chihuly, Bourdieu, and Digital DIY to attend the Best Practice Lecture presented by Dr. Rolling. He inspired us all to layer our own curriculum methodologies through: thinking in a material, thinking in a language, and thinking through a context…warning us against “methodolatry” where we get stuck on one patented approach to research;
-         -  Contemporary Art was a HUGE topic for the entire day and I now have a repertoire of new artists whom I admire for their post-post-whatever approaches to art as an engaged experience. This speaks so brilliantly to the SU Art Ed way of life. We compared the works of Banksy to graffiti artists in Pompeii, we transcended history with the witty works of Phurba Namgay, and Herrel Fletcher from Portland (look him up!) is my new personal hero;
-         -  Kathie and I sat in on an INTENSE and informative “Getting Hired in Higher Ed” session (standing room only) where we were indoctrinated into the world of job talks and academic-ese. Looking for a career as a professor? Just ask us…we now have the bible in our hands;
-          - The most touching moment of the day for me was the sneak preview of the Culture as Commons: Contemporary Arts and Social Justice Issues in the Classroom (2011) book that will be printed and in our hands this October. Dr. Bey and Dr. Rolling are contributors and as part the cast of rock stars (Olivia Gude, Graeme Sullivan, etc.) that each briefly shared their own perspectives on the works of other artists through the lens of arts learning, they were poetic, fresh, and empathetic.

There is not room enough here for all of the impressions from the first day…but it gives you a peek into the depth of learning that is possible…I hope my brain can survive Friday, Saturday, and Sunday…oh yes, we begin with Mark Dion as brain-opener in the morning!