ARED 3070: Course Reflection

Ironic that I am writing this final blog post now, as I sit on North Campus watching from a distance at yet another intervention project I created. This time it's my sculpture project, a voting poll that ask people passing by if they notice monuments daily. After listening to a lecture by Kirk Savage about the role monuments play in our everyday life I was encouraged to build this poll out of curiosity. Kirk argues that we don't always notice monuments, in fact they become invisible to us until one day they're gone or changed.

A lot of things can become invisible to us, and I feel like I am waking up to see for the first time, through this course and others. Before this it was easy to get my voice heard, easy to make my mark on the world, and easy for me to not think twice about most things. This class has challenged and encouraged me to think outside of myself in ways I didn't really know that I was capable. I don't know what kind of social practice stars aligned to make such a presence in my life this semester but they have made their mark. Through these projects I have seen what my ethical responsibility as an art educator really entails. Making art is not easy or simple, making art that asks for interaction from the community is a whole different ball game.

Of the three social practice projects I have done this semester, none have gone as planned, though their impact has not gone unnoticed to me. In all of these projects I have noticed that my goal has been to provide a voice to those who don't always get the chance to share their own, as a future art educator I realized this goal is also one of my career.

Students are marginalized, I learned that first hand from my practicum experience at a high school when we were advocating to give them a voice. It is easiest for everyone if the students go through high school without ever saying anything, just following the motions like all of the classes before them. Teachers seem to get complacent, administrators get comfortable, and routine sets in. After seeing how much work my students put into planning a socially engaged artwork that invited administrators and board members to join them in the lunchroom for a discussion about the school lunch it was apparent to me. When this art project was shut down I began to connect the dots. Maybe these things that really push for something new and something better, are never met with open arms. Like our visual culture intervention which faced every type of bureaucratic red tape imaginable. We struggled with planning our project in a way that carefully followed the rules of the homeless coalition and then after implementing our stickers were quickly taken down.

Through these interventions I have tried to use my power and ability to make an impact for those who cannot and doing so has reasserted the notion that it is a responsibility that I will happily bear. It has not been easy this semester doing projects that put myself at risk but perhaps it is worth the risk if it can change someones future or impact others in anyway.

Evaluating the role of visual culture in our society has reminded me that images and art have and will always be a determining factor of culture so why not use it to make a change.

Best,

Morgan