I teach at the School of Visual Arts in NYC, in three different departments: Art History, Visual and Critical Studies, and Fine Arts. I've been a Visiting Artist at a number of different schools, including Tyler, the Boston Museum School, Drew University, University of Mississippi at Oxford, and others.
Here's a quick description of the classes I teach at SVA:
Foundation Drawing (Honors program and Visual and Critical Studies): In the fall, we focus on basic skills and drawing from observation in pencil, walnut ink, and watercolor. In the spring, we get to be more creative and conceptual, and expand the notion of drawing to include animation, performance, and book-making. This is a six-hour studio class open to freshmen in the Honors program and in the Visual and Critical Studies Department.
Under the Influence: Altered States and Art History: This once-a-week, three-hour lecture class focuses on mental illness, and alcohol and drug use as inspirations for the creation of art throughout history. We explore the work of both “outsider” artists (starting with the works included in the Prinzhorn collection) and then expand the discussion to include “insider” artists who have openly discussed the influence of these altered states on their work. Open to all undergraduates at the School of Visual Arts.
Understanding Kitsch: This is a once-a-week, three-hour art history lecture course. Starting in the mid-1800s, we trace the “history” of kitsch, from the rise of Industrialization to contemporary times, and talk about how things we consider to be “useless” or “in bad taste” reflect the culture in which they were made. Considerable time is spent reading and discussing the works of Greenberg, Collingsworth, Wilde, Sontag, and others. Open to all undergraduates at the School of Visual Arts.
15 Artists/15 Weeks: For this class, I put together a bit of a funky list of artists I felt that undergraduates should know more about… but don’t. So, we spend one three-hour class a week discussing an artist in depth, and giving their work more attention than it would usually get in a survey class. Artists include Jackson Pollock, Joseph Beuys, Donald Judd, Robert Smithson, Mary Kelly, Lynn Hershman Leeson, George Maciunas, and others. Open to all undergraduates at the School of Visual Arts.
Art in Theory, 1900-2000: This is an art history lecture course about the movements, thoughts, ideas, and artists that propelled the creation of art in the twentieth century. With special attention paid to artist’s writings and as well as the potential for art to be a catalyst for social justice, this class provides students with a deeper understanding of our most recent art history. Open to seniors in the Visual and Critical Studies department.