Statement of Praxis
I am committed to equity and social justice in the classroom. I believe that trust and relationship building are fundamental to providing positive art making experiences for young people, and I use a blend of individual and group projects to foster real relationships and mutual opportunities for growth. I have developed curriculum that aims to break taboos regarding public spaces, "acceptable" behavior and the use of found/discarded objects. Ultimately, I prioritize facilitating fun and affirming spaces for young artists! Click here to read my full teaching philosophy.
Work with Narratio Fellows in 2023
In summer of 2023, I was fortunate to work with the Narratio Cohort of Richmond, Virginia. Narratio is an art and poetry program that supports community building for Refugees and newcomors to Richmond, Virginia and Syracuse, New York. As part of our work we used collage to intervene on objects in the Met Collection. This culminated in an artists book and gallery exhibit. Here is a link to more information.
Rethinking Tradition
Rethinking Tradition is a unit I taught to fourth graders at Pole Green Elementary in Mechanicsville, Viriginia. I used the work of contemporary artists Kehinde Wiley, Kukuli Velarde, and Samira Idroos to introduce concepts such as tradition and cultural hybridity. I had students collage canonical artworks and make clay sculptures based off of rethinking what we consider "museum-worthy art."
Contemporary Sculpture for Non-Artists
This is a textbook/zine I produced on the topic of contemporary sculpture for non-artists. I explore art and provide prompts from the standpoint of Principles of Relatability (borrowed from Olivia Gude's Principles of Possibility), which I define as Humor, Mental Health, and Uno-Reverse. Here is a PDF. For a hard copy, feel free to email me!
Multilingual Art Education
While working in Roanoke, Virginia, I was an interpreter, translating in Spanish and in Arabic. During my time in Los Angeles, I interpreted for a math class of mostly Spanish speakers. Both of these experiences as well as my personal background contribute to my interest and commitment to multilingual art education. This is a subject I am still researching, and I am continuously re-evaluating my own teaching methods. This summer, I edited a zine through AMP (a local art education publication) on multilingual art education. Click here for the pdf! I then implemented this curriculum at Skipwith Elementary school for a fifth grade class.
Found Objects
This summer, I was fortunate to teach several art intensives at the Visual Arts Center of Richmond, Virginia. While there I taught a class on making art with found objects. I adapted this class for both 6-8 year olds and 9-11 year olds. We discussed sustainability, concepts like assemblage and re-appropriation, as well as artists like Betye Saar and Joseph Cornell. I am very proud of the work that students did in this course.
