Co-Editor’s Letter: Contemporary Art

As you read the articles about contemporary art in this issue and share the associated projects with your students, keep in mind that you’re not discarding the teaching of traditional artists and art-making approaches, but rather exposing students to a full range of possibilities at their disposal. The journey of artistic exploration knows no bounds, and by embracing the enormity of creative possibilities, we pave the way for an enriched artistic education.

Put-Together Patterns

When a Sean Scully exhibition came to Philadelphia, I was excited to introduce my students to his bold, large-scale work. The paintings we looked at were massive—wall-sized panels featuring bright geometric patterns of stripes and grids, paired with complementary or contrasting panels of equal scale.

A Contemporary Creative Process

I love heading outside and teaching landscape art en plein air, but last year my landscape plans were given a contemporary twist through the work and artistic process of painter, writer, and teaching artist Dahlia Elsayed. We were fortunate to have Elsayed speak at our 2022 Art Educators of New Jersey Conference, where she explained how she uses stream-of-consciousness writing to uncover her sense of place, much affected by her family’s history of displacement.

Stamped Space Invaders

Printmaking seems like a magical art form to elementary students. They watch with fascination as they pull back their stamp to see a design transferred to paper. In this project, fourth-grade students make their own stamp, use it to create a patterned background, and then use the stamp again to create a print with a space invader as the subject. This project requires lots of repetition, pattern, and planning.

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An Artist-in-Residence: Carlos Bautista Biernnay

I first encountered the work of Chilean-born fiber artist Carlos Bautista Biernnay at a local gallery. The piece was La Peste, part of a show commemorating the twentieth anniversary of 9/11 and the beginnings of our recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. I have always been fascinated by textile art of all kinds, and I was amazed at how Carlos was able to incorporate so many different elements into his tapestries.

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Tondo-Inspired Abstract Paintings

Anyone studying contemporary art will notice that many modern visual artists use adaptation in their work. Adaptation can be a difficult concept for young artists to grasp. It has become so ubiquitous that I knew I needed to find a way for students to understand it so they could apply it in their own work. For my students, I defined adaptation as “taking an idea that already exists and putting your own spin on it.”

Exploring Alternative Mark-Making

This project came at the perfect time, after my Drawing Intensive students had completed a large-scale realistic drawing assignment. I wanted to give them the freedom to experiment in their mark-making, and this challenge checked all the boxes. The physicality of mark-making became a performance, requiring students to use their entire bodies to prevent their charcoal-taped drawing stick from making an unwanted mark.

Anywhere But Here

I had learned about handscapes (landscapes the size of one’s hand) from a visiting artist, and I thought pieces this size would be a nice contrast to the large paintings students had recently finished. I decided that postcard-like pieces about places we all long to visit or revisit after the pandemic would be relevant. And that’s how the project Anywhere But Here got its name.

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Unlocking Creative Voices

By encouraging students to avoid thoughtless mimicry, I strive to instill in them a profound sense of engagement and exploration, which lies at the core of my passion for teaching art. I’ve found that visual journaling is an excellent tool for steering students away from appropriation and helping them to develop their own diverse and creative approaches. I tell them that I’m not “Pinterest-ed” in what cool things they might find online, but I’m really excited to see how they’ll channel their own individual ideas.

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Expressing Connection

Jacob Ginga is an art educator, painter, printmaker, and street artist. His passion for art and desire to connect with others are vital components of his practice. His works, even when completely nonobjective abstractions, such as Brackish Waters (p. 51), employ diverse visual languages that invite viewers to contemplate the narratives Ginga believes are inherent in all of his work, though he rarely delivers definitive statements.

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