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Master of Fine Arts in
Contemporary Art Practices at
Portland State University
Instagram post 2196896119211371623_2228530466 Today’s test run of Everyday Disaster Research with @zephxfish, applying methods gleaned from a Design Thinking class this term. . . #socialpractice #everydaydisastertraining #sociallyengagedart @psuartandsocialpractice
Instagram post 2196892613041702912_2228530466 Quickie design challenge during our inspiring hands-on intensive with Rosten Woo yesterday: come up with signage for a newly renovated building on PSU campus that reveals something new about the space. Illia brought us to the echoey stairways, which seem to be the only part of campus where graffiti sticks around. His sign: “Unpoliced Walls”. We also learned what a “Norman Door” is, learned the word for “stairs” in 15 languages, and made up a fictional narrative about a guerrilla plant installation on a sky bridge. . . #socialpractice #sociallyengagedart #mfa
Instagram post 2196014144933903257_2228530466 I love that I can participate in amazing workshops like this one with Rosten Woo (@rostenwoo) from my studio in Walla Walla, WA. #psuartandsocialpractice rocks. #remotelife #rostenwoo @tiakramer
Instagram post 2195617845659194458_2228530466 Tomorrow we will be doing an intensive with Rosten Woo of the Center for Urban Pedagogy. He gave an inspiring talk and discussion tonight at PNCA about his practice, which blends elements of human-centered design with things we might call social practice. Looking forward to diving in more! Pictured: poster mapping the inter modular transportation network, made with members of a longshoremens union looking to think strategically about their leverage points in a globalized economy. . . @we_are_cup @rostenwoo
Instagram post 2195596904707135897_2228530466 Found social practice on Broadway Bridge: a series of notes for people maybe gazing a bit too long at the city lights in the water. Thanks for the morale boost, Civil Unrest Bicycle Club!
Instagram post 2192621955436709281_2228530466 A few years ago the PSU Art and Social Practice MFA program worked with @portlandartmuseum on a project they funded called See You Again. The idea was to create a model for a system to select and encourage museums to acquire non-material based art works from artists. We decided to use a caucus style approach. Several students from the program picked artists projects that could be translated into instructions and then presented information about the artists and the projects to a public audience. Afterwards the audience clustered around the projects that they thought should be purchased. There was a lot of contentious debate and shifting around and in the end the work that was selected was called Not MoMA by @ssyjuco . . Initially the MFA program owned the piece and it was recreated as part of a @ksmoca exhibition. Then it was submitted to and was accepted by the Portland Art Museum’s acquisition committee and is now in PAM’s permanent collection. It was recreated again there at the museum for an exhibition that @libby_pmoma curated. We hope that the See You Again project encourages more museums to collect and work with instructional and non-object based work, especially social practice type projects. The first photo is of students from the program (including @amandaleighevans who selected and presented Stephanie’s work) handing over the work (in instruction form) to @smkrajewski curator of contemporary art at PAM. Just one of the many amazing projects the program has worked on over the years. . Remember applications are due Jan 12th. Feel free to DM with questions.
Instagram post 2191933418718472673_2228530466 The PSU Art and Social Practice MFA is what we call a Flexible Residency Program, that means that the students can be either in Portland taking classes or remote and taking the exact same classes online. (Note the red circles and arrows in the photos from past classes indicating the screens and projections that the remote online students are using to attend classes.) With the flexible residency model students can choose to spend their three years in the program in Portland, away from Portland, or a combination of the two. We have and have had students participating in the program from NYC, San Francisco, Braddock PA, Scotland, Singapore, Santa Fe, Humboldt Co, rural Kansas, Seattle, Walla Walla, etc. . . Remember applications for Fall 2020 are being accepted now until Jan 12th! (Tell a friend.)
Instagram post 2191101879713559698_2228530466 For a number of years the PSU Art and Social Practice MFA Program published a series of books called Reference Points. Students selected artists that they admired to collaborate with on the books, some of which include @wendytewald #johnmalpede @temporaryservices #benkinmont #centerforurbanpedagogy @helguerapablo #luiscamnitzer and @_pedro_reyes_ . . @jendelosreyes edited several of the first books and #julieault worked with students on most of them. Reference Points came to an end when the Portland version of @publicationstudio closed, but we continue similar work through the Sofa Journal and the publications that all graduating students make and distribute. Some of the students who participated in Reference Points include: @mjmenjivar @marikasherman #carmenpapalia @achmoser @nolcal @la_pati_vg @visavistravis among many others. Early design work was done by @nicolecameraphone and then taken over by @marikasherman . Copies are still available at the publication studio website. . (Remember applications for the program can be submitted now until Jan 12th, tell a friend!)
Instagram post 2189539783817512506_2228530466 Speaking of amazing folks like @mirandajuly that students from the PSU Art and Social Practice MFA program have been able to meet and learn from over the years in various ways here are some more examples: @_pedro_reyes_ @salmon_creek_farm @leewalton123 @carsonellis @apcray #julieault @littlebrownmushroom @chrisjohansonart @hankwillisthomas @andreazittel among many others. Looking forward to our program trip to Chicago this year where we will meet artists and curators from there. Remember the deadline for Fall program applications is Jan 12th 2020. Tell your friends!
Instagram post 2188052111777189832_2228530466 You will choose a department on campus other than the art department and become an “Artist in Residence” for that department during the quarter. You will work with people in your selected department to create a project that responds to the department’s qualities, needs, and interests. You will document your process and project, and will be graded on engagement in class and with your department. There are no pre-reqs!!! ART 327 (4 credits), questions? Email roz@pdx.edu
Instagram post 2187348946274488076_2228530466 Thanks so much @mirandajuly for your recent amazing post about the PSU Art and Social Practice program! Here is Miranda in her office in LA talking to folks from the MFA program while we were on a trip to Southern California a few years ago. Applications for Fall 2020 are open now, the deadline is January 12th. As part of the application you get to make fun videos inspired by Miranda’s participatory web based project #learningtoloveyoumore created in collaboration with @harrell_fletcher director of the PSU Art and Social Practice MFA program. Scholarships and TAships are available, contact the program to ask questions or schedule a visit. #mirandajuly
Instagram post 2186208733129261123_2228530466 Today, alumnus of the program #carmenpapalia visited the workshop class and gave a presentation about his amazing work including showing us this extremely long white cane which was used in an early performance designed to disrupt assumptions about disability and access in public spaces. Thanks Carmen!
Instagram post 2185382011408341049_2228530466 Thanks @juliandassai for joining our class this past Thursday! We enjoyed learning about snapshots of local people in community based comics and about the intricacies of creating a graphic novel that shared histories told by community members, collected by (and drawn by) local teens, while working alongside institutions. 🙏🏼
Instagram post 2181736370656447981_2228530466 The PSU Art and Social Practice MFA program meets weekly for classes at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School, a public preK-5 school in NE Portland where the KSMoCA project @ksmoca takes place. Students and alumni from the program take part in various aspects of working with KSMoCA and our annual Assembly conference will take place at the school this year in June.
Instagram post 2181698048147921791_2228530466 Meet @shelbieloomis ✨ . . . #artandsocialpractice #psuartandsocialpractice #socialpracticeartist #artist #shelbieloomis #newmexico #santafe
Instagram post 2180330553151564763_2228530466 Last Thursday we had an incredible conversation with “Herukhuti" Sharif Williams, a New York City based activist, artist, poet, and professor. He told us about his work that addresses the complexities, challenges, and beauty of being Black, bisexual, and a man in the United States and about the upcoming documentary No Homo | No Hetero: Sexual Fluidity and Manhood in Black America. On Nov 26th we are having artist Carmen Papalia #carmenpapalia an alumni of the Art and Social Practice program as our guest! Looking forward to learning about Papalia’s work!
Instagram post 2178913135099203071_2228530466 Portland State University's School of Art + Design invites applications for the MFA in Art and Social Practice. Recently included in Artsy’s list of The Top 15 Art Programs in the country, the Art and Social Practice MFA is a three-year, flexible residency program combining individual artistic practice, group work, community partnerships, and experiential learning. The program's blend of critical and professional practice, progressive pedagogy, collaborative social engagement, and transdisciplinary exploration produces an immersive educational environment. As an extension of the program’s unique pedagogy, graduate students have the opportunity to collaborate directly in ongoing projects and partnerships across the city: Columbia River Creative Initiatives. CRCI is an artist-led creative platform with programs and classes held at the Columbia River Correctional Institution, a minimum-security prison in Northeast Portland, Oregon. Programming includes an Artist Residency for currently incarcerated artists, focusing on a range of topics related primarily to collaboration, conceptual art, and socially engaged art, The Inside Show, a variety show produced inside the prison, as well as graduate student-initiated special projects. King School Museum of Contemporary Art. KSMoCA is a contemporary art museum inside of Martin Luther King Jr. School (PreK-5th) in NE Portland, OR. KSMoCA’s programs are collaboratively developed with the MLK Jr. School community, PSU students, and a team of artists. In addition to these opportunities, graduate students can also join the editorial board of the self-published program journal and co-create an end-of-year social practice Assembly conference. . . Scholarships and TAships are available. Contact us to schedule a visit.
Instagram post 2177275087496244396_2228530466 Do you know @michaelstevensonjr? @ksmoca . . #artandsocialpractice #psuartandsocialpractice #socialpracticeartist #artist #artistmichaelbernardstevensonjr
Instagram post 2175845662686725332_2228530466 Capturing ‘the remote experience.’ Tuesday exercise time included a group reenactment of Russians’ daily exercise routines during Stalin’s last year alive. Killing it team. #artandsocialpractice #psuartandsocialpractice #tuesdayexercises
Instagram post 2175749183217395712_2228530466 A request for character references, to be addressed to “an authority YOU respect”... Authority is a Question with @zephxfish and the Office of Neighborship
Instagram post 2157045861207843359_2228530466 Today we were joined by local artist @soheilaazadiartist who talked about her practice of examining gendered spaces through exchanges and collaborating with her mom in Iran. First year student, Illia tries on Soheila’s “afghan” made by her mother.
Instagram post 2157030647921973349_2228530466 HAPPENING NOW! Erickson Gallery, 5-7pm, 2nd and Burnside
Instagram post 2156928006332347350_2228530466 Another announcement from our prison collaboration - Episode 1 of The Inside Show is LIVE! It’s got: CRCI Fashion Show sketch feat. Fred Armisen @sordociego 🧲 Poetry by Carlos Cotto 🧲 Pocket Carrots sketch written by Mark Arnold 🧲 Microwave Magic: Ramerrito (that’s a ramen-burrito) 🧲 Art Skillshare (ninja turtles) by David “Ohio” Phipps 🧲 The Trail of Tears by the CRCI Native Drum Circle You can kick back and watch the entire episode or individual videos! Find all the links on YouTube at bit.ly/insideshowep1 or crci.art/the-inside-show P.S. due to technical delays it will take a couple more weeks to broadcast on Portland public access TV, but enjoy it on youtube first. Thanks to everyone who came out for The Inside Show launch! Please share and tell us what you think! #theinsideshow @crci.art
Instagram post 2156774906887698061_2228530466 One of the fine pumpkins that will be available this evening at Memorandum of Understanding, at Erickson Gallery at 5pm! All pumpkins are $25 dollars, and proceeds go directly to the artists. Buyers also must sign a contract and enter into an agreement to document the pumpkins on their doorstep, photos of which will be re-exhibited in a closing reception on the 30th. Please come!
Instagram post 2155446331551020822_2228530466 Tonight! The Inside Show outside launch at 630pm, @picapdx. Followed by a Q&A. Hope to see you there! 🤘🏻#theinsideshow @crci.art
Instagram post 2154207759812759170_2228530466 Microwave Magic on The Inside Show✨ Edward is a stellar cook on his prison unit. A lot of inmates hate the chow food they get inside. Some cook or pool resources for their favorite chef to make meals. Microwave Magic is a segment where inmates showcase genius ways of making gourmet meals using just a microwave. Every unit has one microwave and people get to order limited items off a list to cook with. Recipes are often passed through word of mouth, even through prisons. On set the team has made smothered cheesy burritos, taffy, chocolate cheesecake and more. This particular episode always made people drool and apparently more burritos were being made as a result of this demo! #microwavemagic #theinsideshow @crci.art 🤘🏻 LAUNCHING TUESDAY 10/15, 630pm at @picapdx. (Event details: bit.ly/theinsideshowlaunch) Also on YouTube and Portland public access tv. Visit crci.art/the-inside-show 🙏🏻
Instagram post 2152622343418507002_2228530466 Launching next week! The Inside Show is a variety show made in Columbia River Correctional Institution, a minimum security prison in Portland, Oregon. Inmates take on roles of producer, host, performer, writer, cameraperson, and more. This robust collaboration of eccentric possibilities challenges perceptions of incarcerated individuals and what happens ‘on the inside’. —— Content includes cooking, braiding, poetry, comedy, original music, native drum circle, sports, conceptual art, and more - launching Oct 15 at @picapdx, YouTube, Portland public access TV in partnership with @opensignalpdx, and inside Columbia River Correctional Institution. Launch at PICA: 10/15, 630pm, with Q&A after. Please share! —— Hosted by Mark Arnold, with Fred Armisen @sordociego as episode one's guest host. The series is produced by Jacob Diepenbrock and alumnis @saltyxj13 and @spencerbs. Directed by Salty Xi Jie Ng. — event info: bit.ly/theinsideshowlaunch — full teaser video: bit.ly/insideshowMV
Instagram post 2151983221012120212_2228530466 This year continues to be the year of big projects. Seen here is my main man Armon Poostapasand as we get ready to launch our podcast Tin Can Phone featuring voices of men currently and formerly incarcerated at Columbia River Correctional Institution in North Portland. Make sure to follow me @michaelstevensonjr and @crci.art to keep getting updates when the show makes its debut on @kbooradio!
Instagram post 2151915743141543143_2228530466 Recently third year @michaelstevensonjr got a glowing review in the Oregon Arts Watch. To read the full article check out the link in @michaelstevensonjr’s IG profile!
Instagram post 2145443473145564863_2228530466 First day back in class! After check in and before student presentations and topical discussion @zephxfish lead an exercise that involved moving furniture all over the room and getting our bodies upside down etc. Great start to a new school year!
Instagram post 2144020827203744502_2228530466 “This obviously isn’t an official trail”... I believe we’ve hit on a core metaphor for our program.
Instagram post 2143358657373822101_2228530466 Today @rozcrews taught a workshop for our annual campout retreat inspired by George Maciunas’ “ instant class kit” project. Super excited for the new academic year!
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