Studio/Art/Design Space (2011 Strategic Plan)

An increasingly high demand in studio art has exacerbated the chronic shortage of student studio workspaces and classrooms. At the same time, there is a need to provide contemporary “smart” art and technology classrooms to serve students from Studio Art, DART, and the Lemelson Center. These classrooms would provide access to a wide range of media, software and hardware, and offer collaborative spaces where faculty and students could work together. The Art Barn would be renovated to provide state of the art data projection and audio technology, new lighting, and improved ventilation. An addition would house new student studio spaces and a multi-use “smart” art and technology classroom. An additional FTE in studio art is needed to meet high student demand and to restore the former complement of faculty in this area of study.

Comments
Please include your thoughts on the importance of the initiative, how to frame the issue, things that may be missing, and any additional comments here (you can do so by logging into Hampedia and clicking edit):


 * I am excited by the work we are doing now to develop the concept for a Center for Creativity at Hampshire College. This Center would strengthen inventiveness, applied design, and social/sustainable entrepreneurship work across campus and give the Lemelson and DART programs a permanent, adequately funded home while fully integrating their resources with the academic work of the schools. I believe such a Center would inspire major gifts, especially for social/sustainable entrepreneurship activities. - Cheri Butler, Institutional Advancement
 * Please include Architecture, Media Design and Book Arts in your list here. Currently they share a single inadequate studio in EDH.
 * Currently it is difficult to coordinate classes in the arts because they all generally are at the same time. Not all art based classes are in the same departments which make it difficult for staff to communicate and coordinate class times. An effort to not have as many classes in one school at the same time would be appreciated. I imagine this would involve the initiative to increase space and faculty.
 * How does this initiative differ from (or overlap with?) Model Laboratories and Studio Spaces (2011 Strategic Plan)? Rebecca Thomas, F'07
 * I'm concerned about this focus on implementing "smart art" and technology classrooms. What does smart art refer to and how it would improve studio art education? While I agree that the art barn is in need of new ventilation, I don't really think that updating any other technology in the art barn should be a priority, as the art barn is currently lacking basic supplies such as drawing easels, chairs, mirrors for self portraits, tables, and storage space. –There also aren’t any waist level tables in the art barn, which struck me as very odd when I arrived on campus this past fall. I also don't really understand the need for audio technology in the art barn, perhaps that would be more useful in the film and photo building. I agree that the art data projection system could be improved, but I'm not sure that it needs to be state of the art; a new projector for the critique room would likely satisfy most needs for visual projection. The art barn only has about twenty drawing easels, this posed great difficulties in my beginning painting class last semester as an introductory drawing course met during the same time period; the drawing class had precedent in using the easels. This left my class without proper facilities to foster the development of drawing skills, a crucial component for pursuing any art form.  I found working in the art barn very difficult.
 * In my opinion studio art education at Hampshire would be most improved by making some simple additions, rather than purchasing expensive technologies. I don't think our art program should rely on technology, as I personally believe that while technology can be a beautiful asset to art, it is also one of the last things that fosters creativity.  Some of my ideas are to create additional storage space for student work and supplies, increase the number of drawing easels or purchase fold-out tables (which could also be used for book arts), and to possibly purchase a mat cutter which could be used by both drawing and book arts students.  I also think that purchasing mirrors for self portraits would be useful- we could also simply mount mirrors on the walls of the art barn (I believe that floor length mirrors are fairly inexpensive).  (I believe that Hampshire owns some mirrors, but again the beginning drawing class, rather than my painting class, had access to them during spring semester of 2011).  If the art barn is to become a flexible, multi-use space we need some of these basic supplies before we think about expanding technology.  I also think that increasing the number of studios should take precedent over implementing new technologies.  Judith Philips [mailto:jhp10@hampshire.edu jhp10@hampshire.edu]