Welcome to Our 5360 Blog

Welcome to Our 5360 Blog

First off, welcome to the blog. Just so you know, only class members are permitted to blog. This is a private blog and no one else will be reading your comments but your classmates and me.

Here is how things will work. I am asking that you post a minimum of four times per day--so we can develop a virtual dialog between ourselves. That means blogging a few times throughout the day. I am asking that you post your comments by 8 am the following day. Not all at once in a row. I will go through each day and read all of the comments (as I require you too) and note how many times you comment. That's just a technical thing on my part, so I can see who is participating.

Keep in mind that you will need to look on our blog more than one time per day. If you are an early blogger with your posts, wait an hour or two to respond to other comments. It may take a while for people to respond. For those who respond later in the day, I still expect everybody to read the entire day’s posts—even if that means going back to read them. If you miss a day, do not post in the past day. Post your comments for the previous day in the current day. Just let us know you are doing that.

You need to read the syllabus for more information and then look to July 8th for reading assignments and any other information and to begin posting. I will have some comments, questions, or thoughts to begin a discussion for that day. Those are merely to begin a discussion. My comments do not determine the discussion. They are mere prompts to create a discussion. My perspective is but one of many. It does not rule.

In two weeks, I will further explain the project I'd like you to do this semester. You can read about it in the syllabus. I require that you write in first person. That is unfamiliar to many people. But, when you write about your art or a project you are involved in in your capstones (MAE students), you will need to write from your own perspective and life and professional experiences. Let me demonstrate: “I feel that…,” “I believe that…,” “My experiences have been…,” I am hoping that you will blend in your personal, professional, community, and other aspects of your life experiences in your comments.

The two books we are using, I hope, will be interesting to you. We are looking at histories of persons normally ignored, deleted or written out of official histories. We are reading the books simultaneously: A People’s Art History of the United States and Engaged Resistance. As we read them, I want you to think where are you in all of this? Is this information all new to you? What are the authors saying? Where are artists in all of this? Where are teachers in all of this? What do we do with this information (that's the pedagogical part of this)? As this is your and mine first reads of these books, some of the information may startle or frighten you. At first we are reading two three chapters a day; but they are pretty accessible. Toward the middle of the class, the readings decrease, so you will have time to consider a project.

A word about reading books: For many of you, and me, these books will be a first read. I have not read either book. There is only so much I/we can take in from a book with one read. We/you/I may read it from a personal perspective, political, environmental, social, gendered, etc.—there are many ways to engage in a book. I am asking that you look at it from a personal, professional, artistic and/or community perspectives. Feel free to engage yourself in our conversations. Ask questions. Make mistakes. Think beyond. Agree with books. Challenge them.

Each day, I'll post comments and questions to get us started on our readings. Please feel free to bring in movies, books, articles, talks, exhibitions, websites, work and/or experiences, professional and personal conversations and anything else you feel is pertinent to our class. I am hoping we will develop a personal and intimate dialogue on this blog.

Please review all of the tabs and then proceed to July 8: Introductions, where there will be short directions on what to do. Welcome again to Art 5360. Feel free to email me any questions or concerns you may have. If you miss a day, just make up your blog postings in the current day. Always make them up. (Do not make them up in the past day.) Some of you are teachers and things happen; others have summer jobs. No need to apologize on here. Just get your posts in even if they are late. Never a penalty. Please do not fall more than two days behind. Even if two days worth, post in current day.

Please always use "I" language. It will make your posts even more powerful. Feel free to ask questions in your posts. We may not have the answers. Feel free to recommend books or readings or films or exhibitions that relate to our talks/posts. And please read everybody's posts. That will mean you will probably have to catch-up the following day for a few later posts. And feel free to carry discussions forward from one day to the next. And, one last comment about posting on the blog. Starting our second day, post one or two initial comments about the readings. Then, wait a bit, read some of the other posts and post two more times. That way we get a better discussion. Try not to post four times in a row. I understand that means that you might have to go back in later in the day to see what people have posted. But that’s the nature of a non-synchronous course like this. Generally, people post toward the end of the day. We’ll get into a groove that hopefully will work for most of us in the class.

Also, keep in mind that I have made all of us authors, meaning that you can add video and pictures as I can. It’s much easier to do that as an author than a reader. 

One caution, sometimes with blogger your comment/post may not load. There is only so much wordage allowed. Sometimes you will have to break down a long post into two posts. I sometimes write my responses in Word and then paste them into blogger so I don't lose anything--that's just for extra long posts.