NWSA Presents the 2nd Installment of Artists - Scholars & Curators Lecture Series With Speakers from Across the Nation

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The New World School of the Arts visual arts division will offer students and faculty the opportunity to participate in a new virtual workshop entitled “Artists, Scholars, & Curators: A Lecture Series.” This series of lectures will focus on contemporary artmaking and research practices, expose students to new pedagogical practices and reflect on the current world in which visual artists are anchoring their artistic practice. The lectures will include a Q&A session giving attendees the opportunity to engage with the presenters and delve into the subject matter.

“The NWSA visual arts division will keep this lecture series as a Zoom event because we will be able to have speakers from all over the world including Denver, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Chicago, Detroit, and Columbus. Most of the speakers will focus on career advice and their own career paths to help students learn techniques to balance art practice and life responsibilities after college. Students will also have the opportunity to engage in a dialogue about career path options they might want to explore after graduation,” said O. Gustavo Plascencia, NWSA Dean of Visual Arts.

ALL SCHEDULED LECTURE SERIES WILL BE PRESENTED VIA ZOOM AT 2PM EST

September 3rd, 2021

Career in Teaching to Non-Profit 

Samantha Johnson, Executive Director & Curator at Colorado Photographic Arts Center

Johnson has been the Executive Director and Curator at the Colorado Photographic Arts Center since 2015. She holds a certificate in Arts Development and Program Management from the University of Denver, an MFA from Lesley University College of Art & Design, and a BFA from Alfred University. Prior to joining CPAC, she taught photography and visual arts for 12 years at high schools in Boston and Denver. She has curated exhibitions with contemporary artists such as Jess T. Dugan, Daniel Coburn, Barbara Ciurej & Lindsay Lochman, and Zora Murff. Samantha has served as a reviewer at Houston FotoFest, Review Santa Fe, PhotoPlus New York, Medium, Month of Photography (MoP), and Filter. She has juried several exhibitions including Critical Mass and The Fence. She is a longtime member of the Society for Photographic Education and served as Treasurer of the Southwest region from 2013-2016 and Co-Chair of SPE’s 2013 Southwest regional conference in Denver. She was named one of Colorado’s Top 100 Creatives 3.0 by Westword and has been featured in Lenscratch.

October 1st, 2021

Chasing Ghosts: Silence, recollection and belonging in the Afghan diaspora

Gazelle Samizay, Multi-disciplinary artist and filmmaker

Born in Kabul, Afghanistan and raised in rural Washington state, Gazelle Samizay’s work often reflects the complexities and contradictions of culture, nationality, and gender through the lens of her bicultural identity. Her work in photography, video and mixed media has been exhibited across the US and internationally, including at Whitechapel Gallery, London; Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery; the California Museum of Photography, Riverside; the de Young Museum, San Francisco; and the Slamdance Film Festival, Park City, UT. Her pieces are part of the permanent collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art; the Center for Photography at Woodstock, NY; and En Foco, NY. In addition to her studio practice, her writing has been published in One Story, Thirty Stories: An Anthology of Contemporary Afghan American Literature and she is a founding member of the Afghan American Artists and Writers Association. Samizay has received numerous awards and residencies, including from the Princess Grace Foundation, NY; Craft Contemporary, Los Angeles; the Arizona Community Foundation, Phoenix; Level Ground, Los Angeles and the Torrance Art Museum. She is currently an artist-in-residence at Side Street Projects, Los Angeles. She received her MFA in photography at the University of Arizona and currently lives in San Francisco.

November 5th, 2021

Working Artists Survival Guide

Micheal Swank, Director at PRPGMX

Micheal Swank graduated from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago with a BFA – Printmaking, and Design in 1998. In his design career, he has been Art Director for California Tan (packaging), San Francisco Examiner (Hearst), Miller Huber Marketing, Joie de Vivre Hotels, S.F. Business Times, Disney, Dance Magazine, Pasadena Weekly, and others. Micheal began to teach Graphic and Web Design in 2001 and decided to pursue teaching as a full-time profession. In 2006, he completed his Master’s in technology from Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA. He led within the design education community as Academic Department Director, Graphic Design and Web Design Interactive Medias at the Art Institute of California Inland Empire, Art Institute of California San Francisco, and Associate Dean of Academics Art Institute of Houston – North. In January 2012, after a significant car accident caused him to reflect on his dreams to pursue his art, he left his position as Dean to live abroad, travel, learn, create, and reignite his passion for art. He has since lived in China and Mexico City DF; after spending two years focusing his practice in Ventura, CA Micheal relocated to Mexico City permanently in 2018. In 2019 Micheal openedPRPG.mx(Proyectos Residencia y Proyectos Galeria MX) to create a sense of community between the artists of Mexico and the rest of the world with an emphasis on amplifying the stories of the queer community.

February 4th, 2022

[Working Title]

Tony Lewis

In an ever-expanding engagement with drawing, Tony Lewis (b. 1986, Los Angeles, CA) harnesses the medium of graphite powder to confront such social and political topics as race, power, communication, and labor. The material provides a literal and conceptual foundation for the artist's work, as it is stretched, smudged, rubbed, spliced, and folded across a variety of handmade and found surfaces. Graphite powder is an inherently unruly medium, a substance that threatens to wander. Lewis nurtures this dispersal, allowing for the powder to build into a ubiquitous state that settles upon and indiscriminately marks paper surfaces; the graphite-slick studio floor becomes a "tool the same way a pencil is a tool." Lewis lives and works in Chicago. His work has been the subject of recent solo exhibitions including Anthology 2014-2016, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C. (2018); Plunder, Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA (2017); Alms, Comity and Plunder, Museo Marino Marini, Florence, Italy (2016); and nomenclature movement free pressure power weight, Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland, OH (2015). Lewis participated the 2014 iteration of the Whitney Biennial at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, NY and was the recipient of the 2017-2018 Ruth Ann and Nathan Perlmutter Artist-in-Residence Award at the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University, Waltham, MA.

March 4th, 2022

Art Practice as Experiment or Industry

Paul Echeverria, Multidisciplinary artist and Assistant Professor of Digital and Emerging Media Production at Wayne State University

Paul Echeverria is a filmmaker, digital artist, and educator. His creative practice examines the formative dynamics of childhood, parenthood, and the family structure. In addition, he creates works that contemplate the unavoidable collision between humans and technology. Echeverria's debut feature, …sol y lluvia, won Best Foreign Language Film at the Long Island Film Festival. In addition to filmmaking, he is a digital artist who works in the areas of e-literature, social media, and data manipulation. His films and digital works have been exhibited at multiple venues, including the Angelika Film Center, Anthology Film Archives, the Bronx Museum of the Arts, and Experiments in Cinema. Echeverria is an Assistant Professor of Digital and Emerging Media Production at Wayne State University and serves as a board member for the non-profit organization the Millennium Film Workshop. Prior to arriving at Wayne State, he was the founding director of the Digital and Interactive Media Arts (DIMA) program at Western Connecticut State University.

April 1st, 2022

Return to the Blue Mountains

Amanda Kline, Interdisciplinary artist and Assistant Professor of Art, Otterbein University

Amanda Le Kline is an interdisciplinary artist who works with photography, video, installation, and participatory art forms. Her research interests include history, nature, identity, and women and gender studies. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Lycoming College in 2008 and her Master of Fine Arts from The Ohio State University in 2014. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Art at Otterbein University. Kline is a member of The Page Collective, an artist collaboration group that facilitates community engagement through site-specific installations and participatory art projects. Their work is invested in exploration, education, and research. Kline has recently had solo exhibitions at The Beyond Gallery in Bennington, Vermont, and the Port Columbus Gateway to the Arts Gallery in Columbus. She participates in regional, national, and international group exhibitions, with recent galleries including The Dairy Barn Arts Center in Athens, Ohio, Box 13 Artspace in Houston, Texas, and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations in Kolkata, India.

ABOUT NEW WORLD SCHOOL OF THE ARTS

Aspiring artists in the NWSA Visual Arts division can join other exceptionally talented students as they engage in the pursuit of their artistic career in the visual, graphic, or electronic arts. Trained by nationally renowned practicing artists, students at New World School of the Arts are encouraged to develop a personal, artistic, and aesthetic vision while mastering their technical skills in traditional and new media. Students are allowed to explore new paths while at the same time being exposed to the work of both classical and contemporary masters. Through disciplined training in traditional and new media, students develop new skills and refine others while gaining invaluable understanding of the roles of art and design in society. Areas of concentration include Art & Technology, Drawing, Graphic Design, Painting, Photography, and Sculpture. Information about the NWSA Visual Arts division at (305) 237-3620.

A Florida center of excellence in the visual and performing arts, NWSA provides a comprehensive program of artistic, creative, and academic development through a curriculum that reflects the rich multicultural state of Florida. With programs accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art, Dance, Music and Theater, NWSA offers four-year BFA and BM college degrees, as well as the high school diploma. Through its rigorous curriculum and conservatory-style teaching NWSA empowers its students to become leaders in the arts. New World School of the Arts was created by the Florida Legislature as a center of excellence in the performing and visual arts. It is an educational partnership of Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Miami Dade College, and the University of Florida. Information about New World School of the Arts at 305-237-3135 or at http://nwsa.mdc.edu/

“Unspecified Void” 2021 Visual Arts BFA exhibition showcases cutting-edge artwork

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BFA Photo

MIAMI – New World School of the Arts Visual Arts BFA class of 2021 will be presenting the final show in the iconic venue The Moore Building. Unspecified Void features the work of 28 recent Bachelor of Fine Arts degree graduates of NWSA. “This year, our students persevered during very challenging times, said O. Gustavo Plascencia, Dean of Visual Arts at NWSA. “Despite the challenges the pandemic has brought to us, they continued to work in makeshift studios at home and produced an incredible body of work.” The work included in the exhibition ranges from documentation of the pandemic to heartbreak to futuristic imagination, among other themes. The exhibition culminates these young artists' academic training at the school and will present a wide range of media and themes. The work on view was curated by faculty member and Miami gallerist Fredric Snitzer along with dean Plascencia.

UNSPECIFIC VOID: 2021 BFA EXHIBITION
• June 21 - July 9, 2021
• Monday - Saturday 11 AM - 7 PM / Sunday 1 PM - 7 PM
• Moore Building, 4040 NE 2nd Avenue, Miami FL 33137
• Free and open to the public. Information at 305-237-3649

Among the works to be presented is Alian Martinez Rives’ Kakotopia. A visual arts graduate from the Art & Technology discipline, the artist concludes his tenure at NWSA with a VR installation comprised of archival digital prints which address society’s manipulation of reality. “My work alludes to the essence of human actions, their influence on the environment, and the minimal implementation of technological processes beyond the artist’s control.” Alicia Betancourt uses her color drawing entitled Can You See Me Now? to address social topics which are central to the nation’s ongoing dialogue. “My work explores the relationship between my experience in everyday life and “intersectionality” in the U.S. The current world operates within the song of the once voiceless mass now roaring with unapologetic confidence. These individuals are united through what should always have been rightfully theirs.” Through photography, Michelle Alvarez Collazo aims to illustrate the stages emotions that often accompany emotional breakups. Collazo’s Rotten Relationship series highlights the “distortion of emotions through the process of healing. My main intention is not only to show the various stages of a breakup but to show whoever has had this experience that they are not the only ones going through all that pain and fury.” Adrian Sena also addresses the mind and how emotions are affected by violence. His large-scale paining, Places Between, highlights how acts of violence are encoded in the mind. “My objective of showing struggle, brokenness, identity, and shame is not as a barrier, but as a bridge to transformation, victory, freedom and hope.”

Exhibiting students include Michelle Alvarez Collazo, Alicia Betancourt, Lauren Bouza, Victoria Braga, Ruth Burotte, Erika Cantin, Cassandra Cespedes, Kassandra D’Angelo, Anastasia del Valle, Nuria Dolphin, Daniella Figeroa, Gabriel Garlin, Daniel Gongora, Nicole Gonzalez, Adela Gonzalez, Carlos Jimenez, Alian Martinez Rives, Luis Mederos, John Medina, Eric Mendoza, Daniel Ochoa, Otari Oliva, Katherine Otero, Adrian Sena, Pedro Sena, Megan Tran, Luis Velasco, Astrielle Williams.

About New World School of the Arts’ Visual Arts program: At New World School of the Arts, visual arts students can explore and develop their personal artistic and aesthetic vision while being guided by a dynamic and distinguished faculty who are all practicing artists. Through disciplined training in traditional and new media, students also develop new skills and refine others while gaining invaluable understanding of the roles of art and design in society. Areas of concentration in visual arts include Drawing, Electronic Media, Graphic Design, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, and Sculpture. Information about the NWSA Visual Arts program is available by calling 305-237-3620, by visiting http://nwsa.mdc.edu/ or by calling the main office at 305-235-3135.

About New World School of the Arts: A Florida center of excellence in the visual and performing arts, NWSA provides a comprehensive program of artistic, creative, and academic development through a curriculum that reflects the rich multicultural state of Florida. With programs accredited by the National Association of Schools of Art, Dance, Music and Theater, NWSA offers four-year BFA and BM college degrees, as well as the high school diploma. Through its rigorous curriculum and conservatory-style teaching NWSA empowers its students to become leaders in the arts. New World School of the Arts was created by the Florida Legislature as a center of excellence in the performing and visual arts. It is an educational partnership of Miami Dade County Public Schools, Miami Dade College, and the University of Florida.

Commissioner and Mitchell Wolfson Sr Foundation partner to support Miami’s creative ecosystem and New World School of the Arts alumni artists.

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A Reflection of the Times exhibition by Chire Regans
honors legacy of George Floyd and victims of gun violence
May 21 - November 1, 2021, at Bakehouse Art Complex

Commissioner and Mitchell Wolfson Sr Foundation are pleased to announce a new partnership to accelerate the careers of local artists who attended New World School of the Arts as well as to cultivate new art collectors who support NWSA alumni artists' contributions to Miami and society. The partnership, underwritten by a two-year, $100,000 grant from Mitchell Wolfson Sr Foundation, will commission two NWSA alumni visual artists and provide them with curatorial support to share their work with Commissioner’s growing member community. Launching this initiative is Miami-based artist-activist Chire Regans with A Reflection of the Times, a memorial exhibition of portraiture open to the public from May 21 to November 1, 2021, at Bakehouse Art Complex.

Virtual presentation of “In the Red and Brown Water” by NWSA alumnus and Academy Award-winning playwright, Tarell A. McCraney

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New World School of the Arts presents the award-winning play In the Red and Brown Water, written by Tarell Alvin McCraney (NWSA 1999 alumnus) who won an Academy Award for the 2016 film Moonlight. Directed by NWSA theater faculty member James Randolph the play will be presented online as a one-time virtual Premiere, performed by eleven juniors and seniors enrolled in the NWSA college theater program.

This play is highly theatrical,” said director Randolph. “It is poetic in nature and celebrates the Yoruba tradition. The challenge will be to deliver the play in this modality (online) while staying true to the playwright's intent. This is a completely different experience for the actors, director and design team. Instead of thinking outside the box, all involved must think of the best way to deliver this text and story inside collective boxes.”

In the Red and Brown Water Premiere:
Friday, April 24; 7 PM
One day Virtual Premiere: Broadway On Demand
Premiere is Free and open to the public following the link
Information: 305-237-3541

Arts al fresco, a strolling experience brings the arts outdoors for an exciting evening

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Miami -- New World School of the Arts presents its new arts showcase, Arts al fresco, a strolling experience. This event allows guests to leisurely stroll through dedicated art spaces, carefully staged at MDC Wolfson Campus, allowing them to enjoy the arts outdoors and at their own pace, right here in downtown Miami, in a safe and intimate setting. Guests will have the unique opportunity to meet South Florida’s emerging dancers, choreographers, actors, playwrights, musicians, singers, visual artists, painters and sculptors – all while witnessing their creativity come alive.

The showcase, lasting two hours, will be comprised of a visual arts exhibition and numerous dance, music, and theater performances offered in a loop several times each, in specific locations throughout MDC Wolfson Campus. Arts al fresco performances are short and best enjoyed standing up. Some seats will be available and are subject to first come, first served or as needed. MDC Covid-19 Phase 2 protocol will be observed.

ARTS AL FRESCO EXHIBITION & PERFORMANCES
THURSDAY, MARCH 25; 5 M – 7 PM
MIAMI DADE COLLEGE WOLFSON CAMPUS
NEW WORLD SCHOOL OF THE ARTS
25 NE 2 Street, downtown Miami, FL 33132

The award-winning musical PIPPIN to be presented live by NWSA college music theater students

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Pippin press release photo.

The New World School of the Arts college music theater students take to the stage outdoors with the award-winning musical PIPPIN, music & lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and book by Roger O. Hirson. This concert, performed by 19 NWSA junior and senior college music theater students is directed by faculty member James Randolph with music direction by faculty member, Jeff Hess.

PIPPIN live performance:
Friday, March 5 at 7 PM
North Beach Bandshell. 7275 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33141
Free and open to the public
Capacity is limited and admission is subject to first come, first served
Covid-19 CDC guidelines will be observed at the venue

PIPPIN will also be streamed on ShowTx4U for a limited time:
Livestream dates will be announced soon at http://nwsa.mdc.edu

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