FORT WAYNE, Ind. — The University of Saint Francis School of Creative Arts will host the annual convention for the Art Educators Association of Indiana (AEAI) on November 1-4. This convention, “Refining our skills, Reviving our spirit,” will bring nearly 300 art educators to the USF campus and Fort Wayne community.
In addition to attending workshops on the USF campus, art educators will tour public art spaces in downtown Fort Wayne and participate in a “gallery hop” by visiting art galleries across Fort Wayne. The opening reception will be hosted by the Fort Wayne Museum of Art.
There will be an Artist Reception on Friday, November 2 from 6:00-8:00 p.m at the Mimi and Ian Rolland Art Center (2701 Spring Street). “Orbits,” a multi-media installation by California-based artist Nathaniel Ober, includes interactive instruments and video projection that follow the rhythm of planetary movements. Also featured are small-scale sculptures by Christian D. Schmit, who upcycles found materials to create dioramas. This reception is free and open to the public.
Workshops will be presented by art educators from across Indiana, SOCA faculty, as well as three internationally renowned keynote speakers:
Nathaniel Ober is an internationally known experimental digital artist who has a unique hybrid creative practice that spans sculpture, sound, instrument building, digital prototyping, astrophysics, interactivity, immersive environments and more. A public lecture will be presented on Saturday, November 3, from 2:00-2:45 p.m. in the USF North Campus Auditorium (2702 Spring Street).
Barbara Rosenstock is the author of “The Noisy Paint Box,” a Caldecott Honor Book. Her new book “The Secret Kingdom,” is about India’s “outsider” artist Nek Chand, and centers around themes of refugees, recycling and returning home. Rosenstock will deliver a public lecture on Saturday, November 3 from 10:00-10:45 a.m. in the USF North Campus Auditorium. A book signing of these two titles will take place immediately following the lecture. Many of Rosenstock’s other previously released books will also be available for purchase and signing.
Oliver Herring is a contemporary, conceptual, installation artist from Germany and based in New York. Sponsored by the USF Jesters, this New York-based performance/conceptual artist will present a public lecture at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 4, followed by an artist-directed “Task” from 10:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m in the North Campus Gymnasium. The “task” will promote creativity and participation from the audience and campus community. His “tasks” have been featured on the PBS program Art:21.
All keynote artist lectures are free and open to the public.
Founded in 1890 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition, the University of Saint Francis offers more than 70 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs through the School of Health Sciences, School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Keith Busse School of Business and Entrepreneurial Leadership and School of Creative Arts. In addition to its traditional programs, USF designs focused curricula for working adults in Fort Wayne, Crown Point and online. USF Downtown houses the university’s business and music technology programs while offering enhanced internship and networking opportunities for students. The University of Saint Francis campus experience includes 16 athletic programs boasting two individual and four team NAIA national championships, and is recognized as an NAIA Five-Star Champion of Character institution. Approximately 2,200 students from a broad geographic region attend USF.